14th and R Street, NW
Thanks to all who passed on the sad news from BodySmith:
“Dear BodySmith Clients, Members, and Employees
Good morning!
While I know we are all tired of wearing our masks, especially while working hard in the gym, I believe the majority of our members and personal training clients have become used to it and appreciate the feeling of safety when all in the gym remain fully masked. For this reason, BodySmith will remain a fully masked safe space for as long as we do business in DC…which brings me to the other important subject of this email.
It is likely that BodySmith will be closing at the end of March.
It’s a sad turn of events and a direct result of the devastating effects the Covid Pandemic has had on gyms and countless other businesses in DC and around the world. Unfortunately, BodySmith has been unable to reach agreement with the landlord on rent due during the time the gym was required to be closed by DC’s emergency regulations. BodySmith is unable to pay full rent for a period of time that it had zero income, and at this point, we expect the gym will close March 31st. At this point, we are focused on selling the equipment and helping BodySmith employees find alternate employment.
Regarding memberships, we are fortunate that BodySmith stopped offering annual memberships in connection with Covid, so no members will lose membership dues. Barring an unlikely result in court and an extension on our rights to the space, today’s membership run will be our last. I sincerely hope all of you get in and use the gym this final month, and while you’re in, look around and see if there is any equipment you would like to purchase for your home gym. If there are any pieces you would like to add to your collection, please email me at [email protected]. It’s all great stuff, and it’s all for sale.
Personal training clients have known that we stopped selling 20, 40, 100, and 200 session packages when we were allowed to re-open back in July of 2020. That was a direct result of the uncertainty Covid imposed on all our lives, knowing we could once again be shut down for weeks, months, or maybe forever. At this point we are not selling more than 5 training sessions at a time, and BodySmith will be selling only single sessions starting March 16th. This is to ensure that no clients end up with unused sessions when we are no longer able to provide services.
This is indeed a regrettable and sad end to a business that has given me so much joy over the years. We’ve had our ups and downs, but overall the experiences I’ve had and the people I’ve met have been a great way to spend the last 24 years of my life. I will miss working out at BodySmith with my son and my wife, and the family feel of the neighborhood gym we set out to create.
I know many of you may have questions about all of this, so please feel free to email me at [email protected] and I will reply as quickly and completely as I can.
Thanks for the memories, stay safe and healthy, and be well!
Stuart Smith”