How was Hustle Fitness born?

I’d always been into fitness and knew I always wanted to go into this industry once I finished rugby, but I think it dawned on me even more over lockdown how good it would be to have something outside of rugby, a back-up plan of sorts. My Friend, and now business partner, owned a gym before so we have toyed with the idea for the last few years. We had planned on opening somewhere in January, then Covid-19 happened. Thankfully, we stumbled across a unit that we really liked and managed to get it up and running over lockdown. It was a bit of a blessing in disguise for us in terms of the business as it allowed us to get everything in place and really focus on it.  

Why did you choose your hometown of Rossendale for the Gym?

My business partner is also from there and we used to play rugby together when we were kids at Rossendale RFC. We were both really big on fitness when we were younger so it just made sense for it to be there. Our gym is a functional fitness group-based training facility. Our programs are specific to people’s needs and we can tailor each one to suit an individual’s goals. From putting on muscle, to getting lean or even specific muscle groups – we cater for all.

Why did you call it Hustle Fitness?

We had been thinking of names for ages and then someone at the gym one day just went ‘I’m sick of hustling’ and it was just a lightbulb moment of ‘we are hustlers’, which evolved into Hustle. We didn’t want a gym where you just come in and sit on your phone for hours, we wanted a gym where you come in, work hard, get it done and carry on with your day. It was important for us to create an environment where everyone is pushing each other to work harder.

Who did you turn to for support when setting up the business?

My RPA Development Manager, Matt Leek, put me in contact with Tamzin Tully at PKF Francis Clark who made us into a Limited Company and has helped us massively setting up the financial side of the business. Matt also put us in touch with gyms around Bristol so we could get a better idea of how they were run. Also, he set us up with former players like Nick Fenton-Wells who has his own gym, Torque.

While I knew how I wanted to run my gym, setting up an effective business model was new to me. The people Matt put me in touch with shed light on the finer details, which I would not have considered. For example creating advertising, setting up a Gocardless system and an app page to ensure we could be in-line with COVID guidelines in terms of size classes. This meant when we opened we were ahead of the game. Before I thought setting up a business would be this massive ordeal, but I think its just having the bottle to go out and actually do it.

What’s different about Hustle compared to other gyms?

We offer something different than just your standard gym. You are not left to your own devices here. We create an environment where people come in and work hard together and encourage each other. One of our main rules in the gym is we have a no moron rule. Loads of people are put off going to the gym because there’s a standard stereotypical gym user – big, brash, loud person who is going to just intimidate people and not be helpful. Whereas we want everyone to create that community atmosphere in the gym - Hustle hard and trust the process.

What are your future plans for Hustle Fitness?

We want to grow and expand, while keeping our unique training atmosphere intact. Hopefully, we can create a larger space in Rossendale and look to get a new location in the next eighteen months/ two years.

For more information head to the @hustlefitness instagram page or hustlefitness.uk