Fitness Factory

The staff and facilities at factory fitness are wonderful. It looks like there was a change in management and the old management team dropped the ball. Currently the staff is knowledgable, courteous and friendly. I trained with Sam while in St. Louis on business and I couldn’t have been happier. Don’t be persuaded by the reviews from years prior, this is an excellent gym and would recommend it to travelers and residents alike. +1 for steam room and towel service.

PROS:
The location and convenience make this a great choice for your workout. It’s the nicest gym in St. Louis City, but only because there’s little competition. It’s certainly no LA Fitness, David Barton or Equinox, despite this gym’s use of the latter chain’s marketing slogan («It’s not fitness; it’s life»).
The gym is never that crowded, even during typical peak hours, and there’s plenty of equipment. Locker rooms are nice and generally well kept, aside from the often raggedy towels they provide.
CONS:
The worst part of the gym is not the building, it’s management. Quality customer service is in short supply, and some employees are overzealous but lack basic interpersonal and critical thinking skills.
Billing practices are sketchy. Be careful and cautious.
SUMMARY:
The gym is clean and convenient, and there aren’t any comparable options downtown. I loathe working out here because of this monopoly, but nice things often seem hard to come by in St. Louis.
If you find a better gym option, take it! If not, think long and hard before subjecting yourself to the Fitness Factory’s unsavory business model and practices.

This is a review from a visitor’s viewpoint. I stayed at the Courtyard a few blocks from this gym. As such, the usual $ 16 guest pass was reduced to $ 10. The receptionist (front desk employee? whatever) was very nice, the first afternoon I was there, and still nice at 5am the next morning when I went again.
The gym is actually pretty big with a couple of floors of equipment. Free weights and some treadmills were on the first floor, and there were weight machines/​treadmills on the second. The machines were clean, and there were complimentary towels for personal use, and black towels to wipe down the machine. Not many complaints save for not enough of the free-​weight machines (cables, machines that you put plates onto to increase the weight. I’d certainly go there again

I cancelled my membership with Fitness Factory in May, 2015 after moving from Saint Louis, MO to Kansas City, MO. I emailed proof of my new mailing address to the General Manager, Brandon Ziegler. I have been charged every month since May and have spoken with Brandon multiple times about the issue. He promised that the charges would be refunded and that I would not be charged again. It’s almost October and I haven’t been refunded. I was also charged for the month of September. I also reached out the the development company McGowan Brothers Development and haven’t heard a word back. This is absolutely ridiculous and I can’t believe that I’m still dealing with this.

Let’s start with the only positive– location. That is all for that.
Negatives:
— Half of the cardio equipment is always out of order as well as the televisions
— Staff unwilling to change channels to local sports games or at all for that matter. Always same junk on and they have no HD which was kinda a big deal to me (come on, its 2015!). I don’t care for the soap operas or news channels that are always on during peak hours.
— Trying to cancel your membership? Good luck! I moved several months ago and am still getting charged even after submitting proof of relocation 3 months ago (see similar stories in other reviews). The management is a joke and extremely ignorant.
This place has potential with it’s location being but only under different management.

This could be a great gym but half of the cardio equipment is usually broken, they fail to properly cool the place in the summer, and the management is terrible.
Today, I called to cancel my membership after more than two years because I have not been using it. This was my third attempt to contact them for cancellation, without receiving a response. When I got the manager on the phone he said that he had not returned my call because he only deals with cancellations once a week. He also claimed that he had just emailed me about the cancellation. Of course, when I checked my email box, there was no message.
Then, without looking at my contract, which was amended to allow cancellation at any time when I signed it, he informed me that I would be charged for an additional month. When I challenged this, he basically told me «look this is the way it’s going to be and we’ve been through this before with other members.» He also threatened to charge me for an entire additional year of membership, which he claimed he was able to do under the contract, but then said that he wouldn’t do that. What a professional.
For someone who’s job is supposed to involve customer service, and potentially encouraging people to sign up again someday, he failed miserably. I would avoid this sub-​standard, overpriced operation and sign up at the YMCA two blocks away.

Great gym. Excellent equipment and polite staff. I was visiting from out of town and staying at the Omni. It was within 4 mins walking distance and real easy to find. Highly recommend going.

I left the gym when I moved out of state. My time at Fitness Factory was very positive. I loved the spinning classes, the VIP locker room, and the flexible hours. Recently I had to call to communicate with the manager (Brendan?) and he was very helpful and followed through on what he said he would do. I was happy with my time at Fitness Factory and I recommend it if the location is convenient.

