#15 Before You Open Site 2: Lessons from Aaron Swales Three Gyms

Owning one successful small-group gym is hard enough. Growing to three sites, serving an average age of 50–60, and still obsessing over experience?

That’s what Aaron Swales has done with The Confidence Coach in the North East of England.

In this episode, Aaron walks through how he opened his first gym in the middle of a global pandemic, why he’s stayed laser-focused on older, gym-intimidated clients, and what had to change in his role to go from one site to three.

We dig into his 30-day trial, weekly GM calls, email reactivation playbook, and the uncomfortable truths about opening a second location.

If you’ve ever thought, “Maybe I’m ready for gym number two,” or you’re wondering whether to double down on a specific demographic, this one’s for you.

What you’ll learn if you listen

• Why Aaron deliberately doesn’t chase 6-week transformations or HYROX trends—and how that’s helped him stand out locally.
• How he opened his first small-group gym in December 2020, survived lockdown, and hit ~250 members in a warehouse facility.
• The exact structure of his £109, 30-day trial (from one-to-one evaluation to weekly GM check-ins).
• How he uses Meta ads, story-driven testimonials, and “people like me” imagery to keep a steady flow of trialists coming in.
• The email strategy that’s brought lapsed trials and ex-members back in droves—after years of ignoring his list.
• Why fancy referral incentives flopped for his demographic, and what actually works to get members bringing in friends.
• How he prices and structures memberships (£199+ per month) and why he’ll downgrade people if it keeps them longer.
• The real prerequisites for opening a second site (systems, capital, culture, and a brutally honest why).
• What it cost to open Sites 1, 2, and 3—and why he now prefers smaller, more intimate units.
• How mentorship and honest conversations with other owners keep him grounded as he pushes towards 10 locations.

Find out more about Aaron Swales:

• The Confidence Coach: https://www.theconfidencecoach.fitness/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaron_swales/