Even though many of us are back working from home, getting dressed in style can play a big role in productivity.
Whether you’re returning to the office, grabbing a bite to eat or trying to look professional via Zoom call, a fashionable shirt is essential.
Usually, finding a shirt that is good quality and fits well can take hours of shopping or endless scrolling online, but Manchester startup The Shirt Society are offering luxury menswear “without all the hassle of the traditional shopping experience”.
Customers are able to choose their monthly shirt in just 20 seconds, and with no effort at all it will be delivered at your doorstep.
Not only was The Shirt Society created during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has seen many high-street stores close in favour of online counterparts, but they are also eager to encourage sustainable shopping through these high-quality monthly drops that’ll last you a lifetime.
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They claim to be right inside the head of all Mancunian men, offering a curated collection of shirts in the styles and fits that men are looking for.
“Most guys just want clothes that look sharp [and] feel great to wear” says founder, Matt Bird.
Their website also offers a skip function that allows members to choose when they receive their drops, so there’s no hassle or commitment when using their service.
The Shirt Society is also partnering with local businesses to offer something special for their customers, whether that’s by including a free product or discounts for bars and restaurants across the city.
The first free perk that members will receive is in collaboration with Cornerstone, another Mancunian brand. Their vegan-friendly mint and aloe vera moisturiser is perfect for the winter-induced dry skin, and it’s even better that it’s free.
Make sure you sign up to The Shirt Society now in order to receive your free shirt and lots of other exciting monthly launches.
Style
A dozen of the best and most popular gyms in Manchester, ranked by price
Daisy Jackson
You do not need to wait for January to get your body moving again – there’s no time like the present.
The trick to sticking with your health kick is often to find the right routine for you, and when it comes to exercise, finding the gym that will make you feel supported as well as pushed physically is key.
There’s no shortage of brilliant gyms here in Manchester, from the do-it-yourself commercial gyms to the fitness facilities manned by highly qualified trainers who will guide you every step of the way.
Whether you’re a fancy girl who needs fancy facilities to coax you into the gym, or you’d rather get your head down and save some cash, we’ve got you covered.
Here are a dozen of the best gyms and health clubs to try in 2024 – and how much it’ll cost you.
12 of the best and most popular gyms in Manchester
12. Ultimate Performance – Spinningfields (bespoke prices available on request)
Ready to transform your body or lay the foundations for lifelong health, and feeling pretty serious about it? Ok, game on.
Ultimate Performance is the gym in Manchester to join if you want to stick to your plan and achieve whatever goals you set yourself, from fat loss to muscle building to general health, with some of the world’s best personal trainers coaching from here.
Barry’s is the gym loved by all the famous LA-dwelling beautiful types, and first opened here in Manchester in 2018.
Workouts take place in the ‘red room’, where rows of benches, dumbbells and treadmills promise a total body workout.
It’s now a global phenomenon, with gyms everywhere from the USA to the UAE to Australia to Mexico.
It ain’t cheap though: memberships start at £125 per month, which gets you eight classes, or you can book a drop-in class for £20. The most expensive membership will set you back £308. Check out all the offers here.
10. Blok – Piccadilly (£205/month for unlimited)
Blok in Manchester has a mix of classes and is one of the city’s best gyms. (Credit: Blok)
This gym is genuinely very beautiful, taking over a corner of the historic Ducie Street Warehouse.
It’s another one with three different studios to choose from – you can do pilates and yoga, take on full-body strength-focused or boxing workouts, or try out barre and cardio exercises.
There are top-notch changing rooms for getting refreshed in afterwards too.
Unlimited membership is £205 a month, but if you’re happy to commit to a set number of classes there are cheaper packs available too. Check it out HERE.
You will not find a nicer or more supportive group of trainers than the ones who work at FORM – you also won’t find any who take away your ability to walk up stairs quite so efficiently.
As well as one-to-one training, they offer their ‘reload’ programme with small groups training together at their New Bailey Street gym, and the best pilates and yoga classes in town at their Reset gym on Marble Street.
FORM promises a long-term change to your life – this is no flash-in-the-pan fitness phase.
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Memberships start from £168 a month and we promise you get a lot of bang for your buck. Find out more on the FORM Manchester website.
First created in Australia, there are now more than 1,000 F45 studios all over the world, creating what it claims is the most innovative fitness gym on the planet.
Each 45-minute session blends cardio and HIIT-style workouts for ‘sweat-dripping, heart-pumping fun’.
The circuits in their Manchester gyms will kick your ass, in a good way.
It’s £165 a month if you commit to six months, otherwise you’re looking at £195 a month – check it out HERE.
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7. Zeno Training Clubs – Angel Gardens (£99/month)
Hero/Zeno Training Club gym in Manchester. They even do protein/health smoothies to go.Credit: The Manc Group
With four different fitness studios to choose from, Zeno (formerly known as Hero) offers a little something for everyone.
You can seriously test your cardio in their spin studio or in the Athletic studio (where you can also take on boxing classes), push your strength in the Stronger studio (which is basically like small group PT sessions), or reset a bit in the Rejuvenate studio. There’s also an open gym upstairs.
Zeno has some of the best facilities in the city – seriously, there are more squat racks in here than in some of the biggest commercial gyms – and a bloody lovely group of trainers to guide your every move.
Memberships start from £99 a month, and there are class bundles available too. Find out more HERE.
This ‘next-level fitness studio’ follows a pretty similar model to V1BE, but factors in assault bikes (ouch) and has classes with a more tailored focus.
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There are three different TRIB3 classes to choose from – upper body and core, lower body, and full body – broken down into three zones: treadmill, resistance and intensity.
It’s proving to be a very popular option for Mancs.
Unlimited memberships are £79/month but there are loads of other options too. Find out more online.
5. V1BE – Central (£39/month)
It’s all about the cardio at V1BE, Manchester’s boutique gym group that will literally display your heart rate on a giant screen for all to see.
Most workouts are spread between sprint sessions on the treadmills and weighted circuits on the floor, but they also have ‘STR1KE’ classes that factor in some intense boxing drills.
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You will be sweaty, you will get competitive with yourself, and you’ll definitely love it (once the hill sprints are over).
Membership starts used to be £59 a month, but since they’ve reduced to just one site over on Mosley Street, prices are now just £39 for unlimited access to the gym and their range of classes. You can go find out more here.
4. The Y Club – Castlefield (starting from £35/month)
Over in Castlefield, you’ll find one of the most decked-out gyms and health clubs in Manchester city centre at one of the best value-for-money price points too. Put simply, it’s an old-school YMCA with plenty to offer.
The Y Club, which is attached to The Castlefield Hotel – where you also have access to 20% off food and drink with your membership – features a comprehensive range of gym equipment and facilities, as well as a large pool, five courts, football, badminton and more in the large sports hall, as well as studio classes.
There are also in-house personal trainer and physiotherapy sessions available; they even offer free health checks and lunchtime fitness classes as part of their corporate packages where employees can even get a 9.6% discount on selected memberships.
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Standard prices start from £35 a month for a 12-month contract and full access to all facilities, but you can go cheaper with the £30 off-peak rate (6am-3:45pm). You can see the various tiers including reduced student rates HERE.
3. Nuffield Health – Printworks and Didsbury (£51/month)
Nuffield is one of Manchester’s biggest gyms, with its own pool.
What makes Nuffield Health so extraordinary of all the gyms in Manchester is that it has a real-life swimming pool, which is quite a luxury in a city centre as crammed as ours.
The gym has an army of treadmills and bikes, plus a functional fitness room, a free weights room, and several different studios.
There are also physiotherapists and personal trainers based here to help you build the healthiest body possible. They also have a Didsbury site too, if that helps.
It’s £51 per month, or you can go off-peak for £43 a month. You can sign up HERE.
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2. JD Gyms – Central (£19.99/month)
Doesn’t need much of an intro this one (Credit: JD Gyms)
With a rapidly growing number of gyms nationwide, it’s easy to see why JD Gyms are becoming more and more popular – and it’s got a lot to do with the price.
Their refurbished gym in Manchester city centre over on Whitworth Street has more than 300 classes a month, a sauna, and literally hundreds of pieces of strength and cardio equipment.
There’s a large free weights zone, a sprint and sled track, boot camps, boxing, and personal trainers. They also have a smaller Salford outpost over on Regent Retail Park.
Basic membership is £19.99 a month – which includes classes – but for £25 a month, you can also get 10% off at JD Sports online and use any of their gyms nationwide – find out more HERE.
1. PureGym – Central and Salford (£14.99/month)
PureGym has several gyms around Manchester. (Credit: PureGym)
As one of the country’s biggest gym groups, they’re famed for being cheap and practical, with 24-hour opening times.
Facilities are very good for the price and there are four PureGym gyms in the city centre alone – make that 14 in Greater Manchester. You just have to get used to their weirdly futuristic ‘beam me up, Scotty’ entrance vestibules.
You can get a base membership for just £14.99 on average depending on which venue but you can find out exact details for each place online.
The billboard in Manchester that’s turning the city into a real-life Love Actually scene
Daisy Jackson
A new billboard has appeared in an iconic location in Manchester that’s suddenly making everyone go all lovey-dovey.
Iconic haircare brand John Frieda has taken over a spot on the city’s beautiful King Street, with a stop-you-in-your-tracks advert.
Mancs passing through this part of town over the coming festive season will spot the eye-catching sight of… themselves.
John Frieda has installed a huge mirror (complete with mistletoe) where Mancunians can show off their style, check out their festive ‘fit, or pucker up for a selfie with loved ones.
And the adorable concept is already creating some heartwarming moments in town.
You’ll spot groups of friends posing for photos in their finery, couples sharing a cute smooch, and families taking a moment to capture themselves all back together for Christmas.
You can see some of these adorable exchanges in the video below.
John Frieda has installed the mistletoe mirror to encourage Mancs to show off their style, and individuality.
The decades-old British haircare brand has set out to show off all hair types, because everyone’s ‘hair is worth celebrating’.
And, of course, John Frieda has products tailored to all hair types.
Their expertly formulated products cater to all kinds of haircare and styling needs. Whether you want to repair damaged hair, refresh your color, boost volume in fine hair, embrace your curls, or tame frizz and flyaways, they’ve got you covered.
With tailored solutions, you can have your best hair every day – not just at Christmas!
Make sure this festive season that you swing by King Street to pucker up with John Frieda’s mirror billboard.
Daisy Bradbury -
16th October 2020 
