Reports breaking overnight suggest Pure Gym's planned IPO will not now go ahead.

According to Reuters, the company and its broker 'has met a 'weaker than expected demand' for its shares. Pure Gym's sale opened on 28 September, with trading previously expected to start today (Tuesday)

Pure Gym's CEO, Humphrey Cobbold announced on 14 September that the company would be using the IPO to raise £190m to pay off debt and bolster “future growth opportunities”, saying: “We are ready to become a listed company."

Pure Gym's route to market has been a complicated one. Earlier this year, Health Club Management revealed that Cobbold pulled the plug on plans for an earlier IPO, citing the UK’s volatile markets following the Brexit vote as the cause.

Founded in 2008, Pure Gym is the largest gym operator in the UK by both number of gyms (163) and number of members (785,770).

In the first half of 2016 the company opened 27 new gyms, 16 of which were conversions of previously acquired LA Fitness premises. Revenue over the six months was £76.6m, up 51 per cent compared with the first half of 2015.