Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Farmer.
Hi Brandon, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Directly upon graduating high school (2005), I started working for a small family-owned gym in Fountain Valley called O.C. Fast-Twitch putting young athletes through program-specific training that was created by my boss at the time. Over the next handful of years, my curiosity in the fitness industry had peaked and one of my long-term goals was to one day run my own gym and program.
In 2013, I completed my Masters Program in Exercise Science (Kinesiology) having graduated from Central Missouri. Shortly thereafter, I completed various certifications for personal and group training and setup creating my own company called O.C. Fit Farm.
A close friend of mine reached out a couple of years after (2018) to let me know his current gym, CrossFit Surf City, was going to close down as ownership was moving out of state and the gym itself had simply lost momentum. Within one month, we had an agreement in place to purchase the gym, move the facility and take a shot in revitalizing its’ client base. One of my lifelong goals of being a gym owner was complete and now the work had just started.
We took the gym over in 2018, move the facility closer to the beach in Huntington off Newland and Hamilton. At the time only ~40 clients had decided to stay on through the move. Today, we have well over 100 regular clients visiting weekly, hold many events, have created new partnerships and have just begun to get a little closer to what we know is even greater potential. Our main focus is our people and that is exactly how we go to market.
Looking back at my initial goal of gym ownership was a somewhat shallow and underthought idea. What was once a limited mindset of simply owning a gym has now turned into lifelong friendships, relationships forming out of our facility (multiple weddings because of clients meeting on site), families growing and indescribable other measures that made all the 4am wake up calls and midnight emails worth every minute.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Losing about 70% of the current client base was a scary thought when we first took ownership of the gym. For almost two years we were struggling to break even and had to put in a decent chunk of time to get the business cash flowing in a positive direction so we could sustain paying trainers, options for classes, proper equipment needs and most of rent. Year three we really turned the corner without time and effort to have a small cushion.
We’ve been impressed with CrossFit Surf City, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We are a CrossFit gym that caters to the masses. Our programs adhere to any ability or level of fitness and strength, and we pride ourselves in the support given to our community, people and clients. Our programming includes but is not limited to: Bootcamp style training, strength training, fitness and aerobics.
More than anything, as I’ve noted previously, what sets up apart is our people. As an owner, I also ensure that I am very present and know each and every one of our members. A lot of those relationships have developed to business and friendships outside of just the gym itself.
At this point, we have had the privilege or regularly supporting and putting on events for many local and out of state non-profits:
Serving Kids Hope
Circuit Riders Foundation
Dancer Love Foundation
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I attribute our main success to simply being present. Many gym owners fail to be on site regularly, don’t understand their clients or get to know them and simply care about the bottom line and the bottom line only.
We ensure our trainers are paid well and have additional benefits, all of our clients are happy and feel safe giving us feedback with what they would like to see improved.
As a gym you can always do a little better job of having unique programming, better schedules, newer equipment, additional resources (which we always work on), but if you are not present with your customers, it is hard to succeed.
Pricing:
- $215 / month = Unlimited class and open gym use (month to month)
- $200 / month = Unlimited class and open gym use (6 month commit)
- $185/ month = Unlimited class and open gym use (12 month commit)
Contact Info:
- Website: www.crossfitsurfcity.com
- Instagram: @crossfitsurfcity
