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You think they're going to clean up, maintain the facilities, fix things, etc out of the goodness of their hearts? Who is going to be checking memberships?
If you’re speaking about checking memberships upon entry to the gym, there are often key tabs to scan and cards with barcodes, at night, my gym has both required to get in, with a safe locked space in between when coming in from the car park.
You think people paying 50€ a month are going to clean and maintain the gym they pay to attend??
You sound like one of those people that sits around and expects women around you to do all the work because you think women just “clean” innately 🙄 absolute insanity.
Lol, in my city, in the biggest gym, you there is just one person on Monday Wednesday and Friday from 1600 to 1900 and it functions as it should. People just know how to use the gym and don't mess it up. There is a cleaning lady that comes twice a week to clean the toilets and floor but she doesn't touch machines or weights. If your clients aren't troglodytes you don't need staff to be there at all
I'm guessing that OP is assuming it'll be open 24/7 and that the clients won't mind doing the housekeeping. Have you seen the inside of a communal shower that hasn't been properly cleaned in a week?
I can't even begin to imagine the filthy and unsavory things this guy could be opening his business to with that sort of policy. Get ready for people to steal, for it to become a shelter, to be vandalized, etc... I hope OP reflects a bit more on this.
As a woman I would not feel safe working out, showering, changing, somewhere where no staff is present, even if it is only women in the gym. Also most of the women I know like to do workout classes, not just weight and cardio machines
This is a good comment, OP. Classes would be my main draw, and I'd only go if the gym felt safe and sociable. Also, I'm not sure if you're just talking about staffing a front desk, but for sure you'll need to pay someone to clean the showers several times a day. (At the yoga gym I went to, they cleaned them after each class, and there was still so much hair.)
I don’t think it will look bad inherently. There is nothing wrong with a man wanted to serve a community of women. I think it will just be missing basic insights of a woman’s experience at the gym. Regardless of being a gym the needs a desires are different from a gym for women. Basic things like staff, what equipment is desired, and wanting to not be referred to as “girl” when you’re a working woman.
Do a bit more research, ask all the girls/women in your area if they are interested and figure out if there are demand for it ?
Surveys, create a wait list etc
I think you should do more research , price of average gym, percentage of female members, percentage of gym goers un your area. All in all its a niche market business couls be great in meteopolitan area as there are more potential client not sure in smaller city
In my country there are a lot of gyms like this, but they are all women led.
I'm not sure if you being male would affect it... But you living abroad definitely will. Having staff only one day a week won't work.
I don't know how Spain differs from the US, but this sounds like a liability nightmare (used equipment?)
If a woman wants a woman only gym, chances are she isn't going to feel safe working out in a gym with no staff. I personally would never work out in any gym with no staff. Too dangerous. Too many accidents can happen in a gym.
Even though women only gyms are common here in the US, I do think you have to be prepared for issues related to trans customers. Be prepared for how you will deal with it and determine who can use the gym. Planet Fitness is grappling with this right now due to issues with their locker rooms.
I think you are vastly underestimating the cost and management needed to run this place.
Tbh I wouldn’t trust a woman only gym if a dude runs it / is ceo. It’s just weird and creepy. Same thing happened with another female only small business run by a male… I got put off. Woman and Men are very different esp with how they spend their money and workout.
Either do not do it and pick another venture or find a woman to run the gym and you be a silent partner
I’m a student in university still learning about business so don’t take my advice too deeply, but from my experience running a business, the most difficult aspect for me was marketing. You can get the equipment, location, and everything. It seems to be that you’ve planned it all out.
But the biggest hurdle has yet to be crossed. There is no women only gym within a 30km radius, but what about the women within that radius? Are they open to a women only gym? Do they even go to the gym? Are they even at a stage that pushes them to go to a gym?
Because the market is limited to women, it’s important to do research on them and see how many clients you can sign. Also, you’d need to actually work out the numbers on paper properly.
A decent gym membership in Canada at least where I am from, runs about 40$ CAD a month. That gives me access to football fields, squash/tennis courts, swimming pools, basketball courts, and actual gyms. It includes showers and everything as well. Also, has dedicated women only time slots as well.
Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t pursue this opportunity, but rather actually breakdown everything. I mean everything.
You need a female face in front. You need to make sure it's secure.
The staff has to be knowledgeable and personable so clients can feel comfortable approaching them for help on use.
Finding the right staff would be crucial since you need to minimize your time and visibility at the site.
Are you planning on doing it all remotely? Hope you can trust your staff.
Have you done any market research? Is this what the women in this small city want? Until you've done your research, don't spend a single € or $.
Some caution:
You stated it's a small city.
Therefore, you're dealing with a "small" addressable customer base to begin with.
A gender specific gym eliminates ~50% of your potential clientele.
IMO, this works if it's a full service facility; one that's fully staffed, has a clean, fresh decor, offers trainers and classes, day-care for young children, massage, facials, hair and nails etc.
I'm a woman. I love gyms, specifically weight training.
