AusLeisure

Fitness business coach Steve Grant, the Director of Gym Hub, has explained the six key reasons about why fitness clubs fail.

In a Blog on the Gym Hub website, Grant shares his experience that 80% of Australian gyms will close in their first five years of business and, of those who survive a further 80% will, unfortunately, fail during the five years that follow.

Gym owners need to juggle a number of important factors to succeed in the early days, such as keeping expenses low while gaining maximum exposure to new members – just to ensure they can pay their bills. Then, later in the business lifecycle, gym owners look to leverage away from the 80-hour work weeks, using strong systems and staff development to ensure the momentum continues, and for survival in the long term.

1: No skills, experience or passion
Please do not buy a fitness business if you have no passion for fitness and no experience in the industry. The days of buying a fitness business, putting a low paid manager in it, and sitting back as an investor are long gone. 

Instead get your hands dirty, spend time in your business getting to know your members and invest time into creating 'rock-star' staff. 

No business has great leverage from day one. Profit, leverage and satisfaction in the fitness industry are the rewards for taking market share, setting up good systems and developing great people.

2: No business plan
Creating a unique name, logo and business cards are not enough to run a successful fitness business. The Gym industry is more competitive and tougher than ever, so it’s crucial to have a well thought-out business plan that identifies your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. 

I recommend creating a killer 12-month marketing plan that differentiates you in the market place and brings you in a steady flow of qualified staff and new members.

3: Cash flow shortage
Cash flow is the life-blood of every business. If you open your gym without adequate cash flow to get an effective website, lots of exposure through marketing, staff uniforms, quality equipment or without enough money to employ staff for three to six months before you actually start making money, you are going to sink like a lead balloon.

4: Poor pre-sales
Creating a buzz in your community and selling hundreds of memberships before doors officially open, will go a long way to helping you be successful overall. Many gyms under estimate the importance of starting strong and paying bills. Be aggressive with sales and marketing before you open and throw everything you have at.

5:  Too scared to ask for help
Spend money on a business mentor, a franchise, a marketing agency or anyone else who can save you time and heart ache behind the scenes in the first 12 months, so you can find your feet and focus on service quality. Look for software and leverage off the many choices in great CRMs (customer relationship management) systems so you can be super organised tracking leads and nurturing relationships from day one.

6: No additional revenue streams 
In the increasingly competitive fitness market, membership sales alone are no longer enough to make good money as a gym owner.

In 2017, the most profitable fitness entrepreneurs are those who have adapted to market changes, finding as much as significant extra profit each year by creating additional revenue streams. Consider ways you could create additional revenue for example by adding a premium product or service, offer a weekend health retreat, set up small group Personal training and sell supplement’s and clothing online.

Steve Grant, Director, Gym Hub

Steve Grant is a passionate entrepreneur with 18 years fitness industry experience including four years as a Health and Wellness Lecturer at the Australian College of Physical Education and eight years as the owner of one of Sydney’s most profitable Fitness studios.

Grant is an expert in building ‘High Performance Teams’ and creating ‘Winning Cultures’ with innovative techniques to increase revenue without adding members.

Grant’s systems and unique recruitment and staff development technique shows gym owners how to get their life back.

Click here to contact Steve Grant and Gym Hub via their entry in the Australasian Leisure Management Supplier Directory.

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