Should a Personal Trainer Open a Gym

Benefits and Drawbacks of Owning a gym:

After the countless hours you've logged as a personal trainer, you might be thinking about opening up your own gym. It's a big leap but if it's done right with adequate preparation, the rewards are countless. Before you take that big step it's important to take a look at some of the benefits and drawbacks of starting your own business.

Imagine yourself training a client in the gym. Visualize all of the new equipment. Check out all of the members working out and sipping on protein shakes. Did you take a headcount of how many trainers are hard at work? Now let's pretend that this gym you see belongs to you. Yes, you are the boss! Let me be the first to congratulate you.

Gone are the days of giving a percentage of your earnings to the gym. Instead of trading an hour of work for an hour of pay, you are making money on every facet of the business. Membership fees, training fees, nutritional supplements and clothing sales all put money in your pocket. With all of the possible services you can offer these days, the sky is the limit for income potential. It's a good thing you will be earning it too because along with added revenue streams, you now have greater expenses.

The start-up costs of opening a gym can vary widely depending on what you are going to offer. How big a space do you need to rent or buy? What type of equipment is suitable for your market? Will you offer classes? These are just a few of the variables you'll have to take into account when writing your business plan.

From the planning phase to the grand opening you'll be investing a great amount of time working out the details of the gym. You probably won't be making very much money compared to the hours you'll work. But you must look at these hours as an investment. Once the gym is up and running, you'll be making money whether you are there or anywhere else in the world. Now you employ trainers who are giving you a percentage of their hourly rates. Suppose you have five trainers on the floor, charging $80 per session. If they give you a 50% cut on each session you are looking at $200 for an hour if all five are training at once. Let's not forget membership fees and nutritional supplement sales. The beauty about owning a gym is when you can get it to run all by itself, without you having to be there. Let's not forget the sense of accomplishment you'll feel when you take a look around the gym and realize that it all belongs to you.

The real question is, do you have the time, money, and patience to take your idea and turn it into a well established gym?

Casey Kaldal is a leading expert in helping Personal Trainers build their business, attract more customers, and earn more money in less time.