Thank you for you joining us for another small business insight! This month, we’ve been fortunate to interview a local Brisbane business, Tribe Fitness Clubs. This is the third interview in the series. Each month we will interview a different small business owner to hear about their journey and what they have learned in running their own business.
This month, we learnt about what’s involved in establishing and running a business in the Fitness Industry.
Director, Marcus Biggs, runs Tribe Fitness Clubs with his wife, Adriana Solorzano here in Brisbane. They both began their careers in the finance sector but soon realised that their real passions were fitness and business. They have combined their passions to run the successful Tribe Fitness Clubs.
We hope this great story of perseverance and success will encourage you on your journey as a small business owner.
1. How did it all begin?
We both had a passion for a healthy, fit and active lifestyle, and the desire to help others. This combined with frustration of the 9-5 drone of the corporate world. Adriana was a senior accountant for a 2nd tier accounting firm in the CBD. I was a successful Financial Planner for community-focused Bank. We have been operating our business for over two years now in Brisbane.
2. What is your business?
We’re in the business of inspiring others to find their passion for a fit, healthly and enjoyable lifestyle. Here at Tribe we’re about making fitness fun, social and non-judgemental. It doesn’t matter if you’re a self-confessed fitness junkie or a self-confessed coach potato. As long as you want to get fit and enjoy all the benefits that go with that, you’ve chosen the right team to do it with! We offer full range of fitness services – Personal Training, Classes (Boxing, Pilates, etc), Bootcamps and Corporate Fitness. And we offer it all 100% outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine.
3. In what ways has your business grown since you started?
Orginally it was just Adriana, paying rent within a gym and trying to build up a base of Personal Training clients. Now, four years on, we provide Personal Training as well as Classes, Boot camps and Corporate Fitness. We have six trainers on our team looking after an ever growing number of very happy (and much fitter) members. Six months ago we made the decision to rename and completely re-brand our business to Tribe from Optimum Fitness.
4. What are the benefits of owning a business in your life?
Freedom most certainly. Despite the long hours, frustrations and ups and downs, it comes with a great flexibility and freedom of time. Being in the fitness business, we also have the great pleasure of seeing the tremedous impact that our trainers have on their clients’ lives, wellbeing and happiness. We have seen clients that have reversed their Type 2 Diabetes and come off medication. They have reduced their high blood pressure to normal ranges and lost incredible amounts of weight to get down to a healthly level. We’ve also seen them find a new appreciation and love for a more active and energetic life.
5. How do you maintain a work-life balance?
Honestly it’s not easy! It really takes a concerted effort to maintain a healthly balance. We’ve found having the simple rule of “Sunday Fun-Days” helpful. We have one day a week where we do exactly what we want: no business and no committments other than things we want to do to unwind. This could be a day trip up the coast, fresh food shopping at the markets, breakfast out or catching a movie. We also like to go for a run to unwind and clear our heads, take the dogs for a walk and go out for coffee together.
6. If you could go back in time and give yourself some advice when you first went into business, what would it be?
Oh where to begin? If I had to choose just one piece of advice it would be fail faster and fail cheaply. Being active and busy does not always equate to being effective.
Photo: Flickr.com vwtom_ia
7. What has been the most memorable moment since you started your business?
Seeing the impact of all the hard work for our members. For instance, the look on their faces as they cross the finish line after their first ever fun run! They are proud and happy at what they’ve managed to acheive. It makes all the long hours that we do well worth it.
8. What has been the biggest eye opener?
Even with accounting and business backgounds, it still came as a bit of an eye opener the incredible amount of knowledge, skills and experience you need to acquire and develop in order to grow a successful business. We have found it’s a never ending process.
9. What has been the biggest challenge?
Us! Learning to manage ourselves and our time effectively. We have to work on this on a hourly, daily and weekly basis.
10. How do you keep things aligned with your business partner?
We’re forever bouncing ideas off each other throughout the day. We use each other as a sounding board and further develop our ideas from there.
Thanks Marcus!
If you live in Brisbane and are interested in what Tribe could offer you, get in touch with the energetic team at Tribe Fitness Clubs.
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