For Kenkou Corp., slimmer waistlines mean fatter profits.

The health and fitness company seeks to almost triple profit this year and shift its stock listing to Tokyo from Sapporo as it expands abroad, founder and president Takeshi Seto said.

Shares of Kenkou jumped more than five times in the past year after it began publicizing its ownership of its Rizap gyms and boosted advertisements touting their ability to get fat people to reshape their bodies and slim down in a matter of months. Deutsche Bank AG bought ¥7.6 billion ($64 million) in Kenkou stock options in March, providing funding that the fitness company plans to use for its expansion.

Kenkou aims to increase the number of gyms in Japan to 100 by March from 39 now and start operations in Australia, Canada, Germany, South Korea and the U.K., Seto, 36, said in an interview at the company's headquarters in Tokyo.

"The global health and fitness market is huge," he said. "Being healthy is what people want the most to have a happy life."

Net income will probably climb to about ¥3 billion to ¥3.5 billion for the year ending March from the ¥1.2 billion forecast for last fiscal year, according to Seto.

Kenkou, whose market value increased sevenfold to ¥78 billion since its initial public offering in 2006, is preparing to move to the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section from the Sapporo Securities Exchange, Seto said. He declined to say when or how this might happen. Listing on the larger Tokyo bourse would make it easier for investors to trade the stock.

Rizap charges at least ¥350,000 for 16 workouts in private rooms, with a focus on using weights to exert extreme pressure on muscles. During the two-month course, trainers keep in close contact with their customers, who must tell them what they're eating every day in exchange for advice on nutrition.

The program, which has 30,000 clients including fashion models, actors, athletes and wealthy individuals, will begin targeting senior citizens and non-Japanese, Seto said. Rizap has gyms in Shanghai, Singapore and Taipei and said in March that it will form units in New York and Hong Kong.

Sales at Japan's fitness clubs, including membership fees, have climbed in each month for the past three years to February, trade ministry data show.

"It remains to be seen whether they can achieve the same success overseas," said Shotaro Taka, who reviews small to mid-cap companies for SMBC Nikko Securities Inc.'s equity strategy team. "One-on-one training sessions in a private room might not suit all cultures and customs."

Taka said he formed a positive impression of Kenkou after completing the Rizap program and losing 8 kg (18 pounds). While SMBC Nikko does not cover the stock, Taka and his colleagues included the company in an April 7 report on emerging exporters that have growth potential.

Kenkou will double employees from 1,000 in two years as it adds people including trainers in Japan and abroad, Seto said. It plans to boost revenue to ¥100 billion and profit to ¥6.5 billion for the year ending March 2017, he said.

The company, whose name means "health" in Japanese, is seeking to form alliances with more than 10 local hospitals as early as this year to promote Rizap gyms, according to Seto. The fitness and dietary supplement provider is also in talks with several hospitals to acquire their operations, he said.

"Becoming healthy is an urgent issue, especially in an aging society like Japan," Seto said. "Elderly people don't spend much on material things, but they don't spare their money for health."

Deutsche Bank's purchase of the stock options allows it to obtain as many as 8 percent of common shares in Kenkou if the price rises to certain levels, the Japanese company said in a statement in March.

The transaction is part of the German bank's program of investing in midsize listed Japanese companies that have growth prospects. Deutsche Bank has invested in about 20 companies as part of its Target Issue Program since 2007, said Takayuki Inoue, a spokesman for its Tokyo-based brokerage unit. He declined to comment on specific deals including Kenkou.