Iranian founders open experiential pilates and wellness studio in Barcelona

Repeat opened on Ausiàs March street in Barcelona’s Eixample district as more than a Pilates room. The project, built by Iranian founders Nilou Hosseini and Mehrazin Davani, is pitched as an experiential wellbeing club where movement, hospitality and interior design are meant to work together.

The backstory explains why the studio feels more like a lifestyle concept than a standard reformer opening. Davani spent 12 years running a Pilates studio in Tehran, while Hosseini first came in as a student and later became a certified instructor. The idea for Repeat took shape about four years ago, and the founders said they chose Barcelona about two years later after comparing cities and landing on one that matched their sense of active urban life, architecture and public space. They described the city as being in a "wellness wave."

That positioning shows up in the build-out. Repeat sits inside a protected residential building dating to 1895, and the interior was designed by MEAN* Middle East Architecture Network, led by Riyad Joucka. The space is organized as a sequence from movement to recovery: a reception area, Pilates studio, healthy food and coffee pop-up by Nudes, sauna, cold plunge, infrared therapy and massage rooms. Rather than the hard edges of a typical gym, the studio uses high ceilings, salmon tones and curved lines inspired by Barcelona modernism, plus handcrafted tiles by Cumella.

The offer is equally broad. Alongside Pilates reformer, Repeat has leaned into Lagree, EMS, sauna, ice baths, massage, red light therapy and guided breathing. That mix matters in a city where the premium fitness market is increasingly defined by atmosphere as much as training modality. Repeat is entering the same conversation as other boutique names already active in Barcelona, including PILAT3S, TRIB3 and EDAN Studios, where brand identity and recovery services can matter as much as class count.

Barcelona looks like a natural test case for that kind of business. The Barcelona City Council says it regularly studies residents’ sports practice and runs Activa’t, an outdoor exercise program in parks and gardens. Turisme de Barcelona leans on the city’s walkability and mild Mediterranean climate as part of its lifestyle appeal. Add a large international population, with foreign nationals making up 14.1% of Spain as of January 1, 2025, and Repeat’s mix of design, community and wellness starts to look less like a novelty than a bet on where premium fitness is headed next.