Power Athlete Radio Ep 835: Why Most Gyms Fail w/ Joe Riggio
Nov 21, 2025
In this insightful conversation, Joe Riggio, founder of Business of Strength and a gym-business consultant, reveals why most gyms fail is due to a lack of business savvy, not training expertise. He emphasizes the importance of efficient, boutique gyms with clear pricing and strong marketing strategies. Joe highlights the value of in-person community, the necessity of mentorship, and the common pitfalls gym owners face. His blueprint for success includes selling outcome-based programs and mastering business fundamentals over mere coaching skills.
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Learn Business Skills, Not Just Coaching
- Become a real business owner: learn marketing, sales, team management, and operations instead of hiding behind technical coaching skills.
- Invest time and money into mentorships and workshops that teach business systems, not just more training certifications.
Workshops Built The Business
- Joe and Dan started by running invite-only two-day workshops at their gym and used those events to teach business tactics to other coaches.
- Those workshops evolved into the Business of Strength consulting and mastermind offerings.
Training Skill ≠ Business Success
- Many trainers run a "training business" rather than a professional business and ignore five other key seats: leadership, marketing, sales, operations, and finance.
- Excelling at the product alone won't save you if marketing, sales, and money models are weak.
