Building a Fitness Business: Coach Q, Quest Performance Training

In this episode of Clubhouse Talks, we sit down with our next-door business neighbor, Mar'Quone Edmonds—also known as Coach Q—the founder of Quest Performance Training. Operating from multiple locations in the northern suburbs of Chicago, his business offers daily group fitness, personal training, and recovery programs. Tune in as Coach Q explains the key decisions that have shaped his business, from opening new locations to expanding his team. He will share the lessons learned from these growth pains, emphasizing how building strong relationships has impacted the business's success.

Background

Passionate about fitness and dedicated to helping individuals achieve their goals, Coach Q brings a dynamic personality and a deep understanding of workout methodologies to his role as a fitness instructor. After earning a Kinesiology degree from the University of Indianapolis and gaining valuable experience at XSport Fitness and Orangetheory Fitness, he founded Quest Performance Training in January 2019. At Quest, he delivers transformative workouts that are built on motivation, enthusiasm, and building relationships, all aimed at producing life-changing results.

Partnerships

Coach Q's business journey highlights the role of forming real partnerships in driving business growth. It began when a client at Orangetheory offered him space to start personal training. As his client base expanded, Coach Q collaborated with Courtney, a local trainer and someone he knew from playing basketball with in the past. Together, they merged their client lists, leveraging their combined strengths to grow the business. The team grew further with the addition of Danny, a boxing trainer, who brought his specialized skills but operated his boxing program as an independent entity within the business. Most recently, Coach Q's wife, Abbey, joined to lead a new division focused on revitalization and recovery.

Building a Team

Every successful business relies on a crucial element; for Quest, that element is teamwork. This focus on collaboration ensures that all coaches work in unison, which has been key in transitioning from a small venture to a household name in the Lake Bluff and Lake Forest areas. As the business grew, it became apparent that it was too large for Coach Q to manage alone, and needed to expand the staff. The partnerships with other coaches emerged organically, creating a balance of expