WAG Gym owner advice

[coachmolly]

Have a growth plan. The gym I'm at now has essentially backed itself into a corner with a team program that has no room to grow as well as classes that are seemingly stuck due to space issues. Have a plan from day 1.

 

[my4buffaloes]

I would take some business classes for sure. Then shadow, shadow, shadow!

 

[NMNorskie]

What country are you in? That makes a difference in terms of laws. If you're in the U.S., it matters what state you're in, in terms of labor law, etc. California and Texas may as well be different countries from an employment standpoint.

My best advice is to know what you're good at, and what you're not. No one is good at everything. You might be a brilliant coach, but be bad at HR, at designing a website, whatever. Hire people to do those things. Don't limp along and suck at stuff just because you don't want to ask for help. The best leaders/business owners know how to surround themselves with people who shore up their weaknesses, and free them up to do the things they're truly good at.

Also, make sure there's wifi for the parents, and a working pop machine.

Good luck. It's exciting to start something new like this.

 

[BarCoach]

Thanks. I have plenty of weaknesses right now. Hoping to get better at some of them. Yes I'm in the US.

 

[mommyof1]

I am not a gym owner, just a parent, but here are my two cents. Never forget that your gym is a business and the parents are your customers. Your gym may be more than just a business to you, and you may feel very close to your gymnasts and their families, but the parents are investing a lot of money and time and foregoing many other opportunities (other sports, arts, education, etc.) that they could be giving their children. They want and deserve to see real value for the money and opportunity cost. Never, ever treat the kids or parents as if they are lucky to be a part of your program. If I treated my clients the way we my daughter and I were treated by the coaches, management, and owners of our previous gym, I would no longer have any clients.

Provide your customers with a product of excellent quality and value, even at the rec levels. Make sure your classes are well planned and the quality of coaching is high so the kids make visible progress, even if they are never going to be on team. Teach your coaches, even the young ones, to act like professionals--no cell phones on the floor, no talking about their personal lives with the kids and parents, no discussing move-ups with children, etc. Maintain good communication with your coaches and supervise them well to ensure that they are following lesson plans and gym policies. Keep your gym neat, clean, and pleasant. Make sure that rec parents know the process, requirements, and timetables for advancing to team. Put your office hours on your website and answer your phone and e-mail during those hours--parents calling to inquire about enrolling their kids will give up and call another gym if they can't get a live person on the phone. Use an on-line system for class sign-ups, parent accounts, and payments. If you choose to have a booster club, make fundraising and other obligations (except perhaps working meets) entirely voluntary, and make sure it is very clear exactly where all the money is going.

 

[Deleted member D3987]

Wondering if there are instances where a coach with no prior business has opened a gym and been successful. I have lots of ideas I'd like to put into place but I'm quickly learning it's a lot to take on.

of course... that's all of us! are you kidding???