WITH gyms across the Wimmera closed due to the coronavirus and people stuck indoors, there has been a sharp increase in sales of home fitness equipment as people look to keep moving, albeit in their own homes.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
In the midst of the coronavirus shut down, looking after one's health may ironically involve spending long hours indoors lounging in front of the television, but it's also prompted a flurry of buying at local sports equipment stores.
Kylie Breuer, who owns and runs Intersport Horsham with her husband Shayne, said they saw an influx of people coming into the store after gyms were ordered closed on Monday.
"It's actually such a positive thing because they're obviously being conscious of their physical and mental health," Ms Breuer said.
"We had quite an increase in sales in home gym and personal fitness equipment."
Small items proved the most popular: resistance bands, dumbbells, and interestingly, boxing equipment.
Ms Breuer said despite the uptake of personal fitness equipment, business was slowing overall as fears of COVID-19 start to bite into small business' bottom lines.
"Business has absolutely slowed down," she said.
"As the news progresses everyone is unsure so no one's spending any money, the small businesses around town are taking a hit.
"But we do have a really beautiful community that's supporting us and they're still coming in and getting the things they do need."
Robyn Young of Stawell's Sportspower said she had also seen an increase in home fitness equipment since the council-run Stawell Sports and Aquatic Centre closed its doors last Wednesday.
"We've been selling more weight plates, barbells, dumbbells and resistance bands and even some benches," she said.
"It takes so long to get to a certain fitness level, you don't want to lose it after doing all that hard work."
We have removed our paywall from our stories about the coronavirus. This is a rapidly changing situation and we want to make sure our readers are as informed as possible. If you would like to support our journalists you can subscribe for the Wimmera Mail-Times here, for the Stawell Times-News here, and for the Ararat Advertiser here.