The Linked Hub: Inside Morley's newest gym as identity of mystery operator is confirmed

The Linked Hub opened its doors in an old industrial unit on Wide Lane in the town earlier this week, after recently published planning papers teased that an unnamed company was looking to take over the premises. The entrepreneur behind The Linked Hub, 28 year-old Mitch Harris, said he had converted the building from a “complete and utter empty shell”.

The business was previously located in a smaller premises in Morley town centre. Mr Harris said he had worked hard in recent months to convert the unit – thought to have been deserted for nearly a decade – into a suitable space for a gym.

He said: “When I first saw the place it was a complete and utter empty shell. I’m quite lucky to be able to look at something like that and piece everything together in my mind. Some people might be taken aback, but you strip it back and I remember thinking that this place has a lot of potential. It’s been a long process over the last nine or 10 months to get it set up and it’s been very, very hard work, but I guess that’s the same in any line of business.”

Mr Harris said the gym was classes-orientated, with emphasis placed on tailoring training to the needs of each and every fitness fanatic. He said he wants to bring a human touch back to the gym experience, with many leisure operators now using PIN code entries and managing their sites from afar without staff on the ground.

“We’re all about training to get the best out of people,” he said. “The classes are our bread and butter and the gym is like an extra. If you walked into a gym 12 or 15 years ago, there were people there who would greet you and say ‘hi’ and ask if you need any support. All of that support has been stripped out in a lot of places, which are now unmanned. You go in and if you don’t know what you’re doing, there’s no communication, no-one to talk to and no-one to ask for help. Soulless is exactly the word. I want to bring that help and friendliness back to the gym.”