Gym

5 Gym Success Stories [2025]

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Updated: April 15th, 2025

Over the last decade, more people across the globe have become self-aware of the importance associated with living a healthy lifestyle.

As a result, the gym has become a trend for millions of people, leading to a rapid increase in the size and popularity of the global fitness industry. According to statistics, the global fitness club industry is worth over $96 billion.

Therefore, starting a gym could be a great business opportunity.

In this list, you'll find real-world gym success stories and very profitable examples of starting a gym that makes money.

1. Bells of Steel ($14.4M/year)

Bells of Steel founder, Kaevon Khoozani, came up with the idea for his fitness equipment business after realizing the lack of availability of equipment for his own strength training. He started by ordering equipment from China and selling it directly to his network, eventually growing the business to achieve $15 million in sales in 2021. His focus on creating high-value products and leveraging word-of-mouth marketing has contributed to the company's success.

How much money it makes: $14.4M/year
How much did it cost to start: $3.5K
How many people on the team: 38

My Gym Passion Led Me To Start A $15M/Year Fitness Equipment E-Commerce

Bells of Steel, an e-commerce fitness equipment company, generated $15 million in sales by creating a high-value product line and focusing on word-of-mouth marketing, email marketing, and social media ads.

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2. Live Fit ($720K/year)

Chris, the founder of Live Fit, started the company in 2011 to address the misses in the personal training industry and create a more comfortable experience for clients. He focused on building trusting relationships, offering a variety of services like strength training, yoga, and massage sessions. Over the years, Live Fit has grown steadily, expanding to two locations and generating over $760,000 in revenue in 2019.

How much money it makes: $720K/year
How much did it cost to start: $50K
How many people on the team: 1

How I Started A $60K/Month Personal Training Company

Live Fit, a personal training company founded in 2011, grew from earning $80,000 in their first year with two trainers to earning over $760,000 in 2019 with 12 trainers and two locations, thanks to a focus on building trusting relationships and providing a variety of services to clients.

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3. Meridian Fitness ($708K/year)

Frustrated by the lack of local fitness options and intrigued by a gap in the market for stone massages, Alma Curry launched Meridian Fitness in Greenwich, now generating around £200,000 annually. Her gym-spa hybrid quickly became a community hub, leveraging SEO and word-of-mouth to attract over 50 members in the first quarter.

How much money it makes: $708K/year
How much did it cost to start: $50K
How many people on the team: 10

My Neighborhood Gym Brings In £60K/Month

Discover the inspiring story of Alma Curry, founder of Meridian Fitness, as she shares her vision to create a holistic fitness community that offers top-notch training classes, affordable gym membership prices, and a variety of fitness programs for people of all ages.

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4. The LOOK Fitness ($480K/year)

Bryan Greene, founder of The LOOK Fitness, came up with the idea for his boutique fitness facility after a successful career in fitness training. Frustrated with the lack of upscale and personalized options for clients, he decided to create a facility that catered to executives, business owners, and everyday gym-goers who wanted a more exclusive workout experience. Despite facing challenges such as a difficult location search and dishonest realtors, The LOOK Fitness now generates $53,000 per month and continues to grow.

How much money it makes: $480K/year
How much did it cost to start: $150K
How many people on the team: 3

How I Grew My Fitness Studio To $480K/Year Despite The Pandemic

Launching and growing a high-end boutique fitness facility in Newport Beach, The LOOK Fitness pulls in $53,000 monthly and demonstrates how founder Bryan Greene overcame prolonged construction delays, stringent COVID-19 closures, and inefficient marketing firms to build a thriving business that caters to executives and fitness enthusiasts.

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5. BioFit ($240K/year)

John Zarbock, the CEO and Founder of BioFit, came up with the idea for his business after seeing a Facebook ad for an exercise machine that claimed to provide effective workouts in just 20 minutes a week. Initially skeptical, he decided to investigate further and ended up purchasing two of the machines. After experiencing a highly efficient full-body workout and recognizing the potential of these machines, Zarbock decided to start his own business centered around them.

How much money it makes: $240K/year
How much did it cost to start: $100K
How many people on the team: 3

I Built A $240K/Year Business While Deployed In Kuwait

BioFit is a fitness studio that offers safe and effective exercise through high-intensity training (HIT) methodology, using adaptive resistance exercise (ARX) machines that can achieve results in as little as 20 minutes a week, with an 80% closing ratio, over 70% client retention, 125 clients, and an average monthly revenue of $20k.

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Read by 4,051 founders