DHS gym runs newspaper ad falsley stating competitor had closed down

(KESQ)
(KESQ)
(KESQ)

A newspaper ad for Five Star Fitness that ran in the Desert Sun claimed its competitor, World Gym, had closed down. This was pretty shocking to discover for the owner of World Gym…whose facility was still  open for business.

The Five Star Fitness ad ran in the Desert Sun on June 8, according to KESQ. It claimed that the World Gym in Desert Hot Springs had closed and invited all previous members to join for a dollar activation fee.

“This, of course, was completely untrue. We’ve been open and operating for over 10 years,” World Gym owner Andrew Levine – who took over the facility last month – told the TV station. “The staff and ownership of Five Star Fitness has been stating to the general public verbally that we were going to be closing and this just culminated with an actual print ad in the Desert Sun.”

Here is the full ad:

False Ad

And here is the claim World Gym was closing:

False ad

The owner of Five Star Fitness, Suresh Shah, said that it was just an oops on his part as someone told one of his employees that World Gym was closing – which is always a reliable source of information.

The Desert Sun has since pulled the ad – not that any of this matters since hardly anyone reads newspapers anymore.