My biggest mistake that I made when I started X Fitness from scratch 15 years ago in 2001 jeopardized our survival until we corrected it. I mistakenly believed that our main competition was other gyms. It wasn’t true then and it is not true today. Other gyms are not our main competition. Never has been and never will be. Our in-house research shows that other gyms are not even in our Top Ten main competitors. One of our main competitors is inflation including, but not limited to, skyrocketing hydro bills that are contributing to nearly unaffordable living in Ontario. Hydro costs are forcing...

Where will the industry be in 3-5 years from now? This question, although extremely difficult to answer accurately, is something that every fitness business owner should be wrestling with on a daily basis. Of course, one of the biggest challenges a business owner faces is planning for the future. Every day is a whirlwind, and taking time to think about and strategize for the future never seems to be possible. The future, however, doesn’t care if you have time for it or not, it’s coming whether you prepare for it or not. Right now, wearables are the biggest trend in the industry according...

Prescription to Get Active (RxTGA) continues to make great strides since its national introduction to the fitness industry in July’s issue of Fitness Business Canada. Developed in Alberta in 2011, the program is now a national not-for-profit organization. It is a unique partnership of family doctors, other health care providers, and recreation and fitness organizations. RxTGA utilizes the motivational power of a written prescription to encourage sedentary patients, who are at risk of developing chronic disease, to become more physically active. While the idea of a written prescription for physical...

In my last article, I explained how X Fitness built its Offline Presence first before its Online Presence. This article explains how we built our Offline Presence and how we transferred it online. Point #1. An independent gym starting from scratch is a David versus Goliath fight with one exception – the fight never stops. The fight is not a one shot and knockout deal. The fight endures 365-24-7. There are a number of elements that help win the fight but nothing is more important than building a positively identifiable Offline Presence. Point #2. X Fitness centered its Offline Presence on altruism....

Selling is a natural thing, we do it all the time (“You should try this restaurant”, “You have to see this movie”, etc…); yet when we bring it into the realm of business something changes. Obviously having a pay-cheque at stake creates a different perspective (if you don’t buy my movie recommendation there is no effect on my life), but does selling have to be tense? Selling your product or service may never be as easy as recommending a restaurant, it can be easier than you’re currently doing it. How you sell, like most things, starts with your mindset. If your point-of-view is one of scarcity,...

It’s impossible for an independent startup gym to reach its full potential without an Online Presence. You might be able to survive without a powerful Online Presence but a new gym will not self-actualize without the strongest Online Presence possible. I started X Fitness from scratch 15 years ago, right in the middle of the early stages of the Online World, between the introduction of the World Wide Web and social media. I made a conscious decision to follow a communication plan based on what I use in coaching football – strategize and improvise, and organization and tactical decision-making...