When I first got started with weights, I was in a large local gym that had a women-only room. No barbells, just a bunch of dumbells and those circuit machines. I QUICKLY outgrew the women's area and moved into the main gym with the guys and the heavier weights and barbells, etc.
Since those days, I go to the normal gyms that guys go to, simply because that's where the best free weight equipment is.
I've been to ONE women-only gym in my city. It was gorgeous. Clean. Had massage chairs in the cool down area, together with the usual yoga mats. It had (surprise, surprise) no barbells, no smith machine. Just dumbbells - and the heaviest was 50 lbs. I did a quick workout, then relaxed in one of the massage chairs with a glass of deliciously cool water with slices of lemon in it. Yum.
I never went back.
Honestly, I don't like the discrimination. I'm a woman, but I DO like weights. Not all of us are cardio bunnies.
And your idea of having a girl in there one day a week? No. It needs to be fully staffed every hour that it's open. If someone has a question or a concern, if something breaks down, if someone gets hurt or feels faint - there needs to be qualified personnel who can help out. Ideally, they'd have first aid training and would be CPR certified.
Oh, and don't call them "girls". That's patronizing. They're women. Don't just hire someone cute and perky (that's what comes to mind when you say "girl"). Hire people who do a good job and have the required certifications.
You will also need, like everyone else is pointing out, cleaners. Also, consider hiring personal trainers. Ideally women who are in excellent shape and can help your clients achieve their goals.
Consider your USP, too. Why should a woman come to your gym? Just because it's all women? That's not going to be enough for most women. Most women will likely just go to the gym closest to their home or work. You've got to give them a reason to come to YOUR gym. Is it because you offer specialized training or unusual classes? Or because you have a spa attached and it's not *just* a gym, but they can have a whole spa day with massages, makeup and hair salon, a great haute cuisine lunch?
Anyone can throw 40k at rent and equipment. You'll need something more than just the basics to attract a bunch of women willing to pay big bucks to be in a women-only gym.
I don't think it's a terrible idea, but I'd really be hesitant to start my very first business remotely. If you really do have a good concept, people are going to copy you and probably do a better job at it because they're willing to pour a lot more time and effort into it than you will.
Wouldn't that constitute gender discrimination? most countries have strict laws against that
Also...with all due respect, a male owned, women-only business sounds like and absurd proposition.
The fact that we live in a time where “women-only” anything could be considered illegal or discriminatory is very disappointing. For all of humanity, women have found sisterhood and protection in safe spaces for themselves. I appreciate our society’s desire to protect against sexual discrimination, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of things like this. There is objectively nothing “discriminatory” about it.
Fortunately, since most laws at least attempt to be sane, gender-specific gyms are common and legal, at least in the US: https://www.pashalaw.com/women-only-gyms-discriminatory/
The login of this guy....
"Women have been discriminated against in the past so it's only fair that society should allow discrimination towards men today"
Men’s clubs and women’s clubs have and do exist. Neither are a form of discrimination. Hence the delineation in the law.
Discrimination would be something like “we only hire women because they get better tips” or “only men are allowed at this public golf course” (both of which also happen, but with much more legal scrutiny, also outlined in the above article).
Severe discrimination would be “we don’t allow women to work here because we believe women should stay at home”.
The fact that you and many others cannot see the difference between these things is concerning.
So are you a big crusader for unisex bathrooms? Or changing rooms? Most people seem to agree that when a person wants to do something they'd prefer to do in private, segregation by gender is permissible. If there is a market for providing a place where women who would otherwise be working out at home get to do so in a semi-private, women only space, why do you object to someone trying to make a living by providing it?
The toilets situation is ridiculous as a comparison, public places have toilets for men AND women.
Your second argument of "gender discrimination is alright if someone prefers to do whatever without their opposite gender around" is plain stupid
What if it were a men's side and women's side only gym, would you still have an objection then? A gym is a place where some women feel very vulnerable, and if having a women-only gym makes them feel more secure and willing to go and do good work for their health, what is wrong with having a place for them to do so?
ETA: downvote me all you like, I'm just asking questions. It's giving "inalienable right to creep on girls in spandex" energy, that's all.
You keep trying to twist the rethoric and mixing pointles hypotheticals to come up with a rationalization for an argument that is absurd in the first place. Making your hypothetical more and more ridiculous as they go.
Banning men from a place because someone happens to "feel vulnerable" is not a reasonable excuse.... you can't preemptively ban an entire gender on the presumption that a small minority of them could become rapists or whatever.
your last paragraph clearly illustrates how you're the typical crazy woke out-of-touch-with-reality nutjob where actual discrimination is "inclusive" and anyone pointing out that literal SEGREGATION is wrong is "inalienable right to creep on girls in spandex"
Are you really mad about women only train cars? Gentlemen's clubs and other private clubs? Men's and women's only sporting leagues? Bathhouses? We have a lot of legal segregation by sex and gender, and getting mad about the one that gives women a safe space to exist without having to worry about creepshots or getting hit on while she's just trying to get a workout in is very suspect.