So I love this gym. The entire 2 years that I was a member I loved it because it fit my needs exactly. I have since cancelled my membership due to leaving for work nowadays at 530 am leaves me little time to actually go but I am hoping one of these days my work schedule changes and I can start going again. My favorite part would have to be the large amount of cardio equipment that was usually readily available and the usual staff I encountered was always incredibly friendly. When I made the decision that I needed to cancel I was a little nervous because I am insanely non confrontational but the process was smoother than I could have asked for. Within an hour of sending my email through the website I had an email back from the manager and I really respect that. I would have to say the only thing I wish was different about the place would be the hours. I have a long commute and having them open earlier (or later) would be very beneficial.

I have never posted a review ANYWHERE on ANYTHING, but I felt the need to warn people about this gym. The gym was ok all and all (except for all of the broken equipment), but their customer service is terrible. I made the mistake of paying for a full year because it was considerably cheaper. I was NOT told (and I’m sure it was in extremely fine print) that after my year was up, I would automatically be charged a $ 7 service fee and that they would start billing me the monthly fee of $ 55. When I called to cancel, I was told that it would take 2 more months for the cancellation to go through. So, I will have paid ~$ 172 in my attempt to cancel. I
can’t afford to throw money away. They lost a really good customer because I was planning to purchase another year once I saved up the money. Do not sign a contract at this place. even if if it sounds like it’s a good deal. I will be reporting them to the Better Business Bureau. It is sad because I love supporting downtown businesses.

Do not take a membership here unless you are positive you really want it and will keep it for a long time. Similarly, do not take a free trial and give them credit card information unless you want to be charged. They are misleading about what you are signing. I did my free trial and did not take a membership, and now, a year later, they are threatening me with small claims court because I didn’t fulfill my contract. I have heard several stories along these same lines. It’s a nice gym and a good location, but all this business is sketchy. Not worth it.

As gyms go, I like the fitness factory. It makes working out for people that live downtown (or near downtown) a lot easier. The biggest perk is the parking. You get to park over just one street and not search your purse for quarters. There are always plenty of cardio machines open and lots of tvs. Working out isn’t the most fun activity, so if I can watch tv while I work out, I am a happier camper.
The ladies locker room is nice, though the locker area is a little small. The shower facilities are clean and each one of them has a toilet in there as well, almost like a full bathroom.
There are a variety of muscle building weights and machines, so if you have a favorite brand, you’re likely to find it here.
The front desk staff is always friendly and quick to lend you a compliment on your work ethic at the gym. For me, this membership was a great investment!

For some reason, I can’t stand this place. Let’s not even get into the complexities of canceling your membership.
One problem here is hours. They close VERY early on weekends, and close relatively early on the weeknights. They open at the crack of dawn. This isn’t helpful to most people, like myself, who’d prefer to work out in the evenings. They’re obviously doing the typical downtown thing and trying to make workers happy, while giving residents a fairly intense screwjob. I’m used to gyms with late night hours in major cities.
Here’s some tips. And this comes from a customer, not somebody who knows anything about running a gym: for one, expand your hours. It’s not that hard. Two, encourage people to take care of the machines. In general, many St. Louisans tend to not understand communal situations like gyms where your mother isn’t there to clean up after you. I don’t enjoy getting on a cardio machine and having to spend 5 minutes (while I’m already rushed due to the early closing time) wiping some douchebag’s drool, spittle, and sweat off the machine.

I hate working out, I really do.
Does Fitness Factory inspire me? No, but I don’t think anything could.
Luckily for them, there isn’t much competition on Wash Ave, but they do a generally good job.
I don’t take any classes or personal training, but for what I need to do there is plenty of nice, newer equipment and usually not a wait. The people working there are friendly and things are always being cleaned.
Seriously though, would it be that tough to get more little towels? There are always hundreds of big towels ready, but it’s a treat if I get a small towel. For $ 50 a month that’s not too much to ask.

