Pricing structure

[Anarax]

Hello all,

I travel for work and it gives me the opportunity to train at various gyms all over the country. I've noticed the pricing structures for the majority of the gyms are quite similar. However, there are outliers that seem to charge the same monthly rate, regardless of how many classes or training hours the gym provides(1 class a week vs 15). For example, when I breakdown the hourly rate(monthly rate divided by the amount of scheduled class(s) hours). Typically I get somewhere between $4-$10/hr. Meaning if I pay $140 for the month and the gym offers 8 hours of training a week, or 32 a month, then the rate is $4.375(140 divided by 32) an hour. The quality of the training is by far more important, but I recently started training with a group that the rate comes out to be $20 per one hour class. No monthly fee is available for the group either.

I'm curious of your opinions and what's the hourly rate you pay or charge?

 

[Tony Dismukes162 58]

My gym charges $109/month for unlimited classes. ($89 for students, military, or law enforcement)

We have 26 classes on the schedule for the week, but some of them overlap so the theoretical maximum class time anyone could get is 22 hours per week. (No one does that - it would require training 7 days per week, including early mornings, evening, and midday classes. But they could.)

If we round down a month to 4 weeks, then someone who made it to every possible class would be paying $109/88 hours or roughly $1.24 per hour. (Or about $1/hour for those getting the student rate.)

Realistically, the most dedicated students might be putting in 10 hours per week, while more typical students might be showing up 3-4 hours per week. So that would come out to $2.72/hour for the dedicated students and $7.78/hour for the average students. Then we have the people who only show up a few time per month. They’re paying a much higher effective rate.

I should also note that this is based on the current price structure that we put into place when I and my partners took over the gym a couple of months ago. The previous owner had a bunch of constantly changing discounted rates for people who were only supposed to come in for a certain number of days per week or at certain times. (But no one was checking to enforce that.) Plus additional discounts that he would slap on spontaneously to sell a membership to a prospect. We’re trying to avoid students quitting due to sticker shock as we transition the gym back to profitability, so we’re grandfathering in the pre-existing students at the rate they were already paying for as long as we can. At some point (maybe next year) we’ll probably need to bump everyone up to the same membership price. But hopefully by then everyone will have seen the improvements we’re making and will feel that the price is worth it.

 

[skribs163 183]

Some of it is going to depend on the size and scope of the gym. A gym that's just starting out may have cheaper rates to get members in the door, hoping that the early adopters will build a foundation upon which future revenue can grow. A gym that's run as a class at the YMCA or a martial artist renting a room at the local Planet Fitness at an hourly rate for 4 hours per week is going to have a different budget than if they have to pay for the storefront, especially if it's a moonlighting job.

My BJJ gym used to have a single flat monthly rate no matter how many classes you took. Old students are still on that plan, but new students get an option between three tiers: the cheapest option is 2 days per week, then 3 or 4, then unlimited.

There's also separate tiers depending on whether you're doing Muay Thai, BJJ, or both. Both is $50 more than just BJJ, I think Muay Thai is more than that.

 

[Hanshi]

When I had my dojo there was a monthly cost (can't recall any specific $$) which entitled the student to unlimited classes. More than just one martial art was featured, several actually, with most having 3 classes a week. But cross training was encouraged and most students took advantage of 2 or more arts. Children's classes were separate from the normal schedule and more limited.

 

[Anarax]

Some of it is going to depend on the size and scope of the gym. A gym that's just starting out may have cheaper rates to get members in the door, hoping that the early adopters will build a foundation upon which future revenue can grow. A gym that's run as a class at the YMCA or a martial artist renting a room at the local Planet Fitness at an hourly rate for 4 hours per week is going to have a different budget than if they have to pay for the storefront, especially if it's a moonlighting job.

My BJJ gym used to have a single flat monthly rate no matter how many classes you took. Old students are still on that plan, but new students get an option between three tiers: the cheapest option is 2 days per week, then 3 or 4, then unlimited.

There's also separate tiers depending on whether you're doing Muay Thai, BJJ, or both. Both is $50 more than just BJJ, I think Muay Thai is more than that.

Most of the gyms I've been to have the unlimted options, but this one doesn't. They also separate the different areas of curriculum(grappling, striking, weapons) within the same style. It could be a strategy to make more money. It feels like they're asking me to pay for 3 different martial arts to learn the complete curriculum.

 

[skribs163 183]

Most of the gyms I've been to have the unlimted options, but this one doesn't. They also separate the different areas of curriculum(grappling, striking, weapons) within the same style. It could be a strategy to make more money. It feels like they're asking me to pay for 3 different martial arts to learn the complete curriculum.

If it's something like an MMA school or an ecclectic school that has a muay thai, jiu-jitsu, and kali program that would make sense.

If it's something like what I'm planning to run, which is a TKD school that incorporates grappling and weapons into the core curriculum, then it would sound like a ripoff to force you to pay separate tuitions to progress. The way I plan to run it is to have the base curriculum which includes everything, and then run bonus classes if you want to deep dive into anything. But you shouldn't have to pay multiple tiers for base level requirements.

 

[HighKick]

Most of the gyms I've been to have the unlimted options, but this one doesn't. They also separate the different areas of curriculum(grappling, striking, weapons) within the same style. It could be a strategy to make more money. It feels like they're asking me to pay for 3 different martial arts to learn the complete curriculum.

Because of the inherent danger, (certain) weapons should be trained in a more specific environment and Not in the general class. Kali comes to mind.
If it is a program/style where weapons are regularly/naturally integrated, that sounds like a money grab. Upcharge, upcharge, upcharge.

 

[Anarax]

If it's something like what I'm planning to run, which is a TKD school that incorporates grappling and weapons into the core curriculum, then it would sound like a ripoff to force you to pay separate tuitions to progress

Unfortunately, that's exactly what it is. It's one traditional style, but the areas of curriculum is separated.

If it is a program/style where weapons are regularly/naturally integrated, that sounds like a money grab. Upcharge, upcharge, upcharge.

I agree, it is a style that has heavy weapon emphasis.

 

[HighKick]

Unfortunately, that's exactly what it is. It's one traditional style, but the areas of curriculum is separated.

I agree, it is a style that has heavy weapon emphasis.

Let me better explain my response.
If weapons are a component part of a style's base curriculum there should be no additional cost/expense beyond a student wanting to get their own weapons (optional). Forms that have weapons in them for example.

But the very, very real challenge for any school/instructor is keeping people engaged and interested. This is where a school owner has to be very aware of the clientele, what they want, and have accommodations for everyone (if that is the school model). It runs the gamut of people who just want to work out in a regular format 2-3 times/week to people who train 5-6 days/week getting ready for competition. The latter requires specialty classes which, I feel, would be necessary for extended weapons training.
A good example is our black belt only classes. Semi-open format but always working on advanced material.

Hope that better explains it.