it takes money to make money is a myth in a lot of situations, but not in ours. we have blown through both of our bank accounts and then some and then some more. it seems like there's nothing to show for it, but when i sit and add it all up, it makes sense. i once heard that for any budgeted project that you should double the budget and the timeline. that sounds about right from where i'm standing. our mma classes are chugging along great. we've even broken up classes into the top and bottom rooms in order to hold multiple classes at once. the mma program is great, but both steve and i have a very good understanding that our gym needs more programs to grow into what we want, and to justify the sacrifices we have made (if anyone questions our sacrifices, take a look at the car steve drives).
right now we are not only trying to finish up the gym, but we are trying to minimize that amount of furniture, clothing and "stuff" so that we can move into a much smaller house. this house was our rental house for four years, so that means that it needs a LOT of work in order for it to be livable. the last set of tenants were great (paid on time, didn't bother us), but they left a MESS behind. every single surface needs love (i.e. the floors need to be replaced, every wall painted, overall deferred maintenance taken care of). we want to move within the next 30-60 days and we haven't even started working on the new house--- this is NOT the best project to be taking on while working on the gym. i'll be splitting my time at both places...working on the gym during the day, coming home and taking care of the kids and then working on the new house late at night when everyone is sleeping. i figure that i'll sleep when i'm 80 and have nothing else to do.
so i'll get back to the interesting point we're at: we need to finish the gym and the things that we're waiting on are the things that will push us past that tipping point and get us into the black. the locker rooms still need work (demo, build-out etc), we need 20 stand-up boxing bags in order to hold cardio kick-boxing, our yoga room floor needs 10 more pieces and mirrors, our cage needs wall pads, our kid's room needs flooring and shelving, we need some really large signage, and our air keeps going on the fritz. its easy to focus on the negative: things aren't finished and we spent all of our money, but instead (except for a moment or two each day in that i freak out) i'll choose to focus on some positive notes to keep my sanity and to keep the haters at bay:
we're already growing: we have had several signups (6+) since we moved--and we haven't even advertised the move or technically OPENED
i am getting multiple calls and emails each day asking when our other programs will be running and when our grand opening is (stay tuned for the next post for that)
our blog is getting a ton of hits (that means you're reading it)
our neighbor's (young's restaurant) have been getting so many people asking about the gym and wanting information--not to mention all of the random people that come in while i'm working to see the place
i have lined up instructors for all of our classes
we are working with outside coaches that have approached US about teaching at our gym---that is such a complement and an exciting thing as well
i have found reliable and trustworthy people to work in the kid's club
we're getting ready to launch a kids gi jiu jitsu program and possibly an adult one as well
les mills was offering a special when i signed the licensing agreement for body-pump and we are getting 15 setting of barbells for the body-pump class for free!! this is a huge relief to the budget!! we were also assigned our body-pump club coach who will help target the audience and market for the classes, which will also drive other members to our gym.
that sums up a few thoughts. if you're a member, i hope you're 100% on board with us and believe in your gym family. if you're not a member, then i hope that learning a little bit about us and what it has taken to get this point makes you want to come in and join!
