Start Up Health Clubs

So you want to start a new health club. This is an exciting (and scary) event. A good leasing company can take some of the pressure off, by providing financing for part or all of your equipment, however, it is up to you to do your homework first.

Any source of financing will want to know that you have done your research and that you will be successful. This is true regardless whether they are  leasing company, an SBA program lender, private investor/venture capitalist, or even your mom.

The best way to develop and provide relevant information for you and your financial partners is to create a business plan and financial package. Typically what lenders look for are two years personal tax returns, a personal financial statement, and a business plan.

Since most people do not do them regularly, the hardest part is the business plan. The Small Business Administration (SBA) has very detailed information available online for developing a business plan (probably overkill, but it will give you a good framework).

As an overview, here are four reasons for your business plan:

1. Know where you are going. Its a novel concept, but if you don't know what your goals are, how will you reach them?
2. Help you determine pitfalls in advance. One of the reasons that businesses fail is that they have not thought out all of the potential problems up front. A complete plan can save you time and money.
3. Let your financing sources understand your vision. Most people know where they want to go with a new project. A business plan communicates to lenders what you know and more importantly, that you know what you're doing.
4. Give yourself benchmarks  to evaluate your progress. There is nothing quite like looking at your business plan again, one year after opening your business. You will be amazed at both how right and how wrong some of your assumptions were, prior to starting. The plan will help you see what you need to do to stay on track for your goals.

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