Kim Wilkes got her start leading a CrossFit-style boot camp in a local park, and her talents actually forced her to get an indoor space.
“My members didn’t want to stop for the winter months,” she remembered. “I was basically told to open a gym. Before I knew it, I was affiliated and a new business owner.”
Initially, CrossFit St. Charles was a hobby, but as it grew Kim knew she needed more education.
“There was a lot of information on the internet about coaching but nothing about running a microgym,” Kim said. “I actually reached out to Chris Cooper many years ago but was not willing to do the things he suggested at the time.”
She continued: “I’ve made some strides on my own but realized I would be forever working in my business unless I made some serious changes. So when I finally signed up with Two-Brain, I vowed to do exactly what I was told!”
First, rebuilding her onboarding process allowed Kim to reclaim her business.
After that was in place, she started realizing the value of her services and priced them accordingly.
“Now it’s about creating opportunities for my staff—and also hiring the staff that actually want the opportunities. It’s almost silly how doing these things seemed impossible before, but with the expertise and support of my mentor, Jeff Jucha, I was able to move forward with confidence.”
Now Kim is “able to make hard decisions for the health of the business,” and she realizes she’s truly a business owner.
“I have grown as a leader because what I truly want is more clear to me. I think business owners’ thoughts and am better at expressing what I want from my staff. My decisions are based on long-term goals, not quick fixes.”
Even when faced with what could have been a knockout punch during the COVID Crisis of 2020, Kim was able to grow her business.
“I am not sure what I could have done without Two-Brain,” she said. “Having a blueprint on how to deal with the most difficult time of my gym life (and) support from my mentor and the entire Two-Brain community was absolutely amazing. We actually got through it very well. I learned a tremendous amount, and we’ve had our best year ever.”