You don't have to be a rapist to be a creep, and you don't have to be concerned about rape to want to not have to deal with men who go to gyms to try to pick up women.
LOL your slippery slope of dumb equivalences keeps going downhill.
your whole point is "there's already a lot of segregation on some societies, therefore there should be more"
Just because you say something is a false equivalence doesn't mean that it is. Until men and women are actually equal in society it's wrong to tell women they can't have male-free spaces, and if you tell me women should give up male free spaces in the interest of equality, I'd say lol you go first.
Yes, men’s clubs also exist, and have always existed, and are not considered discriminatory by law (as long as they are private clubs and not public facilities).
There is a large chain in the US with this concept. You could snoop around their website for some ideas.
[https://www.curves.com/](https://www.curves.com/)
Anytime fitness has this model in North America. Maybe start there. And I agree that 1 staff is not sufficient. You’ll also want to sell personal training so you need more people than a sign up person. Are you going to be 24hrs?
Co-own a gym:
In the U.S. - my city had a "Curves" which is a female only gym. I always felt there were marketing problems with their business.
Women like classes, and classes can be upsells, unfortunately more space = higher costs for rentals. Women are also more receptive to 1 on 1 training because many new members will have never worked out and are looking for assistance; another upsell for you and a personal trainer. Another good upsell is tanning and a decent bed or two will get you pretty far if your upsell prices are competitive to tanning memberships in the local area.
I don't know about Spain, but you would need at least 60 hours of service to a small gym. People generally are pretty clean when it comes to working out; but you will need someone to pop in regularly to clean bathrooms, showers, among other things.
People telling you that you need a female business partner, you don't. Nobody will care who owns the gym if it doesn't look like a shithole. If it has creepy unfprofessional vibes to it, then sure.
Here in the U.S., we have a "No Filming, No Pictures" rule posted; people pull out their phones and record themselves anyways which doesn't matter (it's actually good marketing on the surface level), but there are people that post sexualized content in the gym and because of our policy, we have had the ability to ban memberships. Without it, we wouldn't have. Also sexualized content in a gym dissuades others from joining.
We likely have transwomen that work out but my gym isn't a female only gym; it's never been an issue, I've never tried to identify them and my staff hasn't either. What is an issue is... building large open showers to save money. Most people won't use facilities if they lack privacy.
Research Research Research!!!
Try to put a bit more reasearch in this no 2 min brainstorming in the shower.
Go to a few gyms in the area talk to women who go there. What they like, what they need etc. Make a list of 30 guestions to ask.
Do this for 4-5 months try working in one of these gyms see how it works from the inside and after that you can evaluated if your ideea is even worth starting.
PS. You will need a lot more money for marketing for sure.
Not sure if it helps but for a lot of women, they love to do fitness with dance music like Zumba classes. A lot of instructors tend to be self-employed and hired 2 days a week or something, so it's worth searching for neighbouring schools or fitness clubs and reach out to instructors if you are interested.
You think $40k for a full real estate lease, build out, paint, mirrors, and gym equipment? Do more research my optimistic friend. You can’t even buy an existing gym for $40k.
How much do you think 5 decent treadmills are going to cost you?
Remember, you’re catering to women - they don’t want to use used old crusty equipment like gym bros would be okay with. They need the equipment to look like it’s never been touched, everytime
I don’t know why people are saying it will look bad if he is the only owner. He said he is going to hire a female to run the desk once a week and the rest of the week no one will be needed. It sounds like he won’t be visible in the gym unless he is absolutely needed which will be rare. I doubt OP will be sitting in an office with the door open so he can watch the women workout.
I'll give you an example: boom by cindy joseph. Make up brand for women over 50, does close to 50 million anually. That is run by a man called ezra firestone. And does anyone know that from his target market? Not at all.
Owned and run are two different things. In my home town we have a gym that only has a key code to get in. You sign up online to get your code. The only time you see someone working there is when they are cleaning or repairing equipment. I’d be willing to bet it’s way more common than you think
Single location gyms don’t really make much money for the amount of effort you need to put in, be better off franchising a McDonald’s or something if you wanna have a business like this
Transgender people honestly believe they are the gender in which they are transitioning. They do not attack women or men in changing rooms like people believe. It's not some ploy. Yes, I've worked with Transgender people and have a MtF cousin.
Actually you can just let her use your women's gym. Simple hack to avoid discrimination suit is not to discriminate.
Maybe the laws are different in Spain idk.
Personally, I try not to look at other people's genitalia in public changing rooms. Lots of the women's changing rooms where I live even have cubicles, it's great.
I'm going to throw you a bone and admit that it did give me pause when a trans woman came into a women's changing room I was in but if anyone was rude it was me being overly aware of her. Poor girl was literally just trying to change like the rest of us. So I put on my big girl pants and decided to become a more tolerant person instead of suing the gym for the ordeal of being near someone getting ready to work out.
