Venture Concept No. 1

The opportunity I have identified is for a sport-specific training company that employs superior trainers. In the South Jersey area, there is a multitude of athletes who are looking to be trained and parents with the funds to pay for it. These potential customers are looking for a training service that will help give them any edge over their competition. This is a service-related need and most customers are price-elastic because they understand the immense value being offered. A big change in the environment that is opening this opportunity is the amount of athletes (and parents) who want college scholarships to play sports. A lot of families see sports a way for their children to get the best education at a low price and are therefore willing to spend a lot of money to potentially save even more. Geographically almost all of my clients will be from South Jersey, as it is the only place I am focusing marketing efforts and the location of all training. Demographically, my customers will be middle to upper class athletes and their families. The average customer will be a very dedicated athlete. There are other training companies that athletes are using to satisfy their needs. However, I do not think many athletes are overly loyal to their current trainers and would be enticed to switch if offered something that no other company can provide. This opportunity is not huge in terms of potential scope or size. This market is also not rapidly expanding or new. However, this opportunity could be very profitable and successful if run correctly. The window of opportunity is open only as long as the athletes are in college playing sports and not working full time. Since most of them are currently freshmen, that gives me three years.

            This innovation is a training company that employs D1 athletes to train youth athletes in their respective sports. They will work on sport-specific skills and techniques as well as overall athleticism. Customers will also receive invaluable recruiting advice. This innovation works with me handling the marketing and scheduling while I allow the D1 athletes to do what they do best, play sports. I will set up hour long sessions that can be one-on-one and will also offer group and team rates. I will charge $25 an hour for a one-on-one sessions and then create a scale that offers more value for group rates. An example of possible group prices would look like this: $45 for 2, $60 for 3, $75 for 4, $90 for 5-6.  Team prices would vary based on team size. I would earn approximately 30% of the revenue per session and the trainer would earn the rest.

            The specific innovation that fills this opportunity is the superior quality of my trainers. What customers will be paying for is the unique opportunity to work with athletes who have had access to the best coaching and training in the world and have incredibly valuable knowledge. They will be able to relate better to the young athletes and their names and schools will be a major draw. If I offer a free first session, I think I would able to get customers who are looking for that extra advantage to switch. It wouldn’t be hard to convince them once they got on the field with my trainers. My competitors are other small training companies in the area. What sets me apart from them is that I offer sport-specific training across multiple sports. My trainers are also current college athletes, something no other company can claim. My price points are lower than the average training company because I have almost no overhead cost or monthly expenses. My customers will feel more like the mentee of their trainers and will develop a personal connection which will foster loyalty. I am looking to originally hire about 5 trainers. I don’t what to get started too big but would eventually like to expand to as many as 20. The only employees I will hire are trainers and they will hold no other responsibilities than to train customers. I will handle marketing, sales, scheduling and payroll.

One of my company’s big advantages is that the trainers are local sports stars who lots of young athletes looked up to. This will drive demand and create a loyalty no other training service could replicate. What’s next for my company is moving from the concept stage to actually become a reality. I am ready to (and in some cases already have) reach out to the athletes and begin to advertise. In 5 years I am hoping this venture becomes a nice secondary source of income and something that I can use to make a positive impact on local youth. As an entrepreneur, I would like to have grown and continued to come up with new ventures. This venture will give me experience and help me continue to get my feet wet in the field of entrepreneurship.