Ah, the complexities of the health club. There are simply too many variables to know what you’re getting when joining. I think the key to health club excellence lies within the value. In other words, the higher the price, the better machines and amenities it must offer. Cleanliness is a must! I’m already more germophobic than any sane person and health clubs are like a petri dish — except with extra petri! And finally, it’s the peeps you end up working out with. A building full of douchebags wouldn’t be so bad if they were wearing headbands, half-​shirts and were sporting feathered hair like in 80’s movies. All you’d have to do is rig a cake to fall on their head cake which is apparently embarrassing enough that everyone finally realizes what a jerk that dude is and then you get the girl and blah blah blah. Of course, novelty douchebags are a dying breed. Real douchebags can ruin a gym. So where does Fitness Factory fall?
I’ve joined low cost clubs and high cost clubs and both have their plusses and minuses. The Fitness Factory sits square in the area of mid-​range coming in at around $ 50 a month. The question is, what do you get for that 50 bones?
First of all, you get decent machines. They aren’t brand new, or top-​of-​the-​line (at least the cardio machines aren’t) but they aren’t horrible. The weight areas are abundant so you can almost always find an area to use even when it’s crowded, which it often is. Still, for the price, the machines are where Fitness Factory takes a hit value-​wise.
Sadly, the same goes for the amenities. There’s gated parking around the corner which is nice, but also was recently closed for over a month for seemingly no good reason. It wasn’t that big of a deal considering they just pointed you to the gated lot next store, but it was still annoying that no work was being done to our former parking spots.
While they do provide you with lockers with built in coded security, the most annoying aspect of Fitness Factory is the towel situation. Yeah, sometimes they run out. Actually, a lot of times they run out. It happens pretty much every night around 6. My co-​workers probably think it’s sooo funny that I race out of the office to go work out. I’m way too proud to tell them that it’s because of a towel.
The one saving grace of the shortness of towels is that it probably means they are washing them. This is a plus on my mental cleanliness chart. Everything else seems fairly clean except for the treadmills which have some weird crud in the cup-​holders. Come to think of it, that’s pretty effing gross. The good news is that I’ve never had an instance where the building smelled bad. Even the locker rooms are well maintained! Well, I can’t vouch for the girls room, but in all my years of bathroom research, I’ve concluded the cleanliness ratio on women’s to men’s rooms is 4 to 1. This means the women’s room at the Fitness Factory is shiny in some way.
Other than it’s location, the best thing about the Fitness Factory seems to be the people. Everyone that I’ve come across are more than helpful and the many people who member there are gracious. In other words the douchebag level is low. It’s notable that this isn’t a show off gym. Sure, there are some very fit people working out, but it’s always without fanfare. No ridiculous grunting or unnecessary weight slamming. You’ll also find many people out of shape there. The trainers have a seemingly good reputation and I’ve heard quite a few success stories.
In the end what you have is a gym that’s pretty average. Nothing too awesome and nothing too bad. Not that it needs to be. First and foremost, gyms are for working out and that’s what everyone is doing there. Socializing is rare. If I can go in and get my workout done while remaining comfortable in my surroundings I’m happy. Just please hook me up with a towel.

I’ve been a member of Fitness Factory for about 3 months now and am overall pretty satisfied with the gym. There are plenty of cardio machines that are each equiped with a device so you can hook up your earphones and listen to the 9 TVs that are in front of each grouping of cardio equipment (there 2 cardio theaters and a level of cardio machines that each have their own TVs).
There is a pretty good selection of weight equipment though it seems to be a bit crowded at times.
My one complaint about Fitness Factory is that they don’t encourage people to clean off the machines after they use them. There are just a few cleaning stations that have some moist towlettes that people can use but I rarely see anyone using them. I would suggest that they reccomend that people wipe down the equipment after use and they make it easier for them to do so.

I’ve been working out at the Fitness Factory since it opened.
Location — Great! Best gym in downtown area by far.
Equipment — Very nice, top of the line.
Variety — Could be better. Given that this is not an enormous gym, they may not have as wide of a variety as you may be used to. No pool. No basketball, etc. Just weights and cardio and a room for classes.
Service — Usually good, although don’t ask them to change the TV channel (even if there is a relevant game on vs whatever re-​run is currently showing).
Trainers — They have several trainers. Not sure how good they are.
Parking — street parking and a parking lot about aa half block away (secure).

Thanks to Dexter L. who previously reviewed Fitness Factory, I was able to work out on my trip to St. Louis. This gym was just blocks from my hotel. It’s in a cute, albeit a bit unlively, little neighborhood. A guest pass is $ 10 per day. I purchased two days. Sign up could not have been any easier.
Good — towel service, electronic lockers, sufficient equipment, SUPER DUPER OUT OF THIS WORLD nice woman working at the front desk. If nothing else, go to this gym because niceness should be rewarded.
Bad — loud music blaring over the speakers. I am used to the ultra quiet cardio room at LVAC. No televisions on individual cardio machines. They have cardio theatre but it’s not the same as having your very own television.
If I ever visit St. Louis again, I would workout here again. Try it! I lost five pounds this week thanks to the Fitness Factory. I even ate lots of chocolate from Crown Candy Kitchen. Take that Weight Watchers!

This is a cool, 18 000 sq. ft. gym located in a trendy loft neighborhood near downtown St. Louis. It’s in a converted loft building so there are multiple levels rather than one huge open space — kinda nice if you don’t like that «feeling that everyone is watching you» while you lift those weights.
The equipment is all new since the place just opened within the past few months. The locker room is spotless and carpeted. Each locker has a digital keypad combo lock so you don’t need to bring your own lock. They offer towel service, too, so you don’t need to bring your own towels. The showers are individual and private and there is a steam room. The entire locker room has the feel of an upscale residential bathroom — nice tile in the showers, shower curtains, and even bathmats in front of each shower.
Not sure what the membership fees are since I was just visiting St. Louis. However, the daily guest fee is $ 10. If you want a weekly pass, they sell one for around $ 32.
Love this place…