Case study: Church St Fitness
Amphis worked with Church St Fitness in Brighton to create a vibrant and inviting atmosphere for their main gym space. During the downtime of COVID restrictions, General Manager at Church St Fitness Josh Siritzky took the opportunity to renovate the studio and, along with offering new equipment to clients, reassessed the lighting with our advice.
Lighting in a gym is integral to the way it functions for many reasons. It must be practical and provide enough ambient illumination to ensure the heavy weights and machinery are used safely. It’s important that members can adequately see their form when working out. In addition to this, a good training facility fosters an environment where everyone feels comfortable and this is encouraged with subtle lighting tricks. And as Josh notes, lighting can help ‘to make any selfie look like an after photo’.
Josh talks further about what he’d visualised for the refurbishment and the collaboration with Amphis:
‘When it came to illuminating the main gym I wanted to achieve three key things. The first was to create an energetic training environment, next was the ability to generate the right shadows and highlights for members when exercising, and lastly to show off the new equipment that we had just fitted.
‘Working closely with Amphis we decided to run three rows of dual recessed spotlights (Signature double square gimbal downlights) in the ceiling to emphasise the main pieces of exercise equipment. Alongside these we added several single spots (Signature deep recessed downlights) to define walkways and training areas. All of this is complemented by a bright, colour-changing LED strip that sits along the top of the full length mirrors. It emits a cool glow and creates the perfect atmosphere for the boutique gym that we have designed.’
David Sheils, Director of Operations at Amphis, explains the lighting design:
‘We have incorporated multiple layers to the lighting plan for Church St Fitness. The main layer uses Signature downlights to illuminate the gym while members are working out. It’s bright enough so everyone can use the equipment safely, but not so harsh to make people feel self-conscious. The next layer adds drama and mood with a programmable RGB strip light and decorative pendants. I chose some of my favourite pendants (Kanns, Spencers and Pepis) for extra character in the reception, café and bathrooms. Lastly, we have a purely functional layer, such as with the natural white Solna Round oyster lights in the bathrooms. In the main gym we installed panel lights that blend into the ceiling when turned off, which is the majority of the time that members are training. However, when the facility is closed and staff need to maintain the equipment and clean, the panel lights will fill each room with bright, natural light.’
Ultimately, the best gauge is in the customer experience:
‘I was amazed walking back into Church St Fitness after the reno! I couldn’t believe it was the same place. The gym has the feel of a classy steakhouse with all the rows of downlights showing off the brilliant new equipment. I would have to say that my favourite part is the yellow LED strip that matches the brand colours and logo perfectly! I love training here. The atmosphere is right and it definitely gets me in the zone for a hard workout!’