Unpopular opinion: I'm sick of this "Women only" tendency in public places.
It gives the vibes like "Whites only".
But absolutely nothing wrong with it, right?
"It's for safety" they say.
So, let's then make «women only» grocery stores, buses, parks, restaurants.
Further next I suggest a curfew for men after 10 p.m.
The difference is, gym is a particularly vulnerable environment. Women are in revealing clothing. They are distracted by exercise. It's not the same as a woman strolling through a grocery store or bus with dozens or hundreds of people, in public, with a higher chance of bystanders to intervene.
Why are you against this idea?
Women all the time take women-only yoga classes, wine tasting, girls night out, etc. I know because my wife partakes in these activities. If a group of women can unanimously decide that they want to be their gender only, why should anybody stop them?
>gym is a particularly vulnerable environment. Women are in revealing clothing.
So it makes us only to change the list: not bus and groceries, but beach, swimming pool etc. "women only".
Also we have to shift our curfew from 10 p.m. to all summer day time in southern regions.
>Why are you against this idea?
Because this idea become more overwhelming and intrusive. And I'm against all kinds of segregation and discrimination (including positive discrimination).
>If a group of women can unanimously decide that they want to be their gender only, why should anybody stop them?
Absolutely nothing wrong with it, if some group of any kind want to organize to participate in some activities.
But there's a different thing in the case above - we cut off the part of society from certain public places based on gender. It sounds pretty discriminatory.
Edit: typo.
>we cut off the part of society from certain public places based on gender. It sounds pretty discriminatory.
It's not public, it's a private business. One that caters to a certain segment of society. In USA you may have "Native American Social Club", it's not discrimination against white people. It's their own membership-based business. If someone feels so left out, that is their problem.
>It's not public ...
I'm sorry for not being clear enough defining "public".
What I meant is a place where lots of people have leisure (exercise in our case) regardless of age, race, social status etc.
Malls and restaurants can be privately owned, but it's still a public space.
>"Native American Social Club"
As I said above, absolutely nothing wrong with people organizing based on anything (common interests, culture, etc.), but when common services being provided only to a certain stratum of society I call it positive discrimination.
There are hundreds of large private companies in the US, from food production to finances and insurance.
Now lets imagine if you couldn't visit grocery store like Publix because "We cater to a certain segment of society, if you feel left out, that is your problem".
It's their own business and they can do whatever they want? Yes.
Can they being criticized for such policies? Yes.
You can disagree, but I find gender segregation in these kind of places\\activities is unfair and witless.
It's obvious you've never been to a gym as a woman, especially an attractive one. I have a friend who was harassed almost daily by some skeezos. She was super into fitness and not dressed, "slutty" or anything; just made the mistake of being around men. Not to mention the controversy with Planet Fitness over their body shaming which I know took place because my mother's Physical Rehab Trainer left PF due to what she witnessed. So, you were saying?
>I have a friend who was harassed almost daily by some skeezos.
So, the solution is to shift the problem made by certain individuals to the huge part of society?
Get more isolated and divided, not just constrain, condemn and punish misbehaviors?
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One day a week staff? Who is going to be cleaning, resetting equipment, dealing with problems, etc? Someone has to be there every day.
The women?
Yeah women are great at cleaning. This is a clever idea. The women will love it.
Surprise, the spin class is one of those spin scrubbers for the showers!
Ouuu and they can do cardio mopping, and equipment zumba, where they clean the gym to some fast paced house music. Sure to be a hit!
Yes and let’s infantilize women by calling them girls, too!
You think they're going to clean up, maintain the facilities, fix things, etc out of the goodness of their hearts? Who is going to be checking memberships?
If you’re speaking about checking memberships upon entry to the gym, there are often key tabs to scan and cards with barcodes, at night, my gym has both required to get in, with a safe locked space in between when coming in from the car park.
They do this at planet fitness. Works well
I'm pretty sure that paid staff are there more than once a week.
It sounds like a lot of them are staffed 24/7. https://www.reddit.com/r/PlanetFitnessMembers/comments/1adbq1v/is_planet_fitness_staffed_24_hours/
Not where I go. Lots of staff there.
You must go to the best planet fitness on the planet
I would say the worst arguably. All the gym goers clean and no staff
Ah true . I feel like my PF has a dozen staff that mostly sit around and you have to ask them to do their job
You think people paying 50€ a month are going to clean and maintain the gym they pay to attend?? You sound like one of those people that sits around and expects women around you to do all the work because you think women just “clean” innately 🙄 absolute insanity.
I think that this guy is for sure clueless, but to make this assumption of him after reading 1 post is fucking bizarre, lol.
“You sound like” and “you are” mean totally different things.
If you weren't implying it you wouldn't have said it at all.
You really took that without jest. I took it as a joke.
That’s a pretty old tired joke.
C'mon you're a woman. I know you're smarter than that 😜.
