FEATURE ARTICLE Greg Johnson
www.varimaxfitness.com
STUDIO BUILD-OUT BASICS Maximize your studio’s budget, space and versatility
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outique- and small studio-style training is becoming more prominent in today’s ever-expanding fitness industry. Fitness professionals have more opportunities for business ownership on a smaller scale. 1,500 to 3,000 square foot spaces in prime locations can be as profitable per square foot as larger gyms. Specialty studios focusing on one specific modality such as spin, yoga, barre or Pilates can be easy to outfit by only buying the specific equipment needed for that type of training. Personal training and general fitness studios can be more challenging to outfit. Whether you’re training athletes or the general public, it’s important to have enough equipment and tools to meet the many needs of several different fitness levels and goals. On any given day a trainer may need tools for mobility, stability, strength, power, speed, cardio, agility or sport skills. Most gyms can afford to do this in a 10,000+ square foot facility with hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment. The challenge becomes - based on your training model how can we create an optimal training environment with efficient use of space at a fraction of the cost?
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When designing a small studio to meet many potential needs, flooring and floor space needs to be your first priority. Depending on a trainer’s training model, blank floor space can be versatile for all variations of training methods and allows room for several people to train in semi-private or small group settings. If your gym uses free weights, rubber flooring can help protect the floor as well as the weights, for longer-lasting equipment and less repair or replacement costs. Rubber flooring is easy to clean, much safer than concrete and can work for any space. Depending on type, color and design, flooring can come in a variety of costs and can even be self-installed for extra savings. For a slightly higher cost but for added benefit, artificial turf can be used as well. The cost of artificial turf has become more affordable and companies now have styles specifically for gyms. Properly-used artificial turf is great for sport performance skills, or bootcamp style classes, and can also add flare to the overall “look” of your facility. Equipment selection is very important for smaller studios. Three things to consider when choosing equipment is 1) versatility, 2) foot print and 3) storage. Buying single-muscle group machines take up
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