Sequim Gym will close its doors to the family owned facility in downtown Sequim permanently starting next week.

The Sequim Gym Health and Wellness Center announced the business’ official closure will start at 12 a.m. Friday, Sept. 1, terminating all memberships.

On Aug. 20, the gym’s Facebook page said it closed and cancelled all classes and will close its doors and terminate memberships as of Sept. 1.

“It comes with great sadness to inform our community that all classes starting this week will be canceled and we will be closing our doors and terminating all memberships effective 12 a.m. September 1st 2017,” the post said.

The gym’s owners Kevin and Holly Pedrey bought the gym in 2015 from the facility’s founder Kristin LaMoure who owned the gym for nine years before selling the business to the Pedreys.

The business is at 145 E. Washington St. and includes 6,000 square feet serving an estimated 4 to 600 people depending on the type of service.

It includes a staff of 14 employees and offers a variety of services from massage therapy, personal training, specialty classes, 24-hour access and more.

Kevin Pedrey also merged his previous Northwest Massage and Holistic Healing Center businesses in Port Angeles with Sequim Gym’s services.

He said he met with a financial advisor on Aug. 16 and made the decision to close the business a few days later.

“We lost 30 percent of our membership when the YMCA opened up,” Pedrey said. “I built my business plan based on SARC being opened.”

SARC was known as the Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center and closed in October 2015. SARC was taken over by the Olympic Peninsula YMCA and opened its doors as a YMCA facility in October 2016.

He said when SARC closed he retrofitted Sequim Gym offering more classes, adding an additional studio across the alley and hiring more people.

On Aug. 23, the Pedreys stated on the Sequim Gym Facebook page, “We built this facility and we maintained a level of service that way outweighed the monthly fees we were charging.”

The post said the Pedreys had to make the choice to either continue taking risks in hopes that the gym’s future programs and classes would be successful or make the decision to close the gym.

“This will force us into a very difficult position of having to file bankruptcy,” the post continued.

Kevin Pedrey said a standard membership at Sequim Gym costs $50 per month. He said the gym lost memberships from several different consumer demographics, such as students and families.

College students can get a membership at the YMCA for $20 per month and offers a household rate of $55 per month for one adult plus children and $70 per month for two adults plus children.

Pedrey said he and his wife have felt a loss in the decision to close the gym but felt it was the best decision they could make based on the circumstances.

“The business is tough on us,” he said. “It’s tough physically, mentally and emotionally.”

Pedrey said his vision for Sequim Gym was to create a wellness facility that offered fitness, nutrition and massage therapy while working with a variety of other health and fitness professionals.

“We’re still realizing the dream and we’re still helping people — it’s just going to be different,” he said. “It’s not going to be us owning it.”

Pedrey said the best part about owning the gym was the community it created.

“The best thing was our community and people,” he said. “They’ve been with our family and close with us and watched our journey.”

Moving Forward

Pedrey announced on the Sequim Gym Facebook page on Aug. 26 he would be working with 360 Sports Performance Training at 775 W. Washington St. to work with some of Sequim Gym’s programs.

“I am excited to announce that I will be joining forces in Sequim to continue working toward this vision with like-minded partners,” the post said.

It continued, “Starting in September, I’ll be working with John and Lisa Qualls at 360 Sports Performance Training, along with a few physical therapists who will be working within our programs to maximize results and safety.”

Pedrey said Sequim Gym has been working with another fitness center to honor the Sequim Gym rate through Sept. 30.

He did not comment on whether he is refunding customers who have existing memberships with Sequim Gym and said people who have questions about refunds and memberships can contact him directly via email or phone.

He said he is working with a few local organizations that might be willing to help out Sequim Gym members.

For more information about Sequim Gym’s closure or memberships, contact Kevin Pedrey at 477-8553 or kevin@sequimgym.com.