Genesis Health Clubs purchases club No. 79

Less than a month after acquiring its last club in Louisiana, Genesis Health Clubs has purchased another one.

The North Little Rock Athletic Club in Arkansas makes No. 79 for the Wichita-based chain.

The 79 clubs are across 13 states, which includes three in the greater Little Rock area.

The new North Little Rock Athletic Club will be temporarily closing for upgrades, which will be a complete club remodeling.

Members will be able to use another Genesis a half a block away at Lakewood Village Mall in North Little Rock or the two Genesis gyms in Little Rock.

The last club Genesis founder Rodney Steven II purchased was in late August. It was the Pelican Athletic Club based in Mandeville, La., which is on the other side of Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans.

Though it may seem that this is a fast purchase following the last one, Steven previously explained that he works on deals a long time — usually years — before they come together.

And, as Steven once said, “We don’t go into new cities to just have one location.”

In addition to expanding nationally, Steven recently invested in Wichita with the new Club Noir, a nightclub with drinks and DJs inside the East Central Genesis.