Today we’d like to introduce you to Brent Carter.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I left my home state of Texas back in 2008 to pursue a career as a performer in NYC. I had been working in a gym since 2004 so the fitness industry had been paying my bills for a while at this point. As it turns out being a performer doesn’t usually pay all that well (New York City is expensive…) and let’s just say my skills as a personal trainer/ barbell coach far exceeded that of my stage presence. Over the years, I began training people more and performing less as I worked my way towards management at a boutique training facility in Manhattan. It was here that I was introduced to Starting Strength.
The Starting Strength methodology was the first I had encountered that produced reliable results every time. I went from a scrawny but fit 145lbs to a strong physique of 190lbs and got my squat to over 400lbs. I became a Starting Strength Coach in 2013 while teaching at a state-licensed vocational school for people who wanted to become personal trainers and fitness coaches.
After ten years living in the Big Apple it was finally time for me to come back to my home state and do what I was doing up there but on a bigger scale: teach more people how to get strong and teach more people how to coach others to get strong.
After the move, I started re-building my clientele by training people in a commercial gym as an independent coach. This worked for a time but offered little control around my environment. When you are trying to coach somebody on how to squat you need a squat rack, naturally. While I never had to have a client wait for a rack to become available I didn’t like the risk that at any point all of the squat racks could be full and me and my client would have to wait. I decided to purchase my own squat rack and made a deal with a different local gym that I would install the rack and his members and coaches could use the rack provided I am not there with a client. This was definitely a step in the right direction but again I didn’t like that I couldn’t control the environment. When you are in the serious business of getting people stronger watching somebody else perform silly exercises that are not useful at best and injurious at worst is distracting. My next step was to rent a house with a garage and put the rack there. This was really great but with only space for one squat rack my business capacity was limited. As my clientele grew, it became clear that a move to a commercial space was the only way to grow my business at the rate I wanted.
We opened Starting Strength Dallas in July of 2019 and have been really happy with the reception. Our clients are getting stronger with each workout and the personal satisfaction from seeing someone on day one not be able to even do a body weight squat to reaching over 240lbs on the bar changes not just the lifter’s life but all those that they interact with.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Well, the most recent struggle has certainly been the corona virus. As a communal space, we sanitize the gym equipment 6x/ day but we have very loyal members that are choosing to continue their membership even if they are training at home. This kind of loyalty is truly amazing.
Our buildout also had some challenges. It’s funny, I remember having a conversation with my former employers (who still provide regular mentorship as I work on growing my business) about contractors. They had all sorts of horror stories and it really worried me. When we finished the buildout ahead of schedule, I thought “Hey, that wasn’t so bad”. Well, as it turns out there was some really shoddy work done (nothing too major and mostly cosmetic) but it really has been a struggle to get the contractor to finish the job particularly around our schedule.
As far as our growth goes, we are still adding members every month. We opened the doors with 33 members and are now in the 80’s. We will be looking to open our second location soon.
Starting Strength Dallas – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
If you are not familiar with our program we are a barbell strength training gym (no machines, no cardio) that enhances the lives of our trainees by increasing force production (strength). Our clients range in age from 14-85 and come from all walks of life and athletic ability.
We focus exclusively on strength because strength is the most important physical adaptation thus the best use of your time spent in the gym. Strength and having enough of it impacts every other aspect of physical fitness and life from endurance to balance and power. While most people that hit up the gym are just trying to look and feel good the fact remains that form FOLLOWS function. If you train for strength you are going to look like you train for strength (more muscle mass). We don’t make claims about losing weight because unlike the rest of the fitness industry we are very upfront about the efficacy of exercise as it pertains to weight loss: You can’t exercise your way to being thinner. This is a nutrition calculation.
Our training model is based on the best selling book in strength training (with 4.8 out of 5 stars, 1,500 reviews, and translated into seven languages it is far and away the best selling barbell training book of all time) The parent company Starting Strength has a very wide reach (Startingstrength.com had 2.8 million unique visitors in 2018) and is well known in the strength community. Many of our members find our gym via the ties to the StartingStrength website and as we grow, we are getting more members that are directed towards us via referrals.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Every time we get a client referral from another member, I know we are doing our job. There is a member that has both his daughter and his mother train at the gym. THREE generations from one family! His mother is pulling 135lbs (started at 65lbs) at the young age of 85. That is progress, that is success.
Another marker of success is when I witness a senior coach mentor and tutor a coach that is still learning the ropes. This is very personally rewarding for me because it shows that the systems we have built are starting to become self-sustaining.
Pricing:
- Group Personal Strength Training 3x/ wk for less than $30 a session: https://dallas.startingstrengthgyms.com/pricing
Contact Info:
- Address: 6109 Greenville Ave,
Dallas, TX 75206 - Website: https://dallas.startingstrengthgyms.com/
- Phone: (469) 324-9869
- Email: bcarter@startingstrengthgyms.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/startingstrengthdallas/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/startingstrengthdallas/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/dallasstarting
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/starting-strength-dallas-dallas
- Other: https://www.gaintenpounds.com/dallas/
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