Today we’d like to introduce you to Francisco Carranza.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was born and raised in Los Angeles, just down the street from USC. I was always interested in martial arts, but never had an opportunity for formal training until I went to UCLA. After graduation, I became an assistant instructor for the Muay Thai class at UCLA Recreation, and then the lead instructor, teaching there a total of 8 years. I also trained at the Inosanto Academy in Marina del Rey and Combat Submission Wrestling in Fullerton, in order to improve in Muay Thai and expand my repertoire of martial arts to Filipino Martial Arts, grappling, and savate (French kickboxing). Meanwhile, I earned a teaching credential and became a middle and high school Social Studies teacher, working with students from Santa Clarita to Watts to Inglewood. After my family moved east of Los Angeles, I began looking into starting my own center for learning, fitness, and martial arts.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I had worked in business before, but as a first-time entrepreneur, I had to teach myself the ins and outs of running a business, something I am still learning about and growing in day-by-day. I also did not know anyone in the city of Glendora, where the center is located, so I had to begin networking and marketing from scratch. The biggest challenge, however, is giving up the financial security and stability of a salaried, full-time job to build my own business. It took a lot of patience and faith in those initial months, but it’s been worth it!
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Open Arts Kinetics – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Open Arts Kinetics is more than a martial arts gym, a dance studio, or a tutoring center. It is all of the above. We envision it as a place where our clients can grow and strengthen themselves physically, mentally, and spiritually. We see fitness, martial arts, yoga, dance, and academic instruction as different approaches to reach the same goals of discipline, determination, confidence, and self-awareness. Many of our classes are also a blend of different arts or styles. For example, our Latin dance class will be a fusion of salsa and hip-hop beats. Our Filipino Martial Arts instructor will teach a blend of yoga and silat, an indigenous martial art form that originated from Indonesia. In the Cardio K-box class, we combine kickboxing with a high-intensity cardio workout. Besides our multidisciplinary approach, our embrace of all age groups and all ability levels also sets us apart from other gyms and studios. We offer after school tutoring and self-defense classes for elementary age students, as well as evening classes for both adults and kids.
We encourage families to train together, and differentiate our instruction so each student is receiving the support that they need in order to achieve their personal goals.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Over the next few months, we are looking forward to expanding our class offerings, including prenatal yoga, mommy and me classes, personal training, and jiu-jitsu. We are also planning on offering a series of beginner self-defense and advanced martial arts seminars with some renowned LA-based instructors. Eventually, we want to create a non-profit branch that will be able to offer the same level of excellent training and instruction to kids and youths from low-income families.
We want our center to be a benefit and a blessing to the community, a place where individuals and families can grow stronger together.
Contact Info:
- Address: 531 E. Arrow Hwy Suite 111
Glendora, California, CA 91740 - Website: openartskinetics.com
- Phone: (626) 385-6009
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: instagram.com/openartskinetics
- Facebook: facebook.com/openartskinetics
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/open-arts-kinetics-glendora
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcKDJ-7p1fg5hxNRV5NECZA
Image Credit:
Morgan-Raquel Photography
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
