Hello !
My friend has started her own gym, it is doing well and caters to a more high end crowd, we are looking to attract new customers with new eqiupment/new ideas..
can you tell me some of the things you would like to see/have seen in gyms and any ideas you may have for attracting new customers in a small country town ??? TFL

This message has been edited. Last edited by: golddot,

As a lifelong gym rat, I can tell you what not to do.

Don’t try to cater to EVERYONE. Don’t try and have a stupid class, or section for every type of person. (Unless the gym is massive and well staffed).

Too often, I’ve seen my favorite gyms water down what they originally were and become an annoying, mish mash of half assed fitness with the goal of attracting more people.

Just curious, how does a gym cater to a high end crowd? Does that mean it’s over priced to be a member?

My first question:

Is is it a gym like Worlds or Gold or more like Planet Fitness, Anytime fitness etc..

I like to see a good mix between weights, machines and DB.

Actually my favorite gym opened up just prior to me relocating from Richmond. It is called Crunch Fitness. It has cybex plate loaded machines, Free weights, nautical, cardio and a Cross fit area.

The one thing that I hate about the two planet fitness that I go to is that everyone is on their phones talking, face talking, skyping, whatever. Either talk or get out of the way. I don't want to hear your conversation, nor your crap music.

Keep it immaculately clean with plenty of hand sanitizing stations. Equipment cleaned and wiped often and well maintained. One of the biggest turn-offs is unsanitary conditions in a workout space. Since you're trying to attract high end customers, the space and gear needs to be high end.

Don't include registration fees with a membership. No contracts. Offer "membership freezes" that start at the end of the current month payment.

Optional punch passes, as well as monthly membership fees. Realistic family discounts, maybe twice the monthly fee, for a family of four. Both my son's go with me, but my youngest just goes to play basketball. Do I really need to pay $39/month for that?

What are your hours? Your more loyal customers will have odd hours compared to a sporadic user. Maybe even offer 24hrs, but you'd need cameras, and a way to identify members.

Fitness has fads, try to offer something to change up the routine. Keep it fun. Promote events, weekend runs, pullup challenges, bench press competition, etc. I don't talk much when I work out, but you want to promote socialization between members, and friends will promote your gym by word of mouth.

We use to do a craft beer exchange. I'm pretty sure it wasn't allowed, but we were the 5am crowd, and the only employees there were the front desk and janitor. Everyone would bring in a case of craft beer, and you'd walk out with a case of 24 individual beers. Everyone involved looked forward to that event.

I recently suffered a very severe "gym burnout". I'm a 5am guy, and I tend to bounce all over the place working out. I got tired of waiting for people who think they need to lean/sit/put items on equipment. You don't need to lean against a pullup bar in between sets. I realized I can get more sleep, and I have everything I need at home, and can get more done. I've decided to freeze my membership until the temps get colder, as I just use my garage and driveway.

Maybe a FaceBook page to get members who normally would not know each other, a means of "introducing" themselves.

FREE WiFi.

Keep it clean. My current gym is open 5am-11pm. It would be easier to hire a night time janitor to do the upkeep during the closed hours, but they don't. Instead we come into disgusting bathrooms, weights not racked, etc. Even if the housekeeping started 2 hours before opening, they would get a headstart.

Is daycare an option? Young parents love that option.

Lots of bumper plates and bars for Olympic lifts.

Tough business, Shawn. I’ve been going to the same place for eons. Best described as the gym most likely to be used by Fred Flintstone. Think Ronnie Coleman style but much more square footage. Power lifters, body builders, and strong man stuff. $25 per month and many guys still have memberships at the $10 per month contract-only Gucci gyms so they can do cardio and meet women. The two things lacking in our place. The owner gets by but he’s not rich by any stretch of the imagination. He will not invest in cardio but we’ve been having two big regional meets a year for a while. Jack Daniels and beer is the post-workout drink for the evening crowd.

A small group of dedicated powerlifters broke off to create a very small gym exclusively for themselves; not to make money but to purchase and justify their own monolift ($4-5K). A monolift can allow you to cater to a unique crowd.