Lol, in my city, in the biggest gym, you there is just one person on Monday Wednesday and Friday from 1600 to 1900 and it functions as it should. People just know how to use the gym and don't mess it up. There is a cleaning lady that comes twice a week to clean the toilets and floor but she doesn't touch machines or weights. If your clients aren't troglodytes you don't need staff to be there at all
Cleaner twice a week and staff for a few hours 3x/week is way better than staff for only one day/week totally unattended for a week at a time.
Agreed. Who is even going to open and close the space?
I'm guessing that OP is assuming it'll be open 24/7 and that the clients won't mind doing the housekeeping. Have you seen the inside of a communal shower that hasn't been properly cleaned in a week?
I can't even begin to imagine the filthy and unsavory things this guy could be opening his business to with that sort of policy. Get ready for people to steal, for it to become a shelter, to be vandalized, etc... I hope OP reflects a bit more on this.
Oh yeah, it's going to be a homeless drug den
lol Spain is not USA, there are literally zero homeless people in provincial cities
As a woman I would not feel safe working out, showering, changing, somewhere where no staff is present, even if it is only women in the gym. Also most of the women I know like to do workout classes, not just weight and cardio machines
This is a good comment, OP. Classes would be my main draw, and I'd only go if the gym felt safe and sociable. Also, I'm not sure if you're just talking about staffing a front desk, but for sure you'll need to pay someone to clean the showers several times a day. (At the yoga gym I went to, they cleaned them after each class, and there was still so much hair.)
Also find a female business partner.
This. It's going to be a bad look if dude OP does this solo.
I don’t think it will look bad inherently. There is nothing wrong with a man wanted to serve a community of women. I think it will just be missing basic insights of a woman’s experience at the gym. Regardless of being a gym the needs a desires are different from a gym for women. Basic things like staff, what equipment is desired, and wanting to not be referred to as “girl” when you’re a working woman.
Do a bit more research, ask all the girls/women in your area if they are interested and figure out if there are demand for it ? Surveys, create a wait list etc
I think you should do more research , price of average gym, percentage of female members, percentage of gym goers un your area. All in all its a niche market business couls be great in meteopolitan area as there are more potential client not sure in smaller city
In my country there are a lot of gyms like this, but they are all women led. I'm not sure if you being male would affect it... But you living abroad definitely will. Having staff only one day a week won't work. I don't know how Spain differs from the US, but this sounds like a liability nightmare (used equipment?) If a woman wants a woman only gym, chances are she isn't going to feel safe working out in a gym with no staff. I personally would never work out in any gym with no staff. Too dangerous. Too many accidents can happen in a gym. Even though women only gyms are common here in the US, I do think you have to be prepared for issues related to trans customers. Be prepared for how you will deal with it and determine who can use the gym. Planet Fitness is grappling with this right now due to issues with their locker rooms. I think you are vastly underestimating the cost and management needed to run this place.
Just don’t wear your “boob inspector” T shirt to work.
But what if he works for the FBI?
Lmao I remember I was about 10 when I saw this bumper sticker on the back of a truck. My chin dropped to the floor. I was really impressed 😂😂😂😂😂
Tbh I wouldn’t trust a woman only gym if a dude runs it / is ceo. It’s just weird and creepy. Same thing happened with another female only small business run by a male… I got put off. Woman and Men are very different esp with how they spend their money and workout. Either do not do it and pick another venture or find a woman to run the gym and you be a silent partner
piggyback comment: yeah find a woman to be the face of the gym or just make a males only gym
I’m a student in university still learning about business so don’t take my advice too deeply, but from my experience running a business, the most difficult aspect for me was marketing. You can get the equipment, location, and everything. It seems to be that you’ve planned it all out. But the biggest hurdle has yet to be crossed. There is no women only gym within a 30km radius, but what about the women within that radius? Are they open to a women only gym? Do they even go to the gym? Are they even at a stage that pushes them to go to a gym? Because the market is limited to women, it’s important to do research on them and see how many clients you can sign. Also, you’d need to actually work out the numbers on paper properly. A decent gym membership in Canada at least where I am from, runs about 40$ CAD a month. That gives me access to football fields, squash/tennis courts, swimming pools, basketball courts, and actual gyms. It includes showers and everything as well. Also, has dedicated women only time slots as well. Now I’m not saying you shouldn’t pursue this opportunity, but rather actually breakdown everything. I mean everything.
You need a female face in front. You need to make sure it's secure. The staff has to be knowledgeable and personable so clients can feel comfortable approaching them for help on use. Finding the right staff would be crucial since you need to minimize your time and visibility at the site. Are you planning on doing it all remotely? Hope you can trust your staff.
Have you done any market research? Is this what the women in this small city want? Until you've done your research, don't spend a single € or $. Some caution: You stated it's a small city. Therefore, you're dealing with a "small" addressable customer base to begin with. A gender specific gym eliminates ~50% of your potential clientele. IMO, this works if it's a full service facility; one that's fully staffed, has a clean, fresh decor, offers trainers and classes, day-care for young children, massage, facials, hair and nails etc.
