We caught up with the owner of Blue Titan Fitness, Eric Basek! He shared top notch pointers for new business owners, the ins and out of his gym, and his favorite type of classes to teach! Check it out below! 

Q: What advice would you give someone who is looking to open their own fitness facility?

A: By far the most valuable lesson I ever learned, to date, was to pay for people with more experience than me, who are doing (or have done) what I want to be doing, to teach me the most important lessons and help me avoid common pitfalls. Simply hiring this person year 1 instead of year 6 would have saved me HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars. After this person is hired, there are a few important lessons I would share:

1. Get good at sales! It is the most important and valuable skill you can possess (and then teach). Sales is not a pejorative. It is crucial to you being able to deliver the product you love to customers who need it.  
2. Hire slowly. Fire fast. The moment you think about firing someone, they have likely already thought about quitting. Remove cancer before it grows. 
3. Read. Read voraciously. But especially books on customer service, profit, leadership, sales and business. Start with “The E-Myth”.  
4. Establish systems and processes.  Track results.  Analyze the numbers.  Make adjustments as needed.  If you don’t have systems, you can’t determine if your results are accidental or purposeful. If you can’t determine that, you won’t know what to alter and what not to alter because you won’t understand what is driving the results.   
   
   

Q: In your opinion, what is the better route for a Martial Arts facility - one style or welcome all styles?

A: Statistics tell us that gyms and martial arts studios have an 8-12% profit margin. They are the second most failing business in America. This means numbers should drive your decisions, not emotions. My studio has the space for one program. If I added multiple, it would dilute the schedule and limit the value I could provide to any one particular program. If my studio had room for additional programs, I would add them slowly and monitor the financials to ensure the programs were profitable. The length of the “experiment” would determine how much money I was willing to invest and lose if the new programs did not pan out. I would also be EXTRA cautious about who was teaching or leading those programs. By far, the most difficult experiences I have had, revolve around staffing. Be sure each new hire fits your company culture and tows the company line. Individuals can sink the ship!

Q: What class types do you offer at your facility? 

A: We provide in person Krav Maga and CrossFit Instruction, primarily to adults. We also have a very profitable and fast growing life coaching business that provides nutrition, at-home fitness and life coaching to clients nationwide. Lastly, our non-profit provides free defensive tactics training to law enforcement officers and free boot camp and police academy prep classes to those who are pursuing careers in public service.

Q: What would be the most beneficial part of using a gym management software, like Wodify, within your business?

A: You cannot manage what you do not measure! Wodify has an extensive reports library that allows me to track the important metrics that drive my decision making processes. This is by far the most important feature. That feature aside, Wodify’s client features provide a high-end customer experience that helps us with customer retention (which ultimately is the most important factor in determining the ceiling of your membership total).

Q: What has been the biggest takeaway since opening your doors as a person & business owner/trainer?

A: What you don’t know CAN hurt you! Business is unbelievably hard, yet it’s MUCH harder than it needs to be if you are ignorant. Find a coach or mentor in your space and pay them to teach you. It will pay off in greater dividends than any investment you will ever make IF you listen to them.  

Q: Can you share with us what your favorite movement is to teach?

A: I don’t teach as much as I used to. I discovered that if I am teaching too often, I am unable to manage and grow my business, so I’ve taken a big step back. Because of that, each class becomes more and more special to me. However, few classes are as special to me as those I share with military and law enforcement professionals. As a former police officer, teaching these classes is very, very special. 

Q: What has been your favorite memory since starting Blue Titan?

A: Every Memorial Day “Murph” has a special place in my heart. Something really special about those days…

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