FBC TRAINERS


BY BARB GORMLEY


FOR FITNESS STAFF, INSTRUCTORS, PERSONAL TRAINERS & REHAB, SPORT & WELLNESS PROFESSIONALS


Making the Leap


Dream of owning your own studio or club? Three personal-trainers-turned-owners share their secrets to success.


Chris Ince owner U.N.I. Training Montreal, Que. unitraining.ca


As a novice trainer Chris Ince never thought of owning his own fitness club. “The owners of the chain at my first job were businesspeople who were out of shape, so it never crossed my mind,” he says. “I didn’t aspire to be like them.” At the time, his goal was to work with Hollywood stars – until he realized he’d need to move to the U.S. Thinking more realistically, he joined the staff at Montreal’s U.N.I. Training in 1999 be- coming a minority owner six years later. When the majority partner decided to sell the business in 2009 and study os- teopathy, Ince found an investor, se- cured a loan and bought the studio. Today he says, “It’s a dream come true.”


Make staff your priority My team is my lifeline. If I don’t


owner, I was surprised to discover where money was made and spent.” ~ Chris Ince


“When I became the 22 Fitness Business Canada September/October 2012


have them I’m in trouble, so I work hard to keep them satisfied. I stay in close touch to be sure they’re happy. Because income is always unsteady as an independent personal trainer and I don’t want my trainers to be as strapped as I sometimes was, I help out by paying their liability insurance. I’m also super-proactive about their pro- fessional development and pay for a lot of it. For example, I brought in an expert and paid for kettlebell certifi- cation, and I pay some of their costs when we go to the Toronto canfitpro conference every year.


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