Are you thinking how to start a gym or is having gym food an asset, or a hindrance to your fitness studio? Though the added convenience is sure to excite new members, it can also be a challenge to stock and supply the right food for the right members. There's the addition of new machines, new staff, and potentially new construction to make the food. While selling food at your gym might seem a bit overwhelming, it also can lead to some major returns. Learn the best way to go about having food at your fitness studio.
In-house Cafes
Installing an in-house cafe may seem like a major endeavor, but it can develop a whole other side to your business. This is probably one of the biggest changes you can make to your facility and will come with its own challenges. You’ll need to staff the cafe with efficient personnel, have the ability to readily stock the cafe with necessary ingredients, and manage a new side to the fitness industry you might not know a ton about. If this is something you’re still interested in, it can provide massive gains to revenue due to its convenience for members.Keeping a simple, consistent menu of smoothies, flatbreads, and pre-made salads is a great way to start for people. Remember to keep carbs low, protein high for muscle fueling, and everything should be made in a short amount of time so members can actually grab-n-go.How can OneFitStop help your boutique fitness studio? Request a Demo to learn more.
Prepared Meal Services
As prepared meals steer away from frozen to fresh, consider investing in a mini-kitchen that allows for members to heat up prepared meals. Stocking your kitchen with these new uber-fast meals allow them to fill up after a big workout without committing to eating in a cafe. Many members will purchase more than just one of these meals when they realize they’ve left nothing in the fridge for dinner later. It’s a simple, effective, and cost-friendly opportunity for you to support local business and provide your members with a healthy meal.
Supplemental Snacks
Protein shake packets, protein bars, and gummies chock-full of electrolytes are what we’re talking about. Stock your fitness studio with these easy to grab meal alternatives in the case your members are looking for a small way to add nutrients back in after a tough session at your studio.One thing to keep in mind: keep these offerings healthy. Just because selling cheap junk food is simple and a fast sale doesn’t mean that it’s the way to go. It can send the wrong message before people even start their class. Don’t invest in chips, candy, or soda machines. They counteract your authority in the fitness market and may turn off lots of potential members even though they’re easy to sell and stock.
Meal-Planning Services
Not interested in selling food at your gym? Look into working with a local dietician and provide custom meal-planning services. This can be offered as something for purchase or can be promoted accordingly.Diet planning, meal prepping, and recipe-sharing are all different ways to offer something to sell or promote at your fitness studio. As much as you may love working in health and meal planning, try to keep in mind this is a piece of content you should use to promote and market your fitness studio. If you have hired a full-time dietician at your studio, it will be a breeze to put together a short and simple meal-by-meal food planner.No dietician? Use what you know to create a recipe book available for download via your email list. Using your knowledge as a health and fitness professional to create a healthy meal planning service will prove worthwhile. It’s a great way to get people thinking about how their work in the gym isn’t done when they walk out the door.Offering food at your gym is a great way to increase revenue, drive stronger fitness results, and keep people committed to your fitness studio. With every advancement you make at your fitness studio, keep in mind it’s to drive new business. What you decide to do with your health and food aspect to your business is your decision given your fitness community. What we can say is that taking your expertise one step further into health and food can serve as an enormous growth opportunity.How can OneFitStop help your boutique fitness studio? Request a Demo to learn more.