…and don’t use paid ads
What’s up Gym World?
Kieran Williams started as a member of Alpha Performance Studio, now The Garage Gym, and wound up owning it.
Today, he runs two open access gyms with a limited membership model that profit $30k a month.
Here’s his story:
Becoming a gym owner
After finishing college in 2019, Kieran moved back to New Jersey to save money by living at home. While looking for an affordable gym, his uncle recommended Alpha Performance Studio.
💡 Alpha Performance Studio was 750 sq ft and membership cost $100/mo. Kieran fell in love with the gym and became obsessed, training there three times a day.
When COVID hit, Kieran started training with the owner, Sam Tooley.
The following year Sam launched a new concept called Alpha Fit Club, which took off & ate up all of his time.
💡 Learn more about Alpha Fit Club here.
Instead of shutting down the gyms, Sam offered Kieran an opportunity to go 50/50 on the business.
💡 Being in the right place at the right time can fast-track your career. Timing played a huge part in my role at Two-Brain & with Kilo’s initial success.
So, he invested $50k for a 50% stake.
Here’s what the gyms are like today:
Model
Kieran’s gyms use a 24/7 private access limited membership model with zero staff.
💡 Members access the space whenever they like using an app.
One location is 1,600 sq ft, and the other is 3,500 sq ft with an additional 1,200 sq ft building and outdoor amenities, including:
- A sauna
- A shower
- A plunge area
💡 The smaller gym is capped at 150 members, and the larger one has 120 members with room to grow. Together, they generate $54k/mo month in topline revenue based on their $200/mo price point.
Exclusive
Every prospect is interviewed before becoming a member. Kieran says this creates a community of like-minded people who get along and understand the expectations.
💡 Creating intentional barriers attracts the right kind of people and makes your job easier by avoiding conflicts and headaches.
The three step process is:
- Fill out an application
- Have a 10-15 minute screening call with Kieran
- Visit for a tour to ensure the gym is the right fit
💡 If there’s room, you can join. If not, you’re put on the waitlist.
Marketing
Kieran has never relied on paid ads. Instead, he drives traffic by posting organic content on Instagram.
His goal is to create story-driven, sharable content by highlighting:
- The Garage Gym community
- Customer testimonials
- Behind-the-scenes looks at the facilities
- Engaging, hype-worthy posts
💡 Kieran spends $2,000 a month on a videographer to create a month’s worth of content in just four hours. Cassie Day uses a similar strategy.
Always clean, never crowded
No one likes waiting for equipment during peak hours. Thanks to Kieran’s limited membership approach, this is never a problem.
💡 On average, there are five people in the gym at any given time.
Each location is also professionally cleaned twice a week, which costs about $500 a week.
💡 Kieran says that even with professional cleaning, members understand the cleanliness expectations and do an exceptional job cleaning up after themselves.
Community
Many people crave the camaraderie of a community, but it’s hard to find in an open access gym.
So, here’s what Kieran does:
- Monday and Thursday night sweat sessions outside the gym (open to the public)
- Quarterly community workouts, where the gym is closed and capped at 50-60 people
💡 Members get first dibs on the quarterly event. Any remaining spots are opened to the public.
In a nutshell…
Kieran turned a unique opportunity with Sam into two profitable gyms.
When I asked him what’s next, he said he’s focused on improving the quality of the experience rather than scaling to more locations.
For a deeper dive on The Garage Gym, watch or listen to Kieran’s interview on Gym World.
ciao,
j
