Business Name: Norwich Fitness Academy
Support Received: Start Up Loan and Start & Grow
Location: Norwich, Norfolk
Website: www.thenorwichfitnessacademy.com/
Originally from Leeds, Katharine Appleton and her partner James Bradshaw fell in love with the city of Norwich when James was stationed in Norfolk as an RAF Aircraft Technician. Kat was already self-employed as a Personal Trainer with a background as a competitive sprinter and bodybuilding competitor, and when she and James realised everything the county could offer, it led them to make the life-changing decision to set up The Norwich Fitness Academy.
James decided to leave the RAF to retrain as a Level 3 Personal Trainer, and together they followed their dream to open their own fitness studio.
Kat spoke to us about the support from Nwes, and how a Start Up Loan, and the Start & Grow programme helped them to make a life-changing move.
Tell us about Norwich Fitness Academy?
The Norwich Fitness Academy is a new Personal Training studio and Bootcamp club located on Norwich’s outer ring road. Kat and James founded the business in October 2016 and worked hard to launch in March 2017.
A lot of people can find conventional gyms and Bootcamps to be quite intimidating. Here at The Norwich Fitness Academy, we cater for all abilities and have a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
Our aim is to encourage and guide our members, in order to get the best out of their workouts, not shout at them. Our club is a social hub as much as it is a fitness centre. Our members walk through our door as strangers and leave as friends.
How did you feel when you gained your first customer?
The response from the public has been so overwhelmingly positive that we are 100% certain that pursuing our own business start-up has been the right decision. The power of social media ensured that 95% of open day places were filled prior to the day itself.
The main feeling was one of relief! We also gained over 1,000 followers on our Facebook page before we had opened our doors. This showed that what we were offering was unique and interesting to those based in and around Norwich.
Did you face any challenges? How did you overcome these?
We faced challenges head-on, including negotiating the lease, and understanding the legalities concerning the change of use to secure our chosen premises in an industrial unit on the Norwich Ring Road. We have been on a steep, but useful learning curve when it came to developing business skills and experience.
We believe those who succeed in business are those who are genuinely passionate about what they are trying to achieve. Anyone can have a good idea, but without passion, the will to push through, even when things aren’t going your way, is not there.
What support did you receive to make your idea of The Norwich Fitness Academy, a reality?
I walked through the doors of Nwes’ Norwich Enterprise Centre on Guildhall Hill by chance one day.
We were put in contact with Business Advisor, Paul Walmsley. Not only did Paul help us to develop our business plan and financial forecasts, but we also attended free workshops to enhance our skills further in business, finance, and marketing.
Walking through the doors at Nwes was the best decision we made in planning our business.
We worked with Paul to submit an application for a Start Up Loan, which really propelled our dream forward.