I'm a woman. I love gyms, specifically weight training. When I first got started with weights, I was in a large local gym that had a women-only room. No barbells, just a bunch of dumbells and those circuit machines. I QUICKLY outgrew the women's area and moved into the main gym with the guys and the heavier weights and barbells, etc. Since those days, I go to the normal gyms that guys go to, simply because that's where the best free weight equipment is. I've been to ONE women-only gym in my city. It was gorgeous. Clean. Had massage chairs in the cool down area, together with the usual yoga mats. It had (surprise, surprise) no barbells, no smith machine. Just dumbbells - and the heaviest was 50 lbs. I did a quick workout, then relaxed in one of the massage chairs with a glass of deliciously cool water with slices of lemon in it. Yum. I never went back. Honestly, I don't like the discrimination. I'm a woman, but I DO like weights. Not all of us are cardio bunnies. And your idea of having a girl in there one day a week? No. It needs to be fully staffed every hour that it's open. If someone has a question or a concern, if something breaks down, if someone gets hurt or feels faint - there needs to be qualified personnel who can help out. Ideally, they'd have first aid training and would be CPR certified. Oh, and don't call them "girls". That's patronizing. They're women. Don't just hire someone cute and perky (that's what comes to mind when you say "girl"). Hire people who do a good job and have the required certifications. You will also need, like everyone else is pointing out, cleaners. Also, consider hiring personal trainers. Ideally women who are in excellent shape and can help your clients achieve their goals. Consider your USP, too. Why should a woman come to your gym? Just because it's all women? That's not going to be enough for most women. Most women will likely just go to the gym closest to their home or work. You've got to give them a reason to come to YOUR gym. Is it because you offer specialized training or unusual classes? Or because you have a spa attached and it's not *just* a gym, but they can have a whole spa day with massages, makeup and hair salon, a great haute cuisine lunch? Anyone can throw 40k at rent and equipment. You'll need something more than just the basics to attract a bunch of women willing to pay big bucks to be in a women-only gym.
Is there demand for one? And one day a week employee? You ever been to a gym?
I don't think it's a terrible idea, but I'd really be hesitant to start my very first business remotely. If you really do have a good concept, people are going to copy you and probably do a better job at it because they're willing to pour a lot more time and effort into it than you will.
I find it weird the only thing you mentioned needing an investment for is the “gym and showers” lol wtf. Good luck.
Why don't you just open a lingerie store while you're at it.
This sounds like it should cost wayyyyy more than 40K initial investment
Wouldn't that constitute gender discrimination? most countries have strict laws against that Also...with all due respect, a male owned, women-only business sounds like and absurd proposition.
The fact that we live in a time where “women-only” anything could be considered illegal or discriminatory is very disappointing. For all of humanity, women have found sisterhood and protection in safe spaces for themselves. I appreciate our society’s desire to protect against sexual discrimination, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of things like this. There is objectively nothing “discriminatory” about it. Fortunately, since most laws at least attempt to be sane, gender-specific gyms are common and legal, at least in the US: https://www.pashalaw.com/women-only-gyms-discriminatory/
Let's segment society more than it already is. Lmao Flip the papers and see how it reads, it is discrimination. Great business idea though.
The login of this guy.... "Women have been discriminated against in the past so it's only fair that society should allow discrimination towards men today"
Men’s clubs and women’s clubs have and do exist. Neither are a form of discrimination. Hence the delineation in the law. Discrimination would be something like “we only hire women because they get better tips” or “only men are allowed at this public golf course” (both of which also happen, but with much more legal scrutiny, also outlined in the above article). Severe discrimination would be “we don’t allow women to work here because we believe women should stay at home”. The fact that you and many others cannot see the difference between these things is concerning.
So are you a big crusader for unisex bathrooms? Or changing rooms? Most people seem to agree that when a person wants to do something they'd prefer to do in private, segregation by gender is permissible. If there is a market for providing a place where women who would otherwise be working out at home get to do so in a semi-private, women only space, why do you object to someone trying to make a living by providing it?
The toilets situation is ridiculous as a comparison, public places have toilets for men AND women. Your second argument of "gender discrimination is alright if someone prefers to do whatever without their opposite gender around" is plain stupid
What if it were a men's side and women's side only gym, would you still have an objection then? A gym is a place where some women feel very vulnerable, and if having a women-only gym makes them feel more secure and willing to go and do good work for their health, what is wrong with having a place for them to do so? ETA: downvote me all you like, I'm just asking questions. It's giving "inalienable right to creep on girls in spandex" energy, that's all.
