Fitness: Did You Hear?…
Instant messaging, sport shoe sales in the UK, American College of Medicine web-based coaching, Fitness First clubs, CW-X apparel website
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>> CW-X cross-conditioning wear from Wacoal Sports Science has launched its web site. Designed also to be dial-up friendly, the site at www.cw-x.com will still use rotating graphics, spinning navigation tools, and easy-to-use drop-down menus to explain how its new product performs.
>> We thought we were in a time warp when the IHRSA association announced on Nov. 18 that Nautilus had released its 3rd quarter results on Friday Nov. 15. We had to check our own calendars, Palm Pilots, Dayrunners, and watches. Well, better late than never on that IHRSA email, we guess. The Nautilus results were announced Oct. 15, as SNEWS previously reported.
>> Web-based coaching is now available to and offered by American College of Medicine-certified professionals by Wellcoaches Corporation through its site, www.wellcoach.com. The site will also offer continuing education opportunities with distance education classes by telephone or online.
>> The UK sold approximately 48 million pairs of sports shoes — including athletic, running, fitness, and other trainers — in 2002 (12 months to June 2002), according to NPD Sports Tracking Europe. Less than the number sold in the previous year, the figure was also down on the number of pairs sold four years ago. According to the report, higher-priced product is witnessing growth while lower priced items are going down.
>> Shares of British health club operator Fitness First FTF.L jumped last week as dealers reported talk the company might be bought out by its management or snapped up by a venture capital firm. The shares were up 9 percent in volume of 2.2 million shares, double the historical average. Shares in Fitness First had nearly halved in value since the beginning of October, when the company warned annual profits would be around 20 percent below forecasts because of problems at its UK clubs. The chain plans to open several clubs still in the next year.
>> Love or hate instant messaging, aka IM? According to a survey of company executives by the Net Future Institute, the opinion is split pretty much in half with those who are for or against it, really strong in their for or against. In the survey, about 48 percent of respondents do not use IM, do not plan to, or their organization does not allow it. The other half, just over 51 percent, use IM at work, at home, at both places, or plan to use IM in the future. Why? To “get answers faster” was the number one benefit followed by “decrease e-mail,” “improve internal communication,” and share information faster. This survey by the institute (www.netfutureinstitute.com) also drew one of the largest numbers of write-in comments ever received by the group, with half being positive about IM, the other half being negative.
