We were lucky to catch up with Nicholas “Nick” Plessett recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Nicholas “Nick” thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
First and foremost, Spar Wars South Beach would not be possible without Spar Miami. I got the idea while I was talking to fellow trainer and one of my best friends Frank Montoto about the idea of hosting high level sparring matches to go along with our grand opening back in November 2021. I thank the universe and two of the best trainers/people I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting, Pierre Russel and Gabriel Kurunga… without these guys I wouldn’t be where I am today. I decided to come into Spar Miami because I saw Gabriel was part of the team. I can be picky with gyms I train at and who I decide to let in my circle but I had worked with Gabriel before and known him for years, I knew if he was there the place had to be legit. I honestly just showed up… I don’t think Pierre was even expecting me. We all trained together, instantly clicked and I was basically hired that day. Fast forward a few months and I bring up the idea to Pierre. There were three core concepts involved with Spar Wars; Charity, Opportunity and Culture. We wanted to give back to those in need while giving fighters of all backgrounds the opportunity to challenge themselves. We also wanted to share the Spar culture of family, fitness and fun with the entire South Florida community. There’s lots of local amateur and professional promotions putting on fights, but none that shared our ideology of charity first. Don’t get me wrong I get that businesses needs to profit to survive but we always believed in passion over profit. I have a deep passion for boxing, martial arts in general. As a former fighter, the ability to give athletes the opportunity to test themselves while also helping raise money for a great cause felt like the calling I had been waiting for my whole life. I’m proud to say in the three events we’ve hosted, we raised over $1k for the Wounded Warriors project and most recently over $500 for Joshua’s heart foundation, a local charity striving to end world hunger .
Nicholas “Nick”, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I got into the fitness industry thanks to my love for martial arts. I started kickboxing when I was 14, moved on to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu followed by MMA, Muay Thai and Boxing. The more I trained, the more I felt I had to learn. That’s the beauty of martial arts, it’s a never ending learning process. If you ever meet a trainer who told you he was “the best” at a certain martial art, that’s an easy way to tell they probably don’t know what they’re doing. After getting my NASM CPT back in 2016, and starting to compete at the amateur level, everything kind of came together naturally. Even when I moved to Baltimore I was able to find opportunity with Under Armour as a trainer/instructor at their global headquarters. I believe one of the main things that separates me from the average trainer is my experience in martial arts. I have 17+ fights in three different disciplines including two amateur Muay Thai titles in different weight classes. That’s also part of the reason Spar Wars has been so successful. My experiences working with different promotions from Baltimore to Key West to right here in Miami. If I had any advice to give an upcoming trainer or business owner it’s simple, stick to what you love and be real. The whole “fake it till you make it” gimmick is false advertising. No one fake has ever really made it because they’re not being true to themselves.
Have you ever had to pivot?
I was originally a Food & Beverage manager for Marriott hotels. I got a job with them directly out of graduating from college. Having graduated with a BS in F&B Hospitality management, it was a goal of mine to get hired by one of the major hotel companies in the world. Be careful what you wish for because six months into the job I knew it would never truly make me happy. I knew there was more that I could be doing with my life. I wanted to motivate people to be better than they ever thought they could. That’s when I decided to change career paths and become a trainer.
We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.
My clients aren’t clients, they are students that quickly become friends and family. Starting with our first session I always tell everyone the same thing, this is a two way road… I’m not here just to collect your money. I want to see you get healthier, learn self defense and have fun while doing it. Some of students have been with me for over four years, it’s extremely rewarding to see how much they’ve improved and how much they’ve grown to appreciate whatever discipline they decide to focus on.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nitrotickets.com/event/620/Spar-1Wars-1Vol-19-10318
- Instagram: @itsmenickp
- Other: Instagram pages: @sparwars_southbeach @sparwars_entertainment