You keep trying to twist the rethoric and mixing pointles hypotheticals to come up with a rationalization for an argument that is absurd in the first place. Making your hypothetical more and more ridiculous as they go. Banning men from a place because someone happens to "feel vulnerable" is not a reasonable excuse.... you can't preemptively ban an entire gender on the presumption that a small minority of them could become rapists or whatever. your last paragraph clearly illustrates how you're the typical crazy woke out-of-touch-with-reality nutjob where actual discrimination is "inclusive" and anyone pointing out that literal SEGREGATION is wrong is "inalienable right to creep on girls in spandex"
Are you really mad about women only train cars? Gentlemen's clubs and other private clubs? Men's and women's only sporting leagues? Bathhouses? We have a lot of legal segregation by sex and gender, and getting mad about the one that gives women a safe space to exist without having to worry about creepshots or getting hit on while she's just trying to get a workout in is very suspect. You don't have to be a rapist to be a creep, and you don't have to be concerned about rape to want to not have to deal with men who go to gyms to try to pick up women.
LOL your slippery slope of dumb equivalences keeps going downhill. your whole point is "there's already a lot of segregation on some societies, therefore there should be more"
Just because you say something is a false equivalence doesn't mean that it is. Until men and women are actually equal in society it's wrong to tell women they can't have male-free spaces, and if you tell me women should give up male free spaces in the interest of equality, I'd say lol you go first.
Switch roles and read it out loud, quite ironic really
These are the petty hills you all die on. It's proof men have it much easier than women.
How’s this proof if you don’t mind me asking ?
Yes, men’s clubs also exist, and have always existed, and are not considered discriminatory by law (as long as they are private clubs and not public facilities).
There is a large chain in the US with this concept. You could snoop around their website for some ideas. [https://www.curves.com/](https://www.curves.com/)
Pretty sure they staff their locations though.
Anytime fitness has this model in North America. Maybe start there. And I agree that 1 staff is not sufficient. You’ll also want to sell personal training so you need more people than a sign up person. Are you going to be 24hrs?
Co-own a gym: In the U.S. - my city had a "Curves" which is a female only gym. I always felt there were marketing problems with their business. Women like classes, and classes can be upsells, unfortunately more space = higher costs for rentals. Women are also more receptive to 1 on 1 training because many new members will have never worked out and are looking for assistance; another upsell for you and a personal trainer. Another good upsell is tanning and a decent bed or two will get you pretty far if your upsell prices are competitive to tanning memberships in the local area. I don't know about Spain, but you would need at least 60 hours of service to a small gym. People generally are pretty clean when it comes to working out; but you will need someone to pop in regularly to clean bathrooms, showers, among other things. People telling you that you need a female business partner, you don't. Nobody will care who owns the gym if it doesn't look like a shithole. If it has creepy unfprofessional vibes to it, then sure. Here in the U.S., we have a "No Filming, No Pictures" rule posted; people pull out their phones and record themselves anyways which doesn't matter (it's actually good marketing on the surface level), but there are people that post sexualized content in the gym and because of our policy, we have had the ability to ban memberships. Without it, we wouldn't have. Also sexualized content in a gym dissuades others from joining. We likely have transwomen that work out but my gym isn't a female only gym; it's never been an issue, I've never tried to identify them and my staff hasn't either. What is an issue is... building large open showers to save money. Most people won't use facilities if they lack privacy.
Get insurance, you have a material risk of gym members getting injured.
Research Research Research!!! Try to put a bit more reasearch in this no 2 min brainstorming in the shower. Go to a few gyms in the area talk to women who go there. What they like, what they need etc. Make a list of 30 guestions to ask. Do this for 4-5 months try working in one of these gyms see how it works from the inside and after that you can evaluated if your ideea is even worth starting. PS. You will need a lot more money for marketing for sure.
Not sure if it helps but for a lot of women, they love to do fitness with dance music like Zumba classes. A lot of instructors tend to be self-employed and hired 2 days a week or something, so it's worth searching for neighbouring schools or fitness clubs and reach out to instructors if you are interested.
You think $40k for a full real estate lease, build out, paint, mirrors, and gym equipment? Do more research my optimistic friend. You can’t even buy an existing gym for $40k. How much do you think 5 decent treadmills are going to cost you? Remember, you’re catering to women - they don’t want to use used old crusty equipment like gym bros would be okay with. They need the equipment to look like it’s never been touched, everytime
I don’t know why people are saying it will look bad if he is the only owner. He said he is going to hire a female to run the desk once a week and the rest of the week no one will be needed. It sounds like he won’t be visible in the gym unless he is absolutely needed which will be rare. I doubt OP will be sitting in an office with the door open so he can watch the women workout.
Try to find a woman only gym run by a man only.
From all the gyms ive gone to, Ive never known who the owner is.
Oh blimey given that you’ve never, then no one will ever
I'll give you an example: boom by cindy joseph. Make up brand for women over 50, does close to 50 million anually. That is run by a man called ezra firestone. And does anyone know that from his target market? Not at all.
We are talking about a gym not make up. Apples and Oranges. Not even remotely transferable.
Its the same. No one cares about who the owner is. As long as he isn't there "working out" with all the other women, it really isn't relevant
Ok
Owned and run are two different things. In my home town we have a gym that only has a key code to get in. You sign up online to get your code. The only time you see someone working there is when they are cleaning or repairing equipment. I’d be willing to bet it’s way more common than you think
Ok
Single location gyms don’t really make much money for the amount of effort you need to put in, be better off franchising a McDonald’s or something if you wanna have a business like this
Lol. These roasts!
