Most climbing gym owners spend hours every week on tasks that could run automatically — things like managing access rights, handling memberships and payments, updating participant lists for courses, or pulling numbers together for reporting.
Digitalisation of what?
When we talk about digitalisation, we’re not talking about adding more apps or tools. We’re talking about replacing manual, repetitive work with automated, connected systems that run reliably in the background.
• Access control that doesn’t require constant staff involvement
Members enter automatically with valid passes, freeing staff to focus on safety, service, and community instead of door control.
• Payments and memberships handled automatically
Purchases, renewals, and validations happen instantly, without staff intervention.
• Courses, workshops, and events managed end-to-end
Sign-ups, payments, confirmations, and attendance lists update in real time.
• One source for customer data
All customer interactions — bookings, purchases, visits, and communication — live in one unified system, accessible to the right people when they need it.
• Real-time insights instead of manual reporting
Owners see attendance, revenue, performance trends, and member activity in real time, without exporting spreadsheets at night.
• A smoother experience for climbers
Visitors can buy online, enter immediately, receive automatic instructions, and skip reception queues entirely.
1) What's happening at DACH region in 2026?
The climbing industry in the DACH region is entering its digital maturity phase.
New gyms are still opening, but growth is no longer driven by square meters or route setting alone. Competitive advantage now comes from how efficiently a gym operates at scale. Member expectations have caught up with other industries: seamless booking, automatic access, and mobile-first, frictionless services.
Over the past two years, we’ve spoken with dozens of climbing gyms across the DACH region, and the same pattern keeps repeating: operating costs are rising — especially staffing and energy. Peak hours are getting busier, off-peak utilisation remains hard to optimise, and many gyms are still running on disconnected tools, manual processes, and staff-dependent access control.
2) How digital tools simplify everyday work in your gym
Labor costs in the sports and leisure sector have risen sharply, with no sign of reversing. Using front-desk staff for tasks that can be automated is no longer just inefficient — it’s financially unsustainable.
- Reception staff cost €13–18 per hour
- Peak hours require 2–3 people
- Manual check-ins and validations take 30–90 seconds per visitor
- Across 200–400 daily visits, costs escalate fast
Gyms that automate these processes often save €1,000–€2,000 per month by optimizing front-desk hours.
But the bigger gain is qualitative. When staff aren’t tied to a desk, they can engage with members, support learning, and strengthen the gym’s atmosphere — shifting the experience from transactional to welcoming.
3) Customers in 2026 expect digital by default
Here's what a first visit looks like at a digitally mature gym:
A potential member discovers your gym on Instagram at 10 PM.
They browse your website, choose a day pass, and purchase it immediately on their phone.
The next morning, they walk up to your gate, show their mobile app at the gate and enter. No line. No staff interaction required unless they want it.
They receive an automated welcome message with route-setting schedules, facility rules, and an invitation to an intro workshop.
After a few visits, they decide to buy a membership. The upgrade takes about 90 seconds on their phone. Access updates instantly. No forms, no waiting, no follow-up needed.
Now contrast that with a still-common, partially digital experience:
They visit your website but can't buy online. Or they can buy online, but access still needs to be handled manually at the counter.
They arrive during opening hours, wait in line, confirm details verbally, and rely on staff to explain rules that could have been shared automatically.
Payments, access rights, and memberships live in different systems.
It works — but only when staff are available, and only as long as nothing goes wrong.They’re unsure whether their pass is still valid tomorrow or if they need to repeat the process.
A week or two later, they’ve simply stopped thinking about your gym. The gap between these experiences determines whether someone becomes a long-term member or never returns. In 2026, that gap is your primary competitive risk.
4) The Hidden Cost: Decision-Making in the Dark
Manual operations waste time and they prevent you from understanding your own business.
When your data lives in separate systems—one for access control, another for payments, a spreadsheet for courses, a different tool for communications—you never have a complete picture. You can't easily answer questions like:
- Which member segments have the highest lifetime value?
- What's our actual retention rate by membership type?
- Where are we losing revenue to failed renewals?
Gyms with unified digital systems answer these questions in real time. They make decisions based on data, not gut feel. They spot problems before they become crises and capitalize on opportunities while they're still fresh.
5) The Strategic Decision for 2026 and Beyond
Climbing gyms now face a choice between two operational models.
Path One: Patchwork Operations
You continue with fragmented tools and manual processes. Staff bridge the gaps between systems. You react to problems as they surface. Growth means more complexity, more staff, more things to coordinate. Every new member adds friction. Every new course requires more manual management.
Path Two: Unified Digital Foundation
You build operations on integrated systems where information flows automatically and processes run without intervention. Staff focus on people, not paperwork. You make decisions based on reliable data. Growth gets easier, not harder, because your systems scale with you.
This isn't theoretical. Gyms on this path are already operating 24/7 without increasing headcount. They're launching new revenue streams in days, not months. They're making strategic decisions with confidence because they can see what's actually working.
6) Digitalisation supports every growth strategy
Revenue & availability
A digital-first setup allows your gym to generate revenue beyond staffed hours. Day passes, memberships, workshops, competitions, and products can be sold and accessed online 24/7. Demand isn’t limited by opening hours or reception capacity.
Operations & staffing
Automated check-ins, integrated payments, real-time membership validation, and automated invoicing remove the manual work that typically requires extra staff. Teams stay lean while service quality improves, because staff time is spent with members, not systems.
Scalability & expansion
When your processes are integrated and repeatable, opening new locations or launching new services no longer means starting from scratch. Systems scale with the business, reducing risk and complexity as you grow.
7) Addressing the Real Concerns
"Won't automation make the experience feel impersonal?"
When staff aren't buried in administrative tasks, they have time for actual human connection. Members get help when they need it, not when they're trying to rush through check-in.
"What about the upfront investment?"
Most gyms break even within 4–6 months purely from reduced labor costs. After that, the savings compound monthly while the member experience improves. The real question is: what's the cost of waiting another year?
"Our members are used to the personal touch at reception."
Your best members aren't coming for the reception experience. They're coming to climb. The "personal touch" they actually value is staff who remember their name, notice their progress, and have time to chat about beta—not staff frantically checking passes while a line forms behind them.
2026: The Year to Decide Your Future
Every gym faces a simple decision:
Do we keep running operations manually, hoping to keep up?
or
Do we build a modern, scalable, digital-first gym that runs smoothly — even when we’re not on-site?
Digitalisation is the difference between:
reacting vs. steering
surviving vs. growing
struggling vs. scaling
complexity vs. clarity
Ready to see what digital operations actually look like in practice?
WisePlatform Vertical is built specifically for climbing gyms and sports facilities in the DACH region. We'd be happy to show you how gyms similar to yours have made the transition—and what they're achieving now that they're on the other side.
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Max Mäki
Sales Expert / WisePlatform Gym
Max Mäki is a sales professional with extensive experience in B2C and B2B sales, staff training, system integrations, and customer experience within the sports and recreation industry.
Before joining WiseNetwork, Max worked as Head of Sales at Finland’s leading climbing gym group, where he led major improvements in sales processes and customer journeys — increasing both membership and overall revenue significantly.
At WiseNetwork, Max applies his expertise to help climbing gyms streamline operations, boost sales, and enhance customer experience through WisePlatform.
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