Parents New trend in gym ownership? (The Business Side Of Gymnastics / Powers Gymnastics)

[GymnastMomX2]

And with minimal notice, they just eliminated the evening optional program altogether.

Someone on FB is saying Bull City still has evening training for upper level girls.

 

[3rd_time_around]

Sounds like free market principles at work. Cold and calculating to maximize profit.

You can’t think this is ok. This person is LYING about what she’s doing, LYING to coaches, LYING to parents about how there will be all this good stuff coming, then they are raising prices to force people to have to leave or quit altogether, then making promises but not keeping them. Having coaches sign non-competes and then firing them, cutting programs, and altogether acting like a serpent who is all shiny and pretty and enticing, then whips around and stings or bites with such force that she crushes anyone in her path.
NO! This is not the free market at work, this is someone trying to be a monopoly, only caring about money at the expense of people, and destroying the hopes and dreams of hundreds, if not thousands, of girls. I hope it doesn’t happen to your gym, but it seems like this person is ruthless and mean and wants all the gyms. There is a statement in the article about her company, that they want to acquire “well-run, successful programs” and that could very well be anyone’s gym from these pages.

 

[3rd_time_around]

This is the list of gyms currently owned by Powers. There are still a couple missing because of the way Powers masks ownership. The majority of these gyms have all seen Powers shut down their women’s XCEL and JO programs. Some with very little (if any) notice. Several of the previous owners of these gyms now work for Powers.

COLORADO (1)
Tigar Gymnastics

NORTH CAROLINA (2)
First in Flight
Bull City

Florida (1)
Evo

TEXAS (5)
Capital
Platinum
Houston Gymnastics Academy
Rowland Ballard
Mazeika’s Elite

ARIZONA (3)
Oasis
Scottsdale
Estrella

If it is all upfront and good, then I want to know why she’s masking the ownership? Obviously has something to hide.
People need to stop selling their gyms to her. And stop working for her (free market principles, right? No workers, no business. No more sales, no more money in her pocket and peoples lives ruined.)

 

[3rd_time_around]

This is part of the discussion on Facebook, and part of the linked article. The article states that the programs in the gyms shes acquired are still running their elite programs, which is mostly not true at all.

 

[gym_dad32608]

Must.... resist.... urge.... to.... go.... on.... sociopoliticaleconomic.... rant.... on..... CB.......

Suffice to say I agree with you and think this is an inevitable result of systems currently in place in most of the world

Haha, so true. I dont like it from an emotional standpoint, but I also am very much a realist and understand capitalism in its purest form is mean and vicious.

Still I am surprised by the life of this thread. Perhaps its because we are so emotionally invested in this sport. The title of this thread is concerned about potential macro changes in gym ownership. Although it seems now we have moved to micro level discussion of specific gyms. I still do not see it as something that is a macro level threat . My points:

1. Among the thousands and thousands of gyms, Powers is only occupying a remarkably tiny fraction of the total market.
2. History, I think any poster on here who runs or owns a gym has known for ages that rec gym is where money made. Yet, through love or sport, different approach to business plan, whatever, they still maintain a competitive gymnastics program.
3. Organizational challenges. It is hard to maintain a level of infrastructure to support unlimited growth. At some point that will limit Powers ability to continue to acquire more and more gyms.
4. Funding source. As I stated earlier, venture capital is funding their growth and acquisitions. VC firms are not in the business of long term investing. Its about taking a high risk in a new product for a quick and large return on the investment when it is sold. VC is not about continuing to pour good money after bad (as the saying goes). In short order, they are going to want to either sell what all their investments has bought or pull funding entirely.

It is horrible for the individual families and gyms affected. But at some level it is not much different than a long time gym closing in a community. I dont see the "Power's model" becoming the standard for gym ownership.

 

[Anonymous Post]

Anonymous Bull City parent again...
@Oopski, The evening optional program will end on 6/5, lining up with the last day for most schools in Durham NC. Summer schedules were released for all groups and there is definitely no optional evening program anymore.

 

[Lucia]

First in flight in the Charlotte area was one of the first to be bought. There were a lot of very upset people and it’s been discussed a lot in Facebook groups. They completely cut DP and Elite training and went all Xcel. Parents and coaches felt misled. It was pretty shocking how it all went down from what I’ve heard.

I'm just now seeing this thread. This is alarming to me. In a state like NC with several high level programs in certain areas, the more options the better for providing choice about training culture. I would think having several competitive programs near each other would be a benefit to families.

 

[gymgal]

Anonymous Bull City parent again...
@Oopski, The evening optional program will end on 6/5, lining up with the last day for most schools in Durham NC. Summer schedules were released for all groups and there is definitely no optional evening program anymore.

Do you know for sure that they will be keeping the morning practices after summer? Morning summer team practices is very common. D's old gym used to move all team practices to the morning in the summer because it's cooler and less bodies in the gym. It worked great for us but a lot of families struggled each summer with the switch.

 

[txgymfan]

There is a piece on our news tonight about Houston Gymnastics Academy shutting down its women’s team. The gym blamed an unnamed coach for quitting.

 

[GymnastMomX2]

Several other Bull City parents chimed in on the FB discussion confirming the evening program is gone. Sounds like it was only communicated to those it directly affected, which may be why the other parent was claiming they still had evening groups.

FWIW we never have evening groups in summer for any level of team.

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

I have heard they are asked to sign a non-compete that apparently blocks employment at any other gym in any state that Powers owns gyms in. *note that this is heresay only...one of our most successful and longest standing coaches was fired within a week of the "new management company" coming in and has not returned to coaching. Word is that she cannot coach yet because of the non-compete she literally just signed before being terminated, and that she doesn't have the cashflow to fight it out in court. The coach has been very quiet about it and i have no confirmation on this. That said, i definitely believe it is true as I believe she otherwise would have been snatched up right away.

Can another gym employ the coach as a 'janitor/cleaner'?

 

[JBS]

I have heard they are asked to sign a non-compete that apparently blocks employment at any other gym in any state that Powers owns gyms in.

This is a very broad... this most likely would not be enforced by a court.

 

[GymnastMomX2]

Here is the news story out of Houston tonight.

Parents of gymnast speaking on program closure at Houston Gymnastics Academy

Parents of gymnast speaking on program closure at Houston Gymnastics Academy

www.click2houston.com

 

[GymnastMomX2]

One of our coaches was fired also exactly when the gym sale went through, many rumors why unrelated to the ownership changes, however they haven’t gone back to coaching either. This is making me wonder.

 

[gymgal]

It would be odd that a non-compete clause would be valid if the ownership fired a coach.

 

[Jenny]

Those are some very good gyms involved. Some gyms will always go out of business but to see a healthy successful programme shut down is heart breaking. And it sounds like it is being done in a very underhand way.

If these sort of investment businesses sell up again quite soon you wonder if they will make much profit from it.

 

[gymgal]

Here is the news story out of Houston tonight.

Parents of gymnast speaking on program closure at Houston Gymnastics Academy

Parents of gymnast speaking on program closure at Houston Gymnastics Academy

www.click2houston.com

does anyone know this gym? how "small" is the womens program?

 

[rjb123]

This is a very broad... this most likely would not be enforced by a court.

I spoke with my DH who has a good bit of experience with no competes. He said that it is likely that the ones they had to sign would be not enforced by a court of law. There are some guidelines with them that they seem to be overstepping at first glance.

 

[gymhootmamma]

If you are interested in speaking publicly about Powers gymnastics acquiring your gym. Please contact me. We are looking for positive and negative feedback.

 

[jamieintexas]

does anyone know this gym? how "small" is the womens program?

When I was a team coach there we had the same size girls team as boys team.