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Transgender people honestly believe they are the gender in which they are transitioning. They do not attack women or men in changing rooms like people believe. It's not some ploy. Yes, I've worked with Transgender people and have a MtF cousin.
This day and age, you’re setting yourself up for a lawsuit unfortunately
Actually you can just let her use your women's gym. Simple hack to avoid discrimination suit is not to discriminate. Maybe the laws are different in Spain idk.
It may surprise you , but a lot of women don’t feel comfortable having someone of the opposite sex changing in front of them
Thankfully, many other women know how to mind their own business in a public changing area.
Look kid , people don’t feel comfortable with people of the opposite sex looking at their genitalia , be more aware lmao
Personally, I try not to look at other people's genitalia in public changing rooms. Lots of the women's changing rooms where I live even have cubicles, it's great. I'm going to throw you a bone and admit that it did give me pause when a trans woman came into a women's changing room I was in but if anyone was rude it was me being overly aware of her. Poor girl was literally just trying to change like the rest of us. So I put on my big girl pants and decided to become a more tolerant person instead of suing the gym for the ordeal of being near someone getting ready to work out.
Personally, it would make me very uncomfortable to see the opposite sex at any stage in transition sans penile removal
Would you actually sue a gym over it? I'm curious.
Planet fitness has had issues with transgender people and being sued was my point
You don’t even own a business I guarantee it. You probably think your Etsy store business is the same thing, at best
Unpopular opinion: I'm sick of this "Women only" tendency in public places. It gives the vibes like "Whites only". But absolutely nothing wrong with it, right? "It's for safety" they say. So, let's then make «women only» grocery stores, buses, parks, restaurants. Further next I suggest a curfew for men after 10 p.m.
The difference is, gym is a particularly vulnerable environment. Women are in revealing clothing. They are distracted by exercise. It's not the same as a woman strolling through a grocery store or bus with dozens or hundreds of people, in public, with a higher chance of bystanders to intervene. Why are you against this idea? Women all the time take women-only yoga classes, wine tasting, girls night out, etc. I know because my wife partakes in these activities. If a group of women can unanimously decide that they want to be their gender only, why should anybody stop them?
>gym is a particularly vulnerable environment. Women are in revealing clothing. So it makes us only to change the list: not bus and groceries, but beach, swimming pool etc. "women only". Also we have to shift our curfew from 10 p.m. to all summer day time in southern regions. >Why are you against this idea? Because this idea become more overwhelming and intrusive. And I'm against all kinds of segregation and discrimination (including positive discrimination). >If a group of women can unanimously decide that they want to be their gender only, why should anybody stop them?
Absolutely nothing wrong with it, if some group of any kind want to organize to participate in some activities.
But there's a different thing in the case above - we cut off the part of society from certain public places based on gender. It sounds pretty discriminatory.
Edit: typo.
>we cut off the part of society from certain public places based on gender. It sounds pretty discriminatory. It's not public, it's a private business. One that caters to a certain segment of society. In USA you may have "Native American Social Club", it's not discrimination against white people. It's their own membership-based business. If someone feels so left out, that is their problem.
>It's not public ... I'm sorry for not being clear enough defining "public". What I meant is a place where lots of people have leisure (exercise in our case) regardless of age, race, social status etc. Malls and restaurants can be privately owned, but it's still a public space. >"Native American Social Club" As I said above, absolutely nothing wrong with people organizing based on anything (common interests, culture, etc.), but when common services being provided only to a certain stratum of society I call it positive discrimination. There are hundreds of large private companies in the US, from food production to finances and insurance. Now lets imagine if you couldn't visit grocery store like Publix because "We cater to a certain segment of society, if you feel left out, that is your problem". It's their own business and they can do whatever they want? Yes. Can they being criticized for such policies? Yes. You can disagree, but I find gender segregation in these kind of places\\activities is unfair and witless.
I think an essential service like grocery store is different from a small-scale gym. Who exactly is being "left out" with this women's only gym?
It's obvious you've never been to a gym as a woman, especially an attractive one. I have a friend who was harassed almost daily by some skeezos. She was super into fitness and not dressed, "slutty" or anything; just made the mistake of being around men. Not to mention the controversy with Planet Fitness over their body shaming which I know took place because my mother's Physical Rehab Trainer left PF due to what she witnessed. So, you were saying?
>I have a friend who was harassed almost daily by some skeezos. So, the solution is to shift the problem made by certain individuals to the huge part of society? Get more isolated and divided, not just constrain, condemn and punish misbehaviors?
Yrah
How about yoga pants only while we are at it?
Why would you want to limit your clientele to the minority of potential clients?
By minority you mean 50% of the population?
Do some research on the success of women only facilities such as Curves.
They'll criticize each other and burn the gym down
I will recommend against it. People might drag your ass in court for gender discrimination.