How much money to open a gym?

Alright I know this question will vary wildly depending on a number of circumstances and there are definitely ways to make opening a gym cheaper or more expensive but approx. how much would you say it would take to open and run a jiu jitsu/mma gym? Im mainly talking to moon heads here but please anyone chime in. How much did you have or how much did you invest initially into your business or whats the very least you would have invested in order to feel comfortable making the move? Im sure hindsight here would be huge for alot of you.

Are you still in Greeley? If so, there should be some cheap spots one could open a gym, either in a somewhat retail area, or warehouse. I would love to have a 10P in Fort Collins, but it's getting pretty frickin' expensive here now that they legalized weed, and on that note, warehouses are hard to come by here too.

Related point, you can often find used mats on Craigslist.

Yes, I do still live in Greeley

Next to nothing if you know what you're doing.

Not that much, but I'd say keeping it running is more the tricky part. If you need any tips let me know. I'm not a moonhead, but I've stood by Sean's side through the whole journey. It's been a learning experience, but we are opening a second location this month.

Piece of advice, it's pretty obvious, but get your overhead as low as possible. You can always move to a bigger nicer spot. Don't get in over your head. Start small and grow. Get people in the door. I try to talk to someone about it (jiu jitsu, kickboxing, mma, self defense)everyday and to set up an intro lesson for them with one of the instructors. Like I said, its more about what happens after you open the gym. Getting one open could be done for as little as: first month's rent, rent deposit, electricity deposit, water deposit. Then phone and internet are necessary, but that can be done w your cell if you don't want to have it hooked up.

Also, there's affiliation dues if you're opening a 10p school. You'd want to talk to someone about that as well.

Just from a business standpoint I'd say you would need to have at least a year's worth of expenses covered. The rent, power, insurance, etc will keep coming in monthly with or without members. I'd start very small. Keep the overhead as low as possible. Maybe even look at starting by tacking onto an established business like a cross fit gym or martial arts gym.

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Originally Posted by Chris Garry

Next to nothing if you know what you're doing.

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Originally Posted by Chris Garry

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You might find this helpful although Xibit does not feature:

https://youtu.be/IyZmxUIADGY

https://youtu.be/PMeujOuWJwM

Ex-moon head here...
List of things not to do.

1. Don't rush it

2. Don't open without having enough money to sustain it for several months.

3. Don't depend on word of mouth as your main source of advertisement

4. The 10th Planet name isn't enough to make it successful.

Now, that I've had my moon closed and learn what not to do... maybe I will reopen someday with the knowledge of what to do right. hahaha

oh and don't do partners... it almost always goes sour.

I've never opened up a gym before, but in my line of work I've dealt w/ city building inspectors quite frequently; so before deciding on buying or leasing a spot, some building expenses to take into consideration are whether or not your local health authority requires the gym to have a commercial ventilation system installed, possible renovations (carpentry, electrical, plumbing etc)/construction permit costs, and the need of a contingency fund in case of cost overrun or emergency maintenance - (usually in construction, the contingency fund is an additional 25% of the initial budget).