What Personal Trainers Need to Know Before Opening Their Own Gyms

In the United States, there are hundreds of thousands of personal trainers. So many avid exercisers become professional personal trainers because when one has knowledge and experience with physical training, helping others achieve their personal fitness goals isn’t particularly hard to do. No state requires certification for personal trainers, and many trainers can work out of established gyms or their clients’ homes.

Yet, many personal trainers have dreams beyond this beginner level of the training profession. Opening one’s own gym is a much more serious business proposition, which requires more knowledge and effort than the average personal trainer is able to put in. Even in this post-COVID world, it is possible for personal trainers to run a gym of their own to serve clients and the general public — but personal trainers interested in owning a gym should consider the following, first:

Trainer Turned Entrepreneur

Becoming an effective personal trainer involves plenty of knowledge and expertise about fitness — but it is possible to find some success in this field without much business acumen. The same isn’t true for owning a gym. Personal trainers need to be capable of executing complex and difficult business strategies to develop a strong and stable gym business that can compete in its market.

Trainers with little business experience should strongly consider enrolling in business leadership courses online or at their local community college or university. This will help them develop the skills and knowledge they need to excel in their new roles as entrepreneurs. Even after the gym opens, a trainer-turned-entrepreneur might consider continuing education in marketing, to ensure their business is able to maintain and increase its clientele.

Gyms Are Expensive

There are remarkably few overhead costs to functioning as an independent personal trainer, but the same is not true of running a gym. A gym is a costly business operation, with various and sundry expenses, which include business licenses, gym software, location leases, utilities, equipment, maintenance, cleaning and more. Depending on the size and region of the gym, a trainer is likely to pay between $10,000 and $50,000 in start-up costs alone.

There are a few different fundraising strategies trainers can use to gain the start-up capital they need. Business loans and investors are typical business fundraising methods, but they might be difficult for trainers-turned-entrepreneurs to acquire. Many trainers opt to bootstrap, or fund their gyms personally or through their own efforts. In any case, it can be useful to acquire membership pre-sales, which will help business leaders better predict the volume of their clientele while generating cash to cover startup costs. Trainers can leverage their current professional network to increase their pre-sales, converting their current clients and their friends and family into gym members.

Nurturing Leads Is Key

During the pre-sale period and after the gym opens its doors, business leaders need to understand lead generation and lead nurturing. Leads are people who might be interested in a business’s product or service; for gym owners, leads are individuals who are considering some kind of physical fitness service, specifically membership to a gym. Unfortunately, many first-time gym owners have a “build it and they will come” mindset, wherein they expect leads to appear out of thin air and become loyal to their business without the owner’s express effort. In reality, leads need some incentive to pay attention to a new gym, and that incentive should be communicated through business planning and marketing.

A few strong strategies for generating and nurturing leads include:

Consistency. Marketing is not a one-and-done endeavor. Gyms need to consistently reach out to their communities to make connections to leads, which could include active social media accounts, regular events and more. It might be necessary to alter marketing strategy every so often, but gyms should never cease marketing entirely.

Engagement. Once a business identifies a lead, they need to follow up — and not just once. Trainers should try to engage their leads by reaching out several times, which helps leads remember the name of a gym and develop a connection to it. Generally, personal engagement is more effective than automated messages, so trainers should take full advantage of their networks.

Uniqueness. There are dozens of gyms, studios and centers striving to capture local leads, so gym owners need to set themselves apart. A unique selling proposition (USP) might involve hiring experienced trainers with exercise physiology certificates, who can do more than the average personal trainer toward achieving member fitness goals. Alternatively, a gym owner might boast specialized equipment for a specific type of exercise or provide services like massage or cryotherapy. Talking with leads and reviewing competitors’ USPs are good strategies for developing an effective marketing angle.

Operating a gym can be among the most rewarding professional endeavors for those who are passionate about physical fitness. Fortunately, with the right knowledge, skill and preparation, a trainer can become an effective gym owner.