Virgin Active picks Borkowksi following four-way pitch

Borkowski beat off Frank PR, Cake and incumbent Golden Goose PR. It will manage a 24-hour proactive press office, attempt to amplify the gym’s advertising and marketing activity, and will also run several broad PR campaigns over the year.

It will position Virgin Active as the most innovative gym chain in the UK, with stories focusing on the launch of new equipment and classes. The brand wants to be seen as a leader in the health and fitness sector.

The agency’s first piece of work will be to launch a new gym attached to Twickenham Rugby Stadium. The gym opens on the 1 October, but the agency will be handling pre-launch activity in September.

UK head of brand and marketing Tim Davis said: ‘Borkowski delivered a raft of creative ideas which complemented our current brand positioning, bolstered by a robust press office offering. They demonstrated a good understanding of the journey we are on and how we can bring the different elements in our offering to life through PR.’

The gym chain had been using Golden Goose PR since the end of 2006, when it began a £20m refurbishment of the Holmes Place brand.