We recently connected with Michelle Chukwujekwu and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Michelle, thanks for joining us today. What’s something crazy on unexpected that’s happened to you or your business
As an entrepreneur, you’ve gotta to be ready for the unexpected. We say this, but at the same time absolutely no one could have anticipated March 2020 and everything it brought in. That was by far the most challenging time for me as an entrepreneur/business owner as I am sure it was for many others as well.
As a boot camp instructor, my business thrives on community. Setting your mat and weights next to a battle buddy, giving out high fives for encouragement, sharing equipment, partnering up and working hard through the sweat and high heart rates.
There were talks of coronavirus and what it entailed, but it still seemed very far away, not really affecting our direct community. Then when news started breaking out of cases found at a local school and people’s family members testing positive, the concern started to grow and grow. I remember clients asking me what my plan was and I honestly had no idea! I didn’t know how serious this could be.
We had a Saturday workout and I told everyone “See you Monday!”. I even taught my morning classes the day of the lockdown, fully anticipating to see my evening classes, not knowing just how huge this could be.
Then in that same afternoon we received the stay at home order, and just like that, my business was put on halt and I couldn’t meet with my clients anymore.
It was a whirlwind. How could I keep my clients and myself safe from this virus, but also keep them healthy in a time where it was probably the most important to have a strong heart? How could I let my clients know I was there for them, how could I help keep them moving so they could fight off the depression that came with quarantining and the uncertainty of the future? How could I take care of myself and make sure I still had the means and funds to pay bills and provide for myself?
It was stressful and anxiety-inducing. How could my business come back from this?
But what could have been an end to something I had built, just morphed into something different and beautiful.
We pivoted and for a brief period I held my workouts on Facebook Live! It was kind of a mess if I’m being honest, but it was something! And that was just what people needed at the time – something. Usually in my boot camps, I demonstrate exercises, give out a “3, 2, 1, go!” and then walk around coaching my clients on proper form and how to push themselves. With Facebook Live, I couldn’t see anyone… they could only see me! (This was before Zoom). So to keep them motivated, I worked out alongside with them through the screen. I was doing multiple workouts a day just to reach all my classes that I originally had before the lockdown! I had never been so tired but also so in shape! (Lol)
My clients let me know that they appreciated what I was doing. That it was a sense of normalcy amidst all the craziness. They loved being able to workout for an hour and just forget about what was going on in the world and they were also able to chat with each other through the comments which helped bring out a little bit of that community again.
Soon, we realized we were gonna be in this thing for longer than we thought. I was able to move my workouts from Facebook to Zoom and things got more organized.
This is when the story turns beautiful.
Since my boot camp had gone virtual, I was able to reach people outside of my local area in Houston. My clients started referring friends and family members who then referred more friend and family members. Anything to keep moving and stay sane in a world that had turned chaotic!
My clientele grew and I was virtually coaching people from Colorado, California, New Mexico, Florida – even as far as the UK, Germany, and India!
As we know, eventually the stay at home orders were lifted. I was able to move my boot camps back outside and it was SUCH a great thing to be able to see everyone in person again, although socially distanced.
The whole experience was insane and stressful, but I gained a new appreciation for my in person boot camps and I still have my virtual boot camps as well to this day! I was able to reach and impact the lives of so many people across the states and the world that I wouldn’t have even known otherwise. There is no way I could give up one or the other, I have grown an extreme love for both.
The story started off chaotic, but ended up positive and beautiful.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I am a former Division 1 track athlete! My specialties were the heptathlon and triple jump. I have always loved sports and have participated in them since I was 8 years old. In college, I knew I wanted to be in a fitness environment for my career. I started training with Camp Gladiator soon after college and have been building that up while also working on some continued education such as specialization certifications and nutrition coaching to better serve my clients.
A lot of people who cross my path just don’t know what to do. They go to the gym and don’t know how to use the machines or how to program a workout or how to target specific muscle groups, and that’s okay! That’s what I’m here for because I have a passion for increasing my knowledge in this area and sharing my knowledge with others.
I think something that sets me apart from others is that I genuinely care about the person in front of me. It’s not just about the revenue, I want to genuinely change lives. It’s not even just about the fitness/nutrition, it’s about the mindset; loving yourself right now where you’re at, not just when you “get to where you wanna be”. I want to help people heal their relationship with food, so they can get results but not not just throw them in another restrictive diet. My clients are my family and my friends, I love them! They see that, and I believe it makes a difference.
We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.
I knew I wanted fitness to be my main hustle but at the beginning it was my side hustle.
I started training almost immediately after graduating college, so I was a broke college graduate! I worked part time as a server at a restaurant to make quick and easy cash, while I trained my boot camp classes on my off days. It was tiring – long days and full weeks – but I knew if I kept my head down and worked hard then, it would all pay off tenfold down the line.
My boot camps started off with maybe 3-5 people in each class. There were times that no one would show up at all! However, I knew people would not fall out of thin air. I used different marketing tactics: guerrilla marketing, leaving flyers in mailboxes or businesses, setting up free workouts for apartment complexes or workplaces, giving incentives to my current clients to bring out friends, and more.
Little by little, I saw the fruits of my labor. A big milestone for me was when I hit 100 clients between my 4-5 classes. My little classes of 3 people had began to grow to see 15, 20, 30 people or more! I am forever grateful to the few people who started with me in the beginning and have stuck with me through the growing pains and are still with me today.
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
My clients are my friends and my family. My goal is to impact their lives but they also impact my life more than they know! A big thing with fitness is community and accountability. We have group texts for each class where I check in with them, they check in with me and also with each other. When a client misses a class, I notice. And I follow up. Sometimes life happens, but other times, they need that friendly push and reminder that someone noticed them and misses their presence.
There are times where I am surprised myself at just how many have been with me since the beginning and are so loyal. I believe they see my genuineness, that I care and that they are more than just a “client” to me. I believe that the community helps. Moms meet other mom, dads meet other dads, college students meet other college students or fresh grads. When everyone is sweating, with high heart rates but still manage to encourage the person next to them, there is a bond that is created! We make sure the person next to us shows up every day.
Community and accountability are definitely the key!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @train.with.mc
- Facebook: facebook.com/MichelleChukwujekwu
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/michelle-chukwujekwu
- Other: https://linktr.ee/train.with.mc