If you’re passionate about fitness and looking for a business opportunity to apply this passion with then opening a gym is something definitely worth looking into.

The global health industry is huge, and creating a business to meet this demand has the potential to yield huge profits in an enterprise you genuinely have an interest in. Opening a gym can be difficult, although after completion you will not struggle for customers given one in six adults currently have at least one gym membership. Below is a flex-by-flex guide to opening your own gym in the business of bodybuilding.

Location
Location is a key factor when opening a gym and can be critical to its survival. You’ll want to complete some initial consideration into what your gym is about and the demographics you wish to appeal to first. This will have an underlying influence on which location you decide to choose and therefore should be completed carefully. Furthermore, there are other factors to consider such as the convenience of parking, its location among neighbouring businesses and its accessibility by foot and public transport.

Many factors go into choosing the location. Therefore, don’t be afraid to take your time on this front, instead of snatching up the first place you see. Let’s also not forget about cost with the price of rent, something that will have an effect on your finances and the price you will put forth for your customers.

Financing
Opening a gym is generally expensive, meaning you’ll have to find financing to start your business. It is said to run you as much as $50 000 to open a gym according to many existing gym owners. This process is relatively complicated and requires a lot of thought. However, a good strategy to approach your financing is to produce a concise and detailed business plan.

A solid business plan is one that you can incorporate all relevant data and material into, that also allows you to approach investors for funding and give off an element of legitimacy. It’s also worth looking into private or even government funded companies that supply business grants in and business strategy recommendations.

Equipment
Once you’ve figured out your financing and secured your location, you will need to start filling up your empty space with a variety of different gym equipment. It is important to ensure you purchase a good balance of gym equipment that meets the needs of the clientele you intend to target.

You’ll want to have cardio equipment like bikes, rowing machines and treadmills, in addition to bench presses, squat racks and free weights. Ultimately, there are thousands of machines you can include in your gym, however, to make final decisions on what to actually purchase you need to define what type of gym you want to open and the people you wish to appeal to.

Staff
Most business owners will spend a lengthy amount of time on the job, although it is impossible to run a gym without the help of some additional staff. Once your location, financing and equipment have been arranged, it is time to start hiring individuals and grow your business in terms of people. Hiring can be a fun process, although you will need to ensure you hire qualified and accredited individuals with good working habits and experience in the fitness industry.

You should aim to hire a mixture of staff who all have unique strengths that can contribute to the well-being of your gym. This means employing a variety of people with different skills whether it be administration, sales, marketing or personal trainers who can assist in a range of disciplines. Experience and working habits are key however ensuring you hire people whose company you genuinely enjoy cannot be overstated as this can affect the atmosphere in your gym.

As you can see there are many factors that go into opening your own gym, however, choosing the right location and sourcing enough financing and equipment with the addition of a strong team will ensure a smooth a smooth start-up.

Author

Northern girl Laura is the epitome of a true entrepreneur. Laura’s spirit for adventure and passion for people blaze through House of Coco. She founded House of Coco in 2014 and has grown it in to an internationally recognised brand whilst having a lot of fun along the way. Travel is in her DNA and she is a true visionary and a global citizen.

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