I don’t know any honest people making a good living in this business. CrossFit gyms open up and appear to make a lot of money but close down just as fast.

Mirrors.

My gym keeps things clean and not crowded. Know what equipment is most popular and get extras. I hate going to use something and it is already being used.

My husband & I have both worked & competed in the fitness industry. The gyms I personally like have a can of Lysol/disinfectant in each bathroom stall. It also has disinfectant wipes & hand sanitizer stations throughout the gym & multiple water bottle filling stations in the gym. Mirrors are a must for me. We have our own gym but the mirrors are not installed yet so I often go just because I like using the mirrors.

I also like the gym to have at least 2 actual "stepmill" machines, not just "steppers". Personally, I also love the versa climber but not many places have those.

I also love it when the gym has a few heavy bags & speed bags.

Clean showers are nice too if you have that option.

It is also nice to have some of the smaller weights in lesser increments for people that are rehabbing injuries.

Laundry service! I've always wanted a gym where I could have a locker. I go in, my shorts, shirt, socks and shoes are in my locker...I work out...I put my dirty socks/shirt/shorts in a laundry bin...when I come in tomorrow, my clean clothes are in my locker waiting for me.

I would rotate my clothes every once in a while, but this way I don't have to carry my sweaty clothes around with me. Gym bag in a hot car in the summer is nasty!

I'd pay for the service and choose that gym over others for the convenience. None around me offer such a service. If she doesn't have lockers, you can keep the clean laundry at the front desk and folks can pick it up when they come in.

Depends on what kind of customer you want to attract. If you have no mirrors in the whole place, you won't attract the narcissistic d'bags who like to stare at themselves and take selfies. I absolutely hate this type, but have never seen a gym with no mirrors. If you don't offer showers, you won't attract the type of guys who like to hang out in the locker room, uncovered, who treat the place like they're home alone. If I were opening a gym, I'd have an interview process and have members sign an iron-clad pledge to follow the rules - no talking on cell phones while on gym floor, no gym bags on gym floor, put weights back where they belong, do not play with your phone or rest or socialize while on a machine. Use it, free it up for someone else. And no gallon water jugs ever. I've never seen anyone take more than a few sips out of one, but they all carry them at my gym, even set them on machines, like they need a resting place, to reserve that machine for when they're done socializing on the other side of the gym. Did I mention I hate everyone?

quote:

Originally posted by Rick Lee:
If you have no mirrors in the whole place, you won't attract the narcissistic d'bags who like to stare at themselves and take selfies. I absolutely hate this type, but have never seen a gym with no mirrors.

That's because mirrors can help one get their training form right.

My gym has three of the four walls mirrored in the main weight/machine area. I don't think I've ever seen anyone taking selfies there--with or without the mirrors. I think it's more the kind of gym and the clientele it attracts than the mirrors.

I got no clue for the OP. It's too location- and clientele-specific to say, IMO. And my gym, the gym I like, is definitely not "high-end."

One thing I've seen kill gyms over and over is locking in rates. Inflation, depreciation, and wear & tear is occurring simultaneously and having your cash flow at a fixed rate means you need to extract more and more from new members. Pretty soon you've priced yourself out of the market and you aren't getting any new members. Also, people talk and it irks people to find out they're paying 2x as much per month to use the same equipment.

Be on the lookout for existing clients that scare off new customers. Regardless of having enough money for a high-end gym, some people are toxic and one of the secrets to success is giving your bad customers to your competitors.

well, by high end n classy i mean the overall setting/cleanliness, they also have what i would call a hard core, powerlifter only type gym and MMA deal in town (very dark, dusky type deal) , but hers is more of a planet fitness style /crossfit/yoga/ etc style place

What about non gym amenities such as tanning beds?

https://www.mainstreetgympitts.com/

here is the link to the gym PLEASE take a look and give me some critical advice on both content and layout , thanks !!

Aside from the aforementioned, I would recommend getting very good at selling supplements.
Most are useless at best, but there is a shitload of money to be made.

Thats the kind of advice i am.looking for thanks!! Keep those suggestions coming