10 Steps You Need to Take When Building a Commercial Gym
If you’re heavily into fitness and want a career to focus on that, what better way to do so than by building a commercial gym? As more Americans focus on getting healthier, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, gym membership has picked up once again. So if you provide the right commercial gym for patrons, you cannot only have a lucrative business, but you’ll be doing a good service for the health of the American public. If you’re ready to start building a commercial gym, here are the 10 steps to take.
1. Update Your Walls
Regardless of whether you have a new or older building, make sure you have protected walls. There should be a thorough investigation of the building before you buy it. Once you understand the state of the overall structure, you can move forward with the best way to handle the remodeling. Is there mold inside the walls? If so, you’ll need to hire a foundation contractor and a mold remediation service to remove the mold and repair the foundation. Before you can open for business, your gym will have to be able to pass an inspection. Plus, you don’t want to invest in building a commercial gym in a space that could easily cave in and hurt people.
Commercial wall protection also involves paint. The interior paint job can do wonders to not only improve the mood and aesthetics of a room but also protect the walls from damage. A gym is a place where people will be sweating and working out nonstop. There’ll be a lot of activity going on as people are moving around, bumping into things, doing different activities, lifting heavy equipment, and so on. As a result, your interior walls may be vulnerable, but you can help that with the right protection.
According to Bob Vila, an interior paint job can bring a rate of return as high as 107%. When professional painters get to work, they’ll begin by making updates to the surface, such as repairing any superficial dents, scrapes, or cracks. After necessary repairs have been made, they wash the walls and sand them down. The last part involves applying a couple of layers of primer, several layers of paint, and a top protectant sealant. So between commercial painters, foundation contractors, and a mold remediation service your commercial gym walls will be ready for business.
2. Get Customer Service
Depending on the size of your gym, you may need extra help with customer service. While you should certainly have at least a few people at the front desk to greet patrons, sign up new clients, and answer questions about membership, you may also need more customer service on the back end. Make things easy on yourself by outsourcing customer service.
Building a commercial gym means you’ll have to deal with corporate contracts, regular patrons, questions about membership, pausing membership, or liability concerns if injuries happen at the gym. When you have an outsourced customer service team on deck, that’s fewer people you have to staff inside the gym itself. Plus, an outsourced customer service team will handle the training needed to provide good customer service, so you can focus on things related to health and fitness.
3. Replace Roofing
When building a commercial gym, be just as mindful of your roofing as you would in a residential property. After all, your commercial roof provides the same service as any other roof. Its main purpose is to protect the overall structure from the elements and aid in insulation.
If you plan on owning your gym for a long time and possibly expanding, you should invest in the best materials immediately. That involves considering stronger, high-quality roofing materials such as metal, slate, or ceramic tiles. According to Bob Vila, metal and slate roofing can last from 50 to 70 years with maintenance. If you invest in a ceramic tile roof, you’ll have a roof that will last as long as 100 years. The type of roof you choose should not only matter in terms of its durability and protection, but you may also want to consider the aesthetics of your building. If you’re focused on how your gym looks from the outside. Then opting for a beautiful metal slate or ceramic roof can certainly make a great impression in aid in your business curb appeal.
4. Hire People
You can’t run a gym without hiring people. As mentioned, you’ll need at least a few people to work the front desk, sign in members, and handle security. If you have a juice bar or refreshments at your gym, you may want to have someone focusing on making protein shakes and other health-related snacks. Do you plan on having classes at your gym? There are several fitness classes that many gyms offer, ranging from yoga to Pilates to aerobics to biking. Some gyms even offer jazzercise and other dance-related classes.
Even if your gym is solely focused on weight lifting, you’ll still need people there who can manage the equipment and help with any mishaps. Most gyms also have at least a few personal trainers on hand in case patrons want to utilize their services. If you’re unsure where to begin the hiring process, you can always seek out an employment agency to bring in some fitness and health-related professionals.
5. Train Staff
Once you have the staff you need, you need to make sure that they are properly trained. After all, part of building a commercial gym in meetings, having respectable and certified staff that you can rely on. If someone hires a personal trainer, you want to ensure that you have someone who has a good track record and won’t be a liability to your business. When people sign up for various classes, they should walk away wanting to come back for more classes and to be a regular patron there. When you take the time to focus on workforce development, your gym can quickly develop a solid reputation for being a source of health and fitness in your area.
