Most specialist fitness and leisure recruitment agencies in the UK charge between 15% and 25% of the successful candidate's first-year basic salary. Senior and executive searches are often run on a retained basis, typically between 20% and 25%. So if you hire a General Manager on £45,000 at a 15% fee, you would pay £6,750, usually only once they start.

That's the short answer. The more useful answer is what you actually get for that fee, how the different models work, and how to tell whether it's worth it for your hire. 

The three main fee models

Contingency recruitment is the most common model for operational roles such as Account Managers, Sales Managers, Fitness Managers and General Managers. You only pay if you hire someone the agency introduced. There is no upfront cost, which makes it low risk, but it can also mean several agencies racing to send CVs rather than taking the time to find the right person.

Exclusive or contained search sits in the middle. You give one agency the role for an agreed period, sometimes with a small commitment fee. In return, the agency can invest more time, approach people who aren't actively looking and run a more thorough process. For hard-to-fill roles, this often produces a better shortlist faster.

Retained search is often used for senior and business-critical roles such as Regional Directors, Operations Directors and C-suite appointments. The fee is usually paid in stages, for example on engagement, on shortlist and on appointment. You get a dedicated search, market mapping, structured assessment and regular reporting. It's the right model when the cost of getting the hire wrong is high.

What the fee actually pays for

An agency fee isn't for forwarding CVs. It pays for access to people you can't easily reach yourself, and in fitness that matters, because many of the best people aren't actively job hunting. It pays for the time spent screening, interviewing and referencing so you only meet people worth meeting. It pays for market knowledge, including what a competitive package looks like right now. And it pays for someone managing the process, keeping candidates warm and handling offers and counter-offers.

Done well, you should spend less of your own time on the hire and get a better person at the end of it.

Rebates and guarantees

Most reputable agencies offer a rebate or free replacement if a placed candidate leaves within an agreed period, commonly eight to twelve weeks and sometimes longer for senior roles. The rebate usually works on a sliding scale, so the earlier someone leaves, the more you get back. Always check the terms, including what counts as a qualifying leaver, before you agree to work with anyone.

The real cost of not using an agency

Doing it yourself isn't free. It just moves the cost somewhere less visible. A vacant General Manager or Area Manager role costs you lost membership sales, extra pressure on the rest of the team and senior time spent covering the gap. Add the hours spent writing adverts, screening applications and interviewing people who weren't right, and the cost builds quickly.

A quick way to estimate it: take the revenue or sales the role is responsible for each month, and multiply it by the number of extra months it takes to fill without help. Then add the cost of a mis-hire, which for a management role is often far more than the fee would have been. Our ROI case study walks through a real example of exactly this, the link is below.

When you probably don't need an agency

If you have a strong employer brand, an engaged internal talent pool and a role that attracts plenty of good applicants, you may not need an agency at all. Many entry-level and high-volume roles are better filled through your own careers site or a specialist job board. An agency adds most value when the role is senior, specialist, urgent, confidential or simply hasn't worked through your own channels.

Questions to ask any agency before you sign

• Do you specialise in fitness and leisure, and can you show me similar roles you've filled recently?

• Who will actually be working on my role, and how will they keep me updated?

• How will you find candidates who aren't actively looking?

• What is your fee, when is it payable, and what is your rebate policy?

• How do you assess candidates before I meet them?

• Can I speak to a client you've worked with?

Frequently asked questions

What percentage do recruitment agencies charge in the UK?

Most UK agencies charge between 15% and 25% of first-year basic salary for permanent roles. Retained executive search is typically 20% to 25%.

Do you pay a recruitment agency upfront?

Not on a contingency basis. You only pay once a candidate the agency introduced has accepted and started. Retained searches involve staged payments, usually starting at engagement.

Is a recruitment agency worth it for gym hiring?

For senior, specialist or hard-to-fill roles it usually is, because the cost of a long vacancy or a bad hire is higher than the fee. For entry-level roles with lots of applicants, your own channels may be enough.

What happens if the candidate leaves soon after starting?

Most agencies offer a rebate or free replacement within an agreed guarantee period. Check the length and terms before you begin.

Thinking about your next hire and want a straight answer on whether you need help? Talk to Love Recruitment. We've been recruiting across UK fitness and leisure since 2015, and we'll tell you honestly if we think you can do it without us.

Read our ROI case study at loverecruitmentgroup.com/posts/is-a-recruitment-agency-worth-it-a-real-roi-case-study or get in touch via loverecruitmentgroup.com/people.