The Bay Club Company has a new owner. The San Francisco-based owner of 22 private clubs recently announced that KKR, the global investment firm, was acquiring the company from York Capital Management and minority investors.
“At Bay Club, we are proud to have created California’s leading active lifestyle community. In partnering with KKR, we are excited to build even further on what we’ve accomplished thus far and bring our unique offering to even more communities across the country,” said Matthew Stevens, President and CEO of Bay Club.
The Bay Club has 50,000 members at clubs in the San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego markets. The clubs include innovative amenities to support the company’s focus on fitness, sports, family and hospitality.
But it did not enter the golf market until 2014, when York Capital acquired the company. Its first first golf course was StoneTree Golf Club in Novato, Calif. At the time, it said it was negotiating for other golf courses and that it planned to transform traditional golf courses into modernized country clubs with a blend of hospitality, sports and recreational offerings.
It acquired two golf courses in 2016, Fairbanks Ranch Country Club in Rancho Santa Fe, near San Diego, and The Golf Club at Boulder Ridge in San Jose.
The company’s membership model eliminates food and beverage minimums and cart fees, and includes complimentary childcare serves and a camp for families. It also offers summer concerts, fitness classes, sports tournaments and related programming
During the past several years, Bay Club assembled an experienced management team — a blend of fitness, hospitality, technology, and finance veterans. Under the direction of this team, Bay Club sought to evolve beyond the fitness industry. It grouped complementary properties into campuses and offered members a range of high-end lifestyle amenities.
“Bay Club’s pioneering and differentiated model is one of the few scaled platforms in a large and highly fragmented health and wellness industry, where members can find options that meet all of their – and their families’ – needs,” said Nate Taylor, KKR Member and Head of KKR’s Americas Consumer Retail team. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Matthew and the rest of Bay Club’s management team.”