The Gym Group: Sweat Out the Stress by Who Wot Why

The Gym Group has launched a new marketing campaign this week to encourage teenagers aged 16-18 years old to take their first steps towards working-out with the aim of improving teen fitness and tackling exam anxiety.

The brand, which has over 160 Gyms nationally, is opening up its doors for free to any teenager looking to let off steam over the exam period. The offer of a free six-week membership kicked off this week, and runs to the 16 July.

Fronting the campaign is grime artist and TV personality Big Narstie who, in a series of humorous videos, is seen working out alongside teens and chatting to them about what motivates them to workout. The series of short films have been created by The Gym’s creative agency Who Wot Why and were directed by Wayne Holloway with production company UnLtd.

The work shows Big Narstie in the Gym explaining the benefit of sweating out stress. Big Narstie – who has recently become a convert to the Gym ahead of his first MMA fight in October – has publicly spoken in the past about mental health issues and so was keen to back the campaign. Research conducted by The Gym Group found that 77% of teens say exams and revision contribute to increased levels of anxiety and stress.

The campaign is running nationally in the UK across various online environments including Snapchat, Instagram and Spotify, supported with an influencer campaign planned and bought by Goodstuff, and is also underpinned with a PR campaign, driven by Hope&Glory PR.