Reborne Longevity enters administration, HFA launches foot-traffic benchmark tool & WHOOP heads to Ulta Beauty

In today's episode

1. 01
   Signal

   Reborne Longevity enters administration

   Reborne Longevity, a preventative health and recovery concept, has entered administration. The company was building partnerships across the fitness, wellness and healthcare sectors at the time of the shutdown. Operators and brands working with early-stage longevity concepts should note that partnership pipelines do not protect a business from insolvency.

2. 02
   Move

   2026 NYC Marathon broke all records, Athletech News reports

   The 2026 NYC Marathon broke all records, according to Athletech News, which published a report on the event on 6 November 2026. The source does not provide figures, participant numbers or further details beyond the record-breaking claim.

3. 03
   Gear

   HFA launches FIT Tracker covering foot traffic at 11,000 US fitness facilities

   The Health & Fitness Association released the Fitness Industry Traffic (FIT Tracker) on 5 November 2026, a quarterly report built on anonymized location data from nearly 11,000 gyms and studios across the United States. Developed with Sports Marketing Surveys USA, a Buffalo Groupe company, and powered by location analytics firm Placer.ai, it segments facilities into four categories: high-volume low-price gyms, mid-priced gyms, luxury clubs, and boutique studios, and also breaks results out by region. Operators and suppliers now have a benchmarking tool that shows how visit patterns shift across price points and geographies each quarter.

4. 04
   Gear

   Garmin Exploring Waze Integration to Alert Drivers to Cyclists Nearby

   Garmin is reportedly developing a feature that would send alerts to Waze drivers when a cyclist is ahead on the road, with evidence of the feature found in a Garmin Connect app update. The goal is to reduce crashes involving cyclists; IIHS data shows more than 1,000 cyclists were killed on roads between 2022 and 2024. Garmin already makes cycling computers, smartwatches with bicycle tracking, radar units and lights, signalling continued investment in cycling technology that coaches and fitness brands in the cycling category should track.

5. 05
   Build

   Gym cancels influencer's membership after 5-second machine stand

   TikTok fitness creator Brandon (@bwrlifts) had his gym membership cancelled in early November 2026, three days after the gym owner sent him a message listing complaints that included a ban on "science-based lifting," a demand to stop grunting, and a complaint about stepping on leather equipment. The owner had also posted a screenshot from Brandon's workout video to the gym's own social media story. The dispute drew nearly 308,000 views on TikTok, a reminder that membership cancellations and owner-member disputes can become public events quickly when one party has an audience.

6. 06
   Gear

   WHOOP to sell fitness trackers at Ulta Beauty from March 2027

   WHOOP announced on 3 November 2026 a retail partnership with Ulta Beauty to sell its WHOOP 5.0 and WHOOP MG devices, plus an exclusive range of bands and accessories, on Ulta.com and in select Ulta Beauty stores starting March 2027. The deal gives WHOOP access to Ulta Beauty's 47 million loyalty members and marks the wearable brand's first entry into specialty beauty retail. For fitness brands and studio operators, the move signals that health wearables are being positioned to reach wellness consumers through beauty retail channels, not just sports or technology stores.