Registration of a Martial Art

[ThirdDegreeBurn]

I'm trying to figure out how to open a club right now, but the problem is, my Sensei never registered Kakusareta and even more awkward, never gave certificates as a result.
My question is, should I just give up or should there be another way?

 

[Black Bear]

Register how? Register with whom? Send me $500 and a video and you can be registered with the WSA (World Sokeship Association), which is recognized by the IASA (International All-Styles Alliance) which is in turn accredited by the CAAMA (Council for the Accreditation of Asian Martial Arts), which is registered with the ICFF (Intergalactic Consortium for the Facilitation of Fraud), which is affiliated with...

Or just send me the money anyway.

I trained for four years in one system without ever getting ranked. I went on to another discipline where I trained five years. Just last month I was awarded my "Level 2". No one knows what the hell "Level 2" means. Is it 2 from the bottom or the top? I suppose I could ask my coach. We train hard, we train alive, I know I can fight, and I've coached a few beginners to good levels of success too.

If you can do the stuff and you have the coaching ability too, then do it. If the only reason you feel you need accreditation is in order to impress people who don't know better, then get a black belt out of the back of a magazine. If you like, I can even confer one on you. Email me at ironmongoose@yahoo.com. I think the belt itself is $10, I have some graphic artists friends who can do a really good certificate on parchment for a few bucks, and I'll take $500 for handling. Just like Harfurd Internet-ional University, I have a lifetime service in which I can send a letter on WSA letterhead to anyone who inquires, certifying your ability in whatever you ask.

Why do you want to start a club? Community service? Teach for a living? Just for hahas?

Keep in mind that 90% of new businesses shut down in the first-- what, year? 6 or 9 months? And that the highest rate of failure of any business is in ... you guessed it, martial art instruction. Go figure--they're usually started up by a 20-something year old first- or second-degree black belt who has no knowledge whatsoever of how to operate a business, and finds an affordable strip mall location and tries to beat people on pricing.

If you just want to help kids, hook up with the appropriate outreach and referral groups.

 

[7starmantis]

Wow, um....don't let something get in the way of what you want to do with your life. Carpe Diem, if you would like to open a club, and it would make you happy, I say, by all means do it. Don't let not having an accredidation stop you. Like Black Bear said, there isn't really anyone of authority to register with.

If its just a passing fancy, let it pass, but if you would really enjoy doing it, do it. If it fails, then thats ok, you gave it a shot.

7sm

 

[Zepp]

Where are you trying to start up the club? If it's at a university or community college, there's probably an Office of Student Life or some such place that can give you all the info. you need to get a club going.

As far as registering your martial art goes, don't give any money to that Black bear, he's a fraud. You only need to send me $450 and I'll take care of everything. :EG:

 

[Bob Hubbard]

Originally posted by ThirdDegreeBurn
I'm trying to figure out how to open a club right now, but the problem is, my Sensei never registered Kakusareta and even more awkward, never gave certificates as a result.
My question is, should I just give up or should there be another way?

Can you give us a bit more info to go on?

If I follow you, you don't have any certifications, and the art was an unknown one?

 

[Black Bear]

It sounds as though kakusareta is his instructor's own creation, a hybrid art or something.

I bid $350 plus expenses, not to exceed $50! NICE certificate! Lifetime documentation service!

I wanted to call my group the World Sokeship Council, but apparently such a body already existed. There's an International Sokeship Council and an International Sokeship Association too. You have to google these things before you start them up...

 

[Shinzu]

im not sure if there are any "legal" procedures you need to go through besides getting town prmits and such.

actually in my case, and when my family and i gets a house... i want to build a studio on my land and make it into a business. if it succeeds then fine, if not then i always have a good place to train and perhaps help community kids. in my eyes it's not always about the money. actually seeing a student improve because of your direction is payment enough!

besides making rent payments, staring the whole shabang, getting students, and then closing sucks!

maybe the best way these days are to approach a local school. see if they would let you hold classes in their gym. maybe they charge a small fee to use the facilities. you could justify this by charging small fees to the students and maybe even cover your travel expenses.

this would cover the costs and give people more of a reason to join! who wouldn't take advantage of "quality" instruction at minamal charge?? hell where do i sign up!

 

[ThirdDegreeBurn]

I wasn't sure if there were any legal procedures to go through, that was the point of this topic. Thanks to the actual info and thanks for the (self-effacing) humour the other responses provided.

 

[Ceicei]

Well, there are some martial art styles that don't have a ranking system. It sounds like your style doesn't either. That alone doesn't make the your style any less legitimate. However, your students will want to mark their progress in some way. If ranking is not going to be part of your school, then consider something that your students can have to show their progress in training.

If you are looking to set up a club, you will have to look into setting up a school/club and getting a business/school license. It is important to get your club licensed legally to operate within your jurisdiction. (In the USA, for example, we have to work with city, county, and state government regulations. I'm not sure how Canada will handle their business/school ownership regulations).

First of all: What you may want to do is talk with other non-ranking martial arts school owners and see how they handle operating their schools.

If you are still serious about setting up a club, you will have to consider how you plan to present your martial art style. There will be people that want to know the history and training curriculum. If you have that information and is upfront about it with your potential students, there is no reason why you can't work on your dream of running/owning a club.

Don't forget about liability insurance.

Be aware that it is going to be extremely difficult--it takes capital, business intelligence, guts, and the ability to teach as well as the ability to retain students.

There is probably more I overlooked to mention, but this is just a brief listing of what to consider.

- Ceicei

 

[drunken mistress]

Insurance does seem to be the main problem with not being registered. Probably only people in your own country can give advice on this as rules vary everywhere. Running a class without registration is probably no problem unless someone gets hurt badly. What exactly is your art? Sounds Japanese.

 

[Ceicei]

Is your desire to register your martial style for the purpose to gain respect in the eyes of other martial arts?

I see from your profile you mentioned your sensei passed away in 2000 and you are trying to keep his martial arts legacy going.

Since your style is not well-known, what you can do is try to get your club going and make sure your students know the roots and history of your style and become skilled. Maybe even set up a demo team to showcase the style. Perhaps join a few tournaments? Eventually, with a lot of work and good students, you can grow, perhaps even branch out.

That will help gain recognition and reputation through time. You can begin the process of having the style name registered.

Its a good legacy to carry on and to prevent the loss of a martial art style.

- Ceicei