Embattled SoulCycle opens up to ClassPass subscribers in bid to drum up new members

In a stark shift from its once highly exclusive image, SoulCycle will now offer classes though the ClassPass subscription app in a bid to boost attendance.

The multi-year partnership announced on Tuesday means that ClassPass credits can now be used to gain entry to SoulCycle spinning classes, a move that Well+Good says would have once been 'absolutely unthinkable.'

SoulCycle, once notorious for its sold-out sessions with top instructors booked far in advance, suffered backlash from members in 2019 over its owner's fundraising for Donald Trump, and was then hammered during pandemic shutdowns.

After reopening its studios last year, SoulCycle has struggled to return to its former glory, and in August the company shuttered about 25 percent of its locations.

In a stark shift from its once highly exclusive image, SoulCycle will now offer classes though the ClassPass subscription app in a bid to drum up membership

SoulCycle CEO Evelyn Webster said that the ClassPass partnership is 'an incredible opportunity to bring our legendary instructors, welcoming community and the thrill of the original cardio dance party to a wider audience'

SoulCycle CEO Evelyn Webster said that the ClassPass partnership is 'an incredible opportunity to bring our legendary instructors, welcoming community and the thrill of the original cardio dance party to a wider audience.' 

Well+Good reports that SoulCycle classes are now available on the ClassPass app for SoulCycle ride for between 10 and 15 credits. 

Each credit costs about $2 to $3, depending on the ClassPass subscription plan, and the price for SoulCycle is not that much more than other, lesser known spinning classes.

Prior to its struggles over the past few years, SoulCycle regularly commanded fees of $30 or more per class, eschewing membership platforms such as ClassPass.  

'It is not an understatement to say that SoulCycle was truly infamous for not being on ClassPass,' reported Well+Good. 'If it was still 2015, hell might literally be freezing over.' 

In 2019, Equinox and SoulCycle attempted to distance themselves from billionaire Stephen Ross, whose Related Companies owns them, after he held a Trump fundraiser

The struggles of SoulCycle, owned by privately held Equinox Group, in some ways mirror the downfall of another prestige exercise cycling competitor, Peloton.

While Peloton's at-home exercise bike soared in popularity during pandemic lockdowns, SoulCycle studios were shuttered under restrictions on public gatherings.

SoulCycle responded by launching some outdoor classes, and introducing its own $2,300 at-home bike in a bid to compete with Peloton.

The lifting of pandemic restrictions battered Peloton, which has seen its stock price decline 65 percent since the start of the year.

But SoulCycle has not seen the return to growth it had hoped for, in part due to a consumer shift towards more budget-friendly fitness memberships.

Prior to its struggles over the past few years, SoulCycle regularly commanded fees of $30 or more per class, eschewing membership platforms such as ClassPass

In August, SoulCycle shuttered around 20 of its 83 studios, according to CNN.

The closures affected six locations in the New York City area, five in California and others in Washington, DC, Massachusetts, Illinois, Florida and Georgia.

SoulCycle's Toronto location also closed, marking a complete exit from Canada. 

In 2019, Equinox and SoulCycle attempted to distance themselves from billionaire Stephen Ross, a real estate developer whose Related Companies owns them, after he held a Trump fundraiser in the Hamptons. 

A report from Earnest Research claimed that following the controversy SoulCycle sales dropped nearly 30 percent over the 2019 holiday season. SoulCycle disputed the data as inaccurate.