6. Get Remodeling Professionals
Do you have big visions for your gym? The good thing about modern fitness facilities is there are many styles and layouts to consider. As you consider how to remodel your gym, think about your clientele and who you want to attract. If you consult with a remodeling company, they can help you make a decision about the overall design choices and aesthetics that fit your ideal marketing demographic.
You have some gyms that are small intimate places that may only have one main floor. However, depending on your commercial space, you may have a gym that has multiple floors. You may also want to have different sections in your gym. Some gyms have a separate section for weight lifters and another one for people who are more focused on aerobics and classes. You should also think about color, flooring options, how many windows you want, and so on.
7. Install an HVAC Unit
Can you imagine working out at the gym and sweltering due to a lack of ventilation? With all of the intense activity going on at the gym, having cool air is a must. As you’re building a commercial gym, have the latest air conditioner system available. If you have an extremely stuffy gym, it can also create bad smells and make it uncomfortable for people to work out in. Remember, you’re not the only gym in town, and if patrons can’t have a comfortable workout due to poor air quality, don’t be surprised if they go somewhere else.
Your HVAC unit doesn’t just supply cooled air, it also helps to filter the air and circle it throughout your commercial space. There’s so much sweat and heavy breathing going on that the last thing you want is for all of those body fluids to be trapped in your gym space without being circulated. Remember, COVID is still circulating within the ecosystem, so in addition to keeping surfaces and equipment sanitized, you need to think just as much about the air that’s circulating. After all, you don’t want your patrons getting sick because of improper filtration.
Having the best heating and cooling system in your gym isn’t just about keeping people comfortable, but it’s also a big factor in your overhead. The more energy a building produces, the higher your electric bills will be. For example, the energy expenditure in a typical household accounts for as much as 50% of the bills in the home. Imagine how big your commercial gym electric bill will be when you have to burn your AC all day. By investing in Energy Star brand appliances, your gym will have a unit that can efficiently cool the air while producing less emissions and energy.
8. Get the Right Security System
Like any other business, you should keep your gym secure. So, building a commercial gym should consider your security methods. During the remodeling phase, install security cameras as strategic points inside and outside the gym. Door services should involve proper access codes that only a few people should have. Depending on the size of your gym, you may also want to have physical security guards out front and near the door.
9. Have Maintenance
Can you imagine a commercial building that doesn’t have any maintenance? When running a business, there’s always something that needs to be maintained, just like in a home. Your gym bathrooms may have stuffed toilets or other plumbing concerns. Your AC can begin to get worn down and need quick repairs. Of course, you need someone to handle the trash so your gym remains sanitary. Your commercial gym building will also need reliable janitorial services to keep equipment and surfaces wiped down. Luckily, there are commercial building companies to help you with such maintenance so your gym is always functioning and in compliance.
10. Invest in Marketing
Once you invest in building a commercial gym, your work isn’t over once the gym is set to open. After all, patrons need to know that your gym exists and how it stands out. There are many gyms for people to consider, especially if you’re in an urban environment. However, with the right marketing services that know how to handle building company relations, you can take your gym to the next level.
The first step in good marketing is good signage. Invest in custom banners and signs to put out front that can catch anyone’s eye. According to recent surveys, over 60% of patrons admit to stopping into a business for the first time because of good signage. So, if someone is passing by who’s looking for a good gym or is interested in yoga classes, the right custom banners can pull them in. Custom signs are the gift that keeps on giving since you only have to pay for them once and keep reusing them for as long as they last.
Don’t forget about custom apparel. In addition to uniforms that can consist of branded T-shirts or caps that you and your staff can wear, don’t forget to have cool apparel that patrons can buy. After all, if you create a thriving gym culture, your clientele will be more than proud to wear a shirt or pair of sweatpants that let the world know that they work out at your gym.
Have a driving website and social media accounts to promote your gym services. You can hire a local marketing agency to keep a website going for you and manage your social media accounts. Post photos of people wearing their gym apparel and show a few quick videos of some of your workout classes on TikTok or Instagram. Have regular promotions that can bring in new clientele.
As you can see, so much goes into building a commercial gym. You must have a solid structure that includes a new roof and solid walls. Hire the right staff and make sure they have training. Don’t forget about marketing and building maintenance as well. By following the above tips, you can have a thriving commercial gym in no time.
