Should You Open Another Gym Location?

Most Gym Owners think the next step in growing their business is to open a second location. The common thought is that: More locations = More profit. But is that really the case? Are you interested in multiple locations because you believe it will create more revenue, and freedom– or because you’ll seemingly dominate the area? 

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Let’s breakdown when it's a good idea, and when it's a bad idea to open up multiple gym locations. 

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Signs That It IS Time For Another Location

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There are very simple and clear rules for opening another gym location. If you don't meet BOTH qualifications, opening another gym could spell doom and more problems for you and your business. 

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Sign #1: If you (the owner) are taking home over $20k/mo for at least 3 months straight, while also working no more than 5 hours per week inside of your gym.

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Sign #2: During those 3 months, your revenue has not dipped (ideally it would have increased).

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That’s it. 

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Signs You’re Better Off With One Location

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If you don't meet the qualifications above to open a second location– there is your biggest sign not to. But if you’re still not convinced, here are some more reasons it’s not in your best interest to expand.

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1. You don't have a team you can trust to run the gym when you're not there
2. You don't have enough trainers to sustain classes without you.
3. The business isn't making enough money to support a second location while it's getting off the ground.
4. There are issues with organization, technology, and bookkeeping.

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Basically it all boils down to the fact that any problem you have in the first location will be magnified once you have a second. 

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Examples of Well-Planned Expansion

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Let’s take one of our Gym Lords, James, for example. When he came to us he had big dreams of turning a single location gym into a multi-location franchise. Luckily, he did it the right way, and we can learn from him. Before selling people the rights to own a piece of his brand, and dream, he made sure they would be set up for success.

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(He did this by joining Gym Launch, though you could accomplish this with any route you choose, just make sure they are qualified) He learned the systems that would create a profitable business including: How much to charge, when to charge, the most profitable class session capacity and frequency, how to onboard new members, how to create a phenomenal client experience, what roles were necessary to hire for, how to onboard those new employees, the list goes on…

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By doing this he optimized every single piece of the business, and built well oiled systems around them so that anyone could take and repeat them. He knew the concept was successful and ready to scale when he was consistently profitable month after month. 

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Today, even in the midst of a U.K recession, James has 30 successful gyms under his franchise. It all came down to preparation and a willingness to be the student, before becoming the teacher.

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Examples of Poorly-Planned Expansion

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It’s easy to fall victim to the “build it and they will come” mindset– but in this business that’s rarely true and can leave you in a heap of trouble. Sometimes it’s best to realize you have a great thing going with one location, and it’s more than enough space to become a highly profitable business owner.

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That was the case for this next Gym Owner example, Danny. Danny came to us after he had already decided to open a second location. In his words it felt like the gyms were ‘built on top of a deck of cards’. The holes in the first business became glaringly obvious with the second, and instead of more profit Danny was left with $0 of profit every month and double the issues.

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Luckily, we helped him make the decision to close down one location, and go all in on the first. By doing that he increased his revenue to over $100k every month and takes home at least $20k/mo in profit with one location.

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This just goes to show, it can be profitable to open multiple locations, but you don’t need more than one gym to be a successful, profitable gym owner.

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When deciding which route is best for you, consider the questions you read here today, and remember our experts are always here to take your call.

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BEFORE YOU GO, CHECK OUT THESE LINKS:

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→ The free 7 Money Models Guide: https://get.gymlaunch.com/7-money-models

→ The free 30 Min Gym Ads course: https://gymlaunchsecrets.com/freeads

→ Gym Launch Instagram Page: https://www.instagram.com/gymlaunch/