CNNMoney.com reports that Tapout has expanded its line of training facilities by opening two new fitness centers away from the Las Vegas area; one in Gatineau, Quebec and the other in Boston, Massachusetts.
Truesport Alliances, Ltd. has cultivated an unparalleled client base consisting of the top MMA brands, including TapouT, the premier mixed martial arts apparel, gear and lifestyle brand. With the MMA culture quickly becoming a standard in sports excellence, TapouT Training Centers will offer a full complement of MMA training and classes open to the public.
The TapouT Training Centers will be the third and fourth stand alone fitness facilities of its kind to be built by the company, whose brand has become synonymous with the attitude and prominence of mixed martial arts. TapouT’s distinctive, authentic logo graces everything from clothing, accessories, and gear, to nutrition products and a magazine, as it does within the training center.
Designed for everyone at all fitness levels, the TapouT Training Center is predominately a class based fitness facility with a full schedule that features a spectrum of MMA themed training. In addition to a broad spectrum of martial arts instruction, the majority of the cardio/fitness classes are non-contact.
Payout Perspective:
The time to get into the MMA fitness facility business would appear to be now. The statistics point to something near 26,000 martial arts facilities in the United States, which is a number that grows every month along with new memberships and participation. Much like the UFC, Tapout sees an opportunity to license their brand in order to build it.
The only risk I see is that of any licensing venture: the commitment has to be there on the licensee side, because the threat of brand damage to the licensor is very real if expectations are not met. New members looking to enroll at a Tapout will come in with a certain set of expectations given the brand name. It looks like Tapout goes through a pretty rigorous screening process – as any potential licensor should – but nonetheless this isn’t a risk-free cash grab for Tapout.
Will this conflict with the UFC gyms?