A new fitness studio is settling into Tribeca's Broadway corridor, bringing a workout that mashes up reformer Pilates with rowing and cycling machines. STRONG Pilates, the Australian brand behind the hybrid concept, is opening its first New York City location at 345 Broadway, on the west side of the street between Leonard and Worth.
The studio marks the brand's debut in the New York market, according to WhatNow, which reported the opening would arrive on November 7. That date, however, conflicts with earlier reporting from Tribeca Citizen, which said the company had taken the Broadway space and scheduled an October 24 opening for what it also described as the brand's first location in the city. The space was formerly home to Prime Essentials, which closed in 2022, per the same outlet's reporting.
What the Workout Actually Looks Like
STRONG Pilates built its concept around two pieces of proprietary equipment: the Rowformer and the Bikeformer, each described by Tribeca Citizen as part cardio machine, part reformer. The Rowformer combines a Pilates reformer with a rowing machine, while the Bikeformer pairs a reformer with a stationary bike, according to the seed facts behind this report. Classes run 45 minutes and are instructor-led, blending reformer-style resistance work with cardio and strength training, a format The Business of Pilates described in its own coverage of the brand's Tribeca plans.
The concept traces back to STRONG Pilates co-founder Michael Ramsey, who broke his ankle in 2019 and discovered reformer Pilates during his recovery, according to the original reporting behind this story. That experience led him to develop a workout aimed at combining Pilates with more intensive cardio and strength exercises, and he went on to found STRONG Pilates alongside Mark Armstrong that same year in Australia, a founding story also confirmed by Tribeca Citizen. The Tribeca studio will offer STRONG Body, STRONG Pilates, and STRONG Loaded class and membership options, with bookings available online and amenities including lockers and restrooms.
A Fast-Growing Brand Betting Big on the U.S.
STRONG Pilates has been expanding aggressively on both sides of the Pacific. Tribeca Citizen reported the brand had 100 fitness studios in the U.S. as of its August article, while MassLive reported that by September 2026 the company had grown to more than 130 active studios across 15 countries with over 60,500 members. A company spokesperson told MassLive the brand was on track to surpass 150 operating studios globally by January 2027.
Reports differ on the scale of the brand's domestic push. The Business of Pilates described a nine-studio U.S. expansion effort for 2026 with a stated goal of reaching 25 U.S. studios by year-end, while Franchise Times reported the company had expanded to 12 U.S. studios with plans to reach 35 by the end of 2026. The Business of Pilates separately put the global count at more than 120 studios across 15 countries, with roughly 200 more in development. Elsewhere, Franchise Times reported that the company's franchise disclosure document listed an average unit volume of $944,136, with studio operating costs ranging from $399,995 to just over $1 million.
Where Else the Brand Is Headed This Year
New York is just one stop on a broader 2026 rollout that reportedly includes studios across nine states, with planned locations in Boston, Charlotte, Los Angeles, Maryland, New York, and Philadelphia, according to the seed reporting. Boston offers a glimpse of what that expansion looks like in practice: MassLive reported the brand is opening three studios in the Boston area — in Back Bay, Fenway, and Cambridge's Kendall Square — marking its first entry into that market. The Back Bay and Fenway locations were slated to open November 14, with a Kendall Square date still to be announced as of MassLive's reporting.
Franchise Times has also reported that the company estimates roughly 40 percent of its members come from traditional gyms, 25 percent from HIIT and functional-training studios, and 10 percent from spin classes — a membership mix that suggests the brand is pulling from across the fitness spectrum rather than competing narrowly with other reformer studios. Whether that pattern holds true in Tribeca, where boutique fitness options already crowd the neighborhood, remains to be seen as the new studio settles in along Broadway.
