Today we’d like to introduce you to Oren Basse.
Hi Oren, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I have been working in the health & fitness industry since 2007. I began working as a personal trainer at a health club in Chicago, leaving my job in the finance world for something more in line with my personality. From the Windy City, the job took me to Hollywood where I would continue in the health club industry, eventually becoming a manager at some of Los Angeles’ most high-end gyms. After a while, I decided to strike out on my own, and opened my own training studio, which I operated until the pandemic shut the world down. That is when I returned to Detroit and began working at a new studio that had opened up. It was there that I had the idea for Renaissance Group Fitness. Then it took another 3 years to find the perfect space, come to a deal with the landlord, and build the studio.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Certainly not.
First of all, I need to be honest and throw some shade at the landlords and real estate agents of this city. As I said, the search for a space took me over three years. I looked at dozens of spaces and entered into talks with the owners of 6 or 7 other spaces that I liked. At some point in those talks, things broke down. I can tell you that every single one of those spaces still sits empty without a tenant close to a year after I signed my lease. These landlords are putting up barriers that are designed to prevent the small, first-time, business owner from getting off the ground. And the real estate agents, even the ones that I hired to help me in my search, often seem more than happy to appease those landlords. I won’t name names, but I hope some of those individuals see this and know that they are the ones contributing to the continued blight that Detroit has. Abandoned buildings and empty store fronts on main roads are not a good look, but these landlords are content to sit on things for the prayer that eventually something from the Ilitch family or Dan Gilbert will want to move in.
After that, it was also a challenge finding reliable workers to complete the construction. Again, I won’t name the construction company I hired, but on the regular, they did not have the skilled workers available to come out and complete my buildout. That process took 3 months longer than it should have.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Renaissance Group Fitness, RGF for short, is a group fitness studio that seeks to provide its members with a personal training element while existing in a group setting. And in my effort to be able to offer everyone with an individual plan, I offer several different workout formats, something for everyone’s goals, so that anyone can come in and find an appropriate workout for themselves. This is different from most group fitness studios and even workout classes at big box gyms where they have everyone doing the same type of workout with no individual catering.
Lastly, I think my members will tell you that they know I care and am invested in their journey. You don’t always see that in this industry.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
Got to give a shoutout to my parents for their investment in this venture, both financially and physically. My father helped me putting together all of the equipment and building out the lobby of the studio. My mother painted a beautiful work of art which now hangs in said lobby.
And thanks also to Chris Monsour, agent at Signature Associates, for working with me to come to a rental agreement that made myself and his client, the landlord, happy to enter into a work relationship.
Pricing:
- Do not wish to have that published.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://renaissancegroupfitness.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/renaissancegroupfitness/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61571700702572
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/renaissance-group-fitness-detroit?osq=renaissance+group+fitness
- Other: https://www.wellnessliving.com/explore/locations/open-gym/us-detroit/renaissance_group_fitness/
