Is this idea fast, slow, or on the shoulder?

[ck4750]

First off, incredible book by MJ I know it's going to pay off huge in my near future. It's also worth noting how bad it makes other books look in the same genre. I now have a new standard for all books I read in the future. I know there's many minds on this forum with a ton of knowledge that exceeds my own. ANY tips from you guys is appreciated.

I'm in a bit of a unique situation (at least I think so). Since high school my brother and I have wanted to open our own sports performance gym for athletes. So that was our goal all through college and etc and now it's getting close to the time where we'd finally be able to do so. Enter MJ.

I now think our vision would be driving the highway minimum based on everything I've read. Even though it won't be a commercial sized gym, the start-up costs are fairly high. It would just be my brother and I running the joint so time spent working per week is going to be huge. We'd be able to sell different products on the net but other than that and franchising I see no scale. Definitely not as quickly as I'd like anyway.

So far nothing unique just an idiotic idea I know hang with me. But the thing is people are coming to me asking me to train their kids and see if I offer services etc (which I do not currently). I bring value because I had success in high school and college and I have spent time (limited time but time nonetheless) in a few professional organizations which is why I think I could leverage that to my advantage. But that also creates a problem because it's a direct trade of time for money and I don't see how I can remove myself in the future since basically I'd be what people are buying into.

Is this a "no-brainer" or is there something to be leveraged?

Thanks for reading!

 

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[Trent Kerth]

I think the goal would be to create a strong brand/business in the child fitness niche that could
be franchised.

 

[AllenCrawley]

You would basically own your job in the beginning. Not fastlane but could be leveraged into a fastlane.

It would be important to build your business model, brand, social proof and profitability in these early stages. Then you have the possibility to offer franchise opportunities.

Once your established (brand, social proof & profitability) you could also develop and offer child fitness dvd's.

 

[RogueInnovation]

Made me shudder when you got to it, and I say that because I've been there.
Listening to "encouragement" and how all these mystical people will come to admire you and your business.

The hint here is that no one is actually mentioning money, buying plans upfront, or really anything.
So when you take a step back all you see is a super fuzzy biz plan, a million jobs you don't even know exist yet not yet done, and a "gym" type thing (I dunno what you have its not quite clear to me).

To build this you are going to first up probably be violating "time", you are also violating "need" because you haven't yet really found a pain bigger than what a few people are wishing/hoping for (those are bad to build on, nightmares), you are violating "entry" because I really don't see why people can't just crush this idea, and you don't have any idea of "scale".

If I were to give you advice, scrap the pleasant advice from these random people. Random people give the worst ideas and massive headaches come from trying to polish it off and tell everyone how great the idea is.

I spent years polishing off something instead of saying "here is the need". Don't be optimistic about needs that found your business be extra diligent and study what you wanna get into, until you are certain you are getting that need right. Then, don't just randomly pick some conventional way to fix that need, think of how it can scale, leave you free to enjoy life, and how things can best be in your control rather than outside of it.

DO NOT hope this slowlane into something, get real, now, unless you wanna grind through a pointless biz that soaks up all your time and energy and becomes a major burden.

Just a heads up.
On a positive note, everyone starts out with that pep talk stuff, so you are at NO disadvantage, just try to make the best choices you can, I'm not thinking this is the best you can come up with, go back to the drawing board and show everyone you can do better!!!

 

[ck4750]

Thanks for the responses. Truly appreciated. So the ultimate goal would be to franchise and create products for the masses such as dvds instructional programs etc?

 

[AllenCrawley]

Here's a great post just posted by @MJ DeMarco on another thread that will offer some more insight:

https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/co...nk-im-making-a-big-mistake.50577/#post-335510

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Take a look at existing franchises in the space. Planet Fitness (ugh), OrangeTheory, and see how the structure things.

But the thing is people are coming to me asking me to train their kids and see if I offer services etc (which I do not currently).

Not a bad idea, I actually like it assuming you are reporting the need accurately. And yes, originally Slowlane (time trade) but most Fastlanes start this way, so it's nothing to fear. The Fastlane comes into play through franchising and systematizing once proof of concept (and profitability) is obtained.

 

[DrkSide]

people are coming to me asking me to train their kids and see if I offer services

You might have found a need here but before you jump in make sure it is big enough. People go out of their way to offer their children an advantage.

It would be important to build your business model, brand, social proof and profitability in these early stages.

Take the above and you can not only move into franchising but also into training courses and books. Create once, sell many.

 

[ck4750]

Big thanks to you guys. Gave me some clarity on the steps I need to take before getting this thing rolling. Here's a quick question would it be best to get it going and plan strategically as I go? I know trying to plan out every little detail never goes according to plan. So what's the happy medium?

 

[DrkSide]

I would get a general idea of what the training is that you are going to offer and test the market. Ask around especially to the people that have already asked you to train. Ask why they asked you and also if they know anyone else that would be interested when you start.

