Movati Athletic, an Ontario-based chain of health and fitness clubs, has chosen Cundari Media to handle its media planning and buying.

Movati – formerly branded The Athletic Club – had been using a creative agency in Toronto that accessed U.S.-based media services and did not feel its needs were being met, says Luke Moore, executive vice-president of Cundari Media.

“Because the nature of their business is retail, they’re in specific markets, they would have local traditional needs, like out-of-home in the vicinity of the club,” he says,”which is hard to do if you don’t know the market.”

The deal – sixteen months in the making – will be heavily digital-focused, Moore says. Movati bills itself as a high-end, premium operation, he explains, heavily skewed toward a female demographic. A mix of search and social coupled with local out-of-home is planned as the clubs’ 15 locations are in smaller markets like Richmond Hill, Burlington and the Ottawa area.

“It’s conversion-oriented stuff,” Moore says of the media plan. “And, that’s coupled with this expertise of local, traditional media, so really knowing the markets and helping them drive their business that way.”

Sean Caners, director of marketing for Movati Athletic, says bringing the brand to life in a digital way is a top priority for the company as it looks to make strides in search, social and display.

Caner added that one of the reasons Movati chose Cundari was because it came to the table with the kind of experience it was looking for. Helping to open new locations for clients like Cambrian Credit Union made the agency a good fit for the health club, currently constructing two new locations in Mississauga and Windsor.

And, working with a independent Canadian agency develops a more personal working relationship, Caners says, avoiding the anonymity that can come with corporate culture. “It’s nice to have an agency within a short commute,” he says. “We know every single person on the account.”

Movati has also begun the process of shopping agencies for its creative business, for which Cundari is currently developing an RFP.