Today we’d like to introduce you to Clare Ramirez.
Hi Clare, 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?
Honestly, Boxing House International was never part of some grand master plan.
At the time, I had moved from Chicago to Southwest Michigan to open a restaurant and meditation retreat farm. Even though I was living in Michigan, I was still deeply involved in boxing. I was commuting back and forth to Chicago constantly to train for my professional fights, work with my coach, and spar with professional and amateur fighters.
The commute was exhausting. It was draining my time, money, and energy.
A local coach from Benton Harbor approached me about opening a gym together. I thought it sounded like a great idea. My plan was simple: buy a ring, get some equipment, have a place to train closer to home, and maybe a few people would want to train with me. I honestly thought it would be a fun little side project.
The partnership never came together, but suddenly I was sitting there with a boxing ring and a garage full of equipment.
Not long after, a friend of mine who owned a CrossFit gym in St. Joseph reached out and asked if I wanted to set up shop inside their facility. I said yes.
And that was really the beginning of Boxing House International.
What started as a way to avoid driving to Chicago every day turned into something much bigger. People kept showing up. Kids showed up. Adults showed up. Athletes showed up. People who had never exercised a day in their lives showed up.
Over time, the gym developed its own identity. Today, Boxing House International is a place where competitive athletes train alongside complete beginners. We have youth fighters, fitness clients, football players, soccer players, adults looking for community, and people who simply want to become stronger and more confident.
The funny thing is that I thought I was solving my own problem when I bought that ring. Looking back, I think I was building something the community needed before I even realized it.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh my goodness, smooth ride, absolutely not.
In some ways, yes. The people who are attracted to Boxing House International have made the journey feel incredibly aligned. The community that has formed around the gym feels almost fated. Many of our members have been with us through every chapter, and some truly feel like family.
The biggest challenge has never been the coaching, the athletes, or the community. It has been finding and keeping a physical home.
Our first location in St. Joseph was a dream. We loved being close to the lake, close to Whirlpool, and we loved the partnership with the CrossFit gym where we rented our space. Then one day we were given two weeks’ notice that the gym was closing. Just like that, we were losing our home.
It was an incredibly stressful time. Looking back, it was one of the hardest periods in the history of the business.
Fortunately, Gary Marshall, owner of Fit Stop in Niles and a huge boxing fan, stepped in immediately and offered us space. I’ll always be grateful for that. The challenge was that Niles was about 40 minutes from much of our client base. We worked hard to make it work, and many of our members made the drive to continue training with us, which says a lot about the community we had built.
Eventually, we realized the commute wasn’t sustainable for anyone. So we made the difficult decision to leave.
For nearly a year, Boxing House International operated without a permanent home. We trained fighters at local high school tracks, in the Michigan dunes, in parks, and wherever we could find space. The remarkable thing is that people kept showing up. Through every challenge, our athletes kept training and our community kept growing.
Then Jonathan, the owner of The Lab Martial Arts & Fitness, reached out and invited us to move into his facility. It felt like the right fit immediately.
Today, Boxing House International is thriving inside The Lab, and I truly feel at home there. We are surrounded by athletes and coaches from different martial arts backgrounds, and there is a spirit of mutual respect, growth, and community that aligns perfectly with who we are.
Looking back, every obstacle forced us to become stronger and more creative. If anything, those challenges proved that Boxing House International was never just a building. It was always the people.
As you know, we’re big fans of Boxing House International. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
What sets Boxing House International apart is the depth and diversity of experience behind our coaching.
As a female boxing coach with more than 25 years in the sport, I have had the opportunity to train and compete at a high level while studying under some of the best coaches and athletes in the world. I’ve trained with world champions, Olympic athletes, and spent years studying alongside the Cuban Olympic Boxing Team, one of the most successful and decorated boxing programs in history.
But boxing is only part of the story.
For the past 15 years, I have also immersed myself in the study of human performance, meditation, recovery, and holistic health. I am currently completing my doctorate in Chinese Medicine, where I have spent years studying anatomy, physiology, injury prevention, recovery, nervous system regulation, and the body’s ability to heal and adapt.
What makes our coaching unique is that we don’t just teach people how to punch. We teach people how to perform, recover, grow, and sustain success.
We understand that every athlete is different. A teenage football player, a competitive boxer, a woman navigating hormonal changes, and a busy professional all require different approaches. We look at the whole person, not just the workout in front of them.
I am particularly passionate about helping female athletes optimize their performance by understanding their physiology, recovery needs, and menstrual cycles—an area that has historically been overlooked in sports performance training.
Over the years, Boxing House International has coached amateur champions, professional fighters, youth athletes, and complete beginners. Some come to us to compete. Others come to build confidence, lose weight, improve their health, or discover what they’re capable of.
What I am most proud of is not any title or accomplishment. It’s the community we have built. People walk through our doors looking for boxing and often leave with much more: confidence, resilience, discipline, friendships, and a belief in themselves they didn’t have before.
At Boxing House International, boxing is the vehicle. Human potential and self mastery is the destination.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Oh my gosh, I love this question.
I believe from the bottom of my soul that finding a coach, mentor, or teacher is one of the keys to growth and evolution. The moment we stop seeking guidance, curiosity, and wisdom from others, we’ve lost something important. If we think we know everything or that there is nothing left to learn, we’ve lost our way.
Throughout my life, I have actively sought out teachers. I have mentors in boxing, medicine, spirituality, business, nutrition, leadership, and personal development. Some have taught me for years. Some entered my life for a single lesson. All of them have shaped who I am.
My advice is simple: become a perpetual student.
There will be areas of your life where you are the teacher, the expert, and the leader. Embrace that. But at the same time, always remember there is another level to ascend to. There is another skill to learn, another perspective to understand, another blind spot to uncover.
The people who grow the most are often the people who remain teachable.
As far as networking goes, I’ve found that the best relationships don’t come from collecting business cards or trying to impress people. They come from genuine curiosity, service, and shared passion. Some of the most important opportunities in my life came from showing up consistently, doing good work, asking thoughtful questions, and building authentic relationships over time.
Seek out people who inspire you. Invest in learning from them. Ask for help when you need it. Then, when it’s your turn, turn around and help someone else.
That’s how great communities, businesses, and careers are built.
Pricing:
- $120/monthly/adults
- $90/monthly/youth
- $20/drop ins
- Private life/boxing coaching available
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.boxinghouseinternational.com
- Instagram: @boxinghouse_international
- Facebook: Boxing House International