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Here's a quick question would it be best to get it going and plan strategically as I go?

I prefer the "Ready Fire Aim" approach. However, I'd run the numbers first, and get very detailed with them, including best and worse cases. It would suck to actually execute perfectly, and yet find out, the numbers aren't there to support profitability, growth, or franchising. (Would you buy a franchise that offered a net income of $25K/year for 80 hour work weeks, 52 weeks a year?)

 

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[ck4750]

@DrkSide Thanks for the tip I had definitely planned on testing before jumping in head first. I do know what training we will be offering and that is what they are requesting from me. Interesting I really never thought of directly asking them why I guess I just assumed the answer. Ignorance on my part....plus it just offers more info on how a customer thinks. Correct?

 

[ck4750]

Absolutely not! I will definitely follow that advice before pulling the trigger. Thanks for the tip MJ!

 

[Benten]

Absolutely not! I will definitely follow that advice before pulling the trigger. Thanks for the tip MJ!

I think another great move would be for you to take the feedback from the parents that approached you and dig a bit deeper at schools,community centers etc and see if similar requests are present. Considering that no one(that I am aware of) has a big niche locked down for kids in that area you might be on the verge of a goldmine(be the equivelant to Chucky Cheese in the gym/sport training) once you find adequate ways to scale,entry and automate things.

By all means follow your gut feeling until its no longer there.

 

[AllenCrawley]

Check out Shark Tank Season 5 Episode 13 "Bounce Boot Camp".

 

[Blueskies4me]

Is this a "no-brainer" or is there something to be leveraged?

Check out SpartaIndy.com They do some amazing stuff and I know several parents that drive 40 miles to take their kids for wrestling / kick boxing training. It's an awesome idea! Parent's aren't as concerned about who is one on one with their kids if they know you own and manage the talent in the place. They will trust your choice and program structure.

 

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[Blueskies4me]

Here's a quick question would it be best to get it going and plan strategically as I go?

I know that SpartaIndy had some struggles at the beginning with finding a sweet spot for marketing... how to charge for classes...schedule them...decide if some kids wanted other classes too. They finally settled on the format on their home page. I'd definitely try NOT to reinvent the wheel. Get some ideas from multi functional gyms and even large Karate studios on how they price and structure their staff and classes.

 

[ck4750]

@Blueskies4me I will definitely check out the site thanks for the tip. There are a couple in my area but they are VERY poorly ran. I believe we can run a better service and provide more value. @AllenCrawley I actually caught that episode! I can see how they wanted to franchise the idea and I guess in a way this would be similar but specified to the sport of each athlete.

 

[oldscool]

Hey what do you guys think about the prequalify gym model. In my area there is a self defense facility that started off just telling you what their price structure is now they answer your email and ask you to call them. Other gyms do this as well.

Any thoughts?

P.S. Come to think of it there are a few industries that do this, namely people in the; coaching, mentoring, consulting arena.

 

[throttleforward]

What is your plan for validating that the market wants and needs this solution? How many people (that you don't already have a personal realtionship with) have you spoken to about this concept? If the need is big enough, you could actually presell plans and generate revenue before you spend a dime on construction, buying equipment, etc.

 

[TWR]

I believe that all most every thing can be leveraged, given a certain amount of creativity. You've just got to take a step back from the initial idea to spot all the other avenues sometimes.

originally Slowlane (time trade) but most Fastlanes start this way, so it's nothing to fear. The Fastlane comes into play through franchising and systematizing once proof of concept (and profitability) is obtained.

A little bit of golden advice there.

 

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[ck4750]

Hey what do you guys think about the prequalify gym model. In my area there is a self defense facility that started off just telling you what their price structure is now they answer your email and ask you to call them. Other gyms do this as well.

Any thoughts?

P.S. Come to think of it there are a few industries that do this, namely people in the; coaching, mentoring, consulting arena.

Do you mean like take applications for a limited # of spots available?

What is your plan for validating that the market wants and needs this solution? How many people (that you don't already have a personal realtionship with) have you spoken to about this concept? If the need is big enough, you could actually presell plans and generate revenue before you spend a dime on construction, buying equipment, etc.

Here's a breakdown of what I have planned to do so far. I plan to contact youth sports organizations, middle school and high school coaches in my area telling them of the services and what value I can bring to them and their organizations. Out of that response I imagine I'll be able to tell if the need validates what I'm trying to do. I love the presell concept as well that's an awesome idea.

 

[oldscool]

Do you mean like take applications for a limited # of spots available?

Sure the scarcity tactic sounds good.

I was thinking more along the lines of guaging prospects desire, need, and, financial capabilities and creating price structure around that information intelligence.

Pre-qualifying would be based on whatever quality of clients you desire really.

I was just wondering what others thought about it.

Anyways, good luck with it all.