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- #THE NEXT BIG THING IN FITNESS PROFESSIONAL#
The more equipment we bought, the more clients we could take on, which earned us more money and the cycle continued. When we wanted to buy more equipment, we’d dig into our savings and buy more stuff. Every time we’d get some cash, it’d go in the little lockbox. We didn’t take one penny for the first year or so (we still don’t). We kept our other jobs which meant all the money we earned, stayed in the business.
#THE NEXT BIG THING IN FITNESS HOW TO#
Before we knew it we’d learned how to build a website, we’d created business accounts on Instagram and Facebook and we started producing content. The hype continued to grow around the place and we were excited about the little business we were creating. We were lucky enough to be involved with a local sports team and already had experience training people so we started growing fast.

We didn’t officially start charging people until we had around a dozen consistent members coming in. Our payment for the service? Burgers and beers on Sundays. We started getting a handful of new people coming in to train with us, and they started paying us for it.
#THE NEXT BIG THING IN FITNESS PLUS#
With the world of Snapchat and social media - plus just being a normal human being and having friends - it didn’t take long for our little garage to start attracting some of our mates. It was now starting to look like a real gym. We bought some dumbbells, kettlebells, medicine balls and tiled our 6 x 6 (metres, that is) garage with gym flooring. Over time we continued saving and buying equipment. This was like my second university degree. I also cut grass during the day for my uncle’s company - which was great for saving up money and devouring podcasts and audiobooks. I was working as a personal trainer at another gym, 25 minutes from my house. I’d love to tell you that I had some grand master-plan to build a business from here, but honestly, I just wanted a garage gym to train in. We painted it black because… well, just because. We started out with some basics: a squat rack, a barbell, some weight plates and a bench. I‘ll teach you how, but first, I want to tell you a little bit about my story.īack in July 2017, my older brother and I decided that we wanted to buy some equipment to store in the family garage - so we could train whenever we wanted. If this is you, I truly believe you should consider starting a Micro Gym. Today I’m here to talk to the aspiring gym owners out there.
#THE NEXT BIG THING IN FITNESS PROFESSIONAL#
I was never told that I could run the type of fitness business that I would want to train at.įrom the beginning of my degree, I always thought that my options were to work for a professional sports team - they want shy, inexperienced graduates right? Or work at a “Globo-gym” type facility.Īfter 6–7 years in fitness, I can tell you that there are a million ways to make a living in fitness - including but not limited to: writing, podcasting, online coaching, subcontracting, apparel, equipment, working in tech and so on. Get a loan, rent a warehouse and start your own businessĪt no point in my university studies did I ever come across the idea of starting a small business from my garage.Professionals in the fitness space are led to believe that there are 3 career pathways available to us: You’ve also got to be prepared for early alarms, late nights, difficult people, snake-oil salesman and charlatans… but that’s for another day.

It’s a flaky industry and you’re always trying to attract new clients, keep your current members and not come off too “sales-y.” It can feel like a constant battle to stay afloat. Yes, they’re super rewarding but they inherently come with some risk. Not only are they expensive to run, but they’re also stressful to operate. Generally, you need a huge chunk of space, equipment to fill that space, all the ongoing costs like insurance, first aid, technology, staff and so on. But if little Poppy doesn’t have food on the table, Mummy isn’t going to F45 anymore.

It’s a luxury to have the resources to go to the gym. The problem with the fitness industry is that when people are struggling financially, it’s the first thing they drop. Not to mention the thousands of other gyms worldwide, that have had to close their doors. This year we’ve seen world-famous gyms like 24 Hour Fitness and Gold’s Gym file for bankruptcy.

I built a gym business that’s designed to stay small, but I’ll go through that in a little bit. Thankfully, this book saved me a lot of heartache and money when the COVID Pandemic hit this year. Is it really desirable? Is it really the best option for you? It teaches you to think about constantly chasing growth. The lessons stuck with me and it changed the way I decided to build my gym when the time came. I read the book before I started my own business. It’s directed mostly at digital nomads and freelancers, but there are great takeaways for any business owner and entrepreneur. I loved “ Company of One” by Paul Jarvis.
