Starting A Sports Related Business
If you're visiting this site, you're probably considering a sports related business. And whether it's for basketball, volleyball, hockey, futsal, personal training, cross-fit, or something else - you'll be facing similar challenges.
Chances are, you're a great coach, teacher, or sportsman. But unfortunately those skills may not be enough to help your business succeed. You're also going to be a negotiator, bookkeeper, and have to handle marketing, and managing a business.
A Business Plan
Creating a business plan isn't the fun part. It's like with painting, and how when you first start out, you want to start applying paint. After you start though, you realize that preparation is even more important than the painting. Cleaning, taping, and prepping has more to do with the outcome than how you spread the paint. It's the same way with a business. Proper preparation will have more to do with your success than how quickly you open the doors!
Renting Space
There are lots of considerations when looking at real estate. Location is huge, but so is affordability, versatility, and the capacity to grow. You probably want to find a location with visibility and traffic, but it has to fit within your budget. It should also be versatile enough to expand your program in the future, both in size and offering.
Forecasting
Be conservative in your estimates. Forecast revenue at 75-80% of what you think it's going to be. Forecast expenses at 115-120% of what you think they're really be. If your success or failure depends on a utility bill that's $200 instead of $240, or a program that only drew 8 kids instead of 10, you were cutting it too close to begin with.
Borrow or Use Your Own Money
Should you borrow money to start your business or use your own? Our answer might surprise you because you're probably going to need both!
Outfitting Your Space
The temptation to go "first class" is going to be strong. But a slow and steady approach can give you staying power and help you grow in the right direction.
Finding Clients
Who's your target customer? Even clubs with clients lined up before they've signed the lease, want more business. You'll have slower times when you want people to use your space and equipment and the challenge will be finding new customers without losing the ones you've already got.
About Us
What makes us experts on starting a sports related business? First of all, we never said we were experts. But we do have a lot of experience! And we've spoken to hundreds of business owners in the last 20 years, and learned a lot of what people did right, and what people do wrong.
If you're visiting this site, you're probably considering a sports related business. And whether it's for basketball, volleyball, hockey, futsal, personal training, cross-fit, or something else - you'll be facing similar challenges.
Chances are, you're a great coach, teacher, or sportsman. But unfortunately those skills may not be enough to help your business succeed. You're also going to be a negotiator, bookkeeper, and have to handle marketing, and managing a business.
A Business Plan
Creating a business plan isn't the fun part. It's like with painting, and how when you first start out, you want to start applying paint. After you start though, you realize that preparation is even more important than the painting. Cleaning, taping, and prepping has more to do with the outcome than how you spread the paint. It's the same way with a business. Proper preparation will have more to do with your success than how quickly you open the doors!
Renting Space
There are lots of considerations when looking at real estate. Location is huge, but so is affordability, versatility, and the capacity to grow. You probably want to find a location with visibility and traffic, but it has to fit within your budget. It should also be versatile enough to expand your program in the future, both in size and offering.
Forecasting
Be conservative in your estimates. Forecast revenue at 75-80% of what you think it's going to be. Forecast expenses at 115-120% of what you think they're really be. If your success or failure depends on a utility bill that's $200 instead of $240, or a program that only drew 8 kids instead of 10, you were cutting it too close to begin with.
Borrow or Use Your Own Money
Should you borrow money to start your business or use your own? Our answer might surprise you because you're probably going to need both!
Outfitting Your Space
The temptation to go "first class" is going to be strong. But a slow and steady approach can give you staying power and help you grow in the right direction.
Finding Clients
Who's your target customer? Even clubs with clients lined up before they've signed the lease, want more business. You'll have slower times when you want people to use your space and equipment and the challenge will be finding new customers without losing the ones you've already got.
About Us
What makes us experts on starting a sports related business? First of all, we never said we were experts. But we do have a lot of experience! And we've spoken to hundreds of business owners in the last 20 years, and learned a lot of what people did right, and what people do wrong.
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