Boutique fitness chain 1Rebel has launched a new £1.5m round of crowdfunding to fuel expansion – an offering which values the current business at £10m.

Having launched two studios in London this year, 1Rebel plans to continue this rate of expansion over the next four years, with a view to reaching 10 sites in 2019.

The business hopes to raise £1.5m from investors via Crowdcube – the same crowdfunding platform which helped 1Rebel attract £1.5m of equity last summer at a pre-money valuation of £3m. Eighteen months on, investor appetite doesn’t appear to have weakened, with nearly half of the target raised within the first three days of the listing, which runs until 9 December.

In addition to the crowdfunding round, 1Rebel also plans to issue a £1m convertible debt "in the near term" to raise a total of £2.5m. This money will be used for day-to-day costs of running current and future clubs, as well as to cover capital expenditure in opening new clubs – mainly equipment and leasehold improvements.

As a result of the latest funding round, it is understood that current investors’ stakes in the company will dilute proportionally to the amount raised. 1Rebel co-founder James Balfour has been fielding potential investors’ queries on Crowdcube and said despite the dilution, shares bought for £1 last summer are now worth £2.19.

Explaining the £10m valuation on the Crowdcube forum, Balfour said 1Rebel expects its first two sites to earn £800-900k EBITDA each at maturity, on which a 10x multiple would see the business valued at £14m when head office costs have been subtracted.

Balfour said that the £10m figure therefore “represents a discount to expected forward valuation” and pointed out that the current boom around fitness is seeing brands valued at far higher multiples.

“I think an important point to mention is how the multiples have changed in the current climate,” Balfour added.

“Soul Cycle is IPO'ing at 20x forward EBITDA and is expected to have a US$1bn valuation on just 36 clubs. Closer to home, The Gym Group is IPO'ing at 17x forward EBITDA.”

To read an interview with the team behind 1Rebel, from the February edition of Health Club Management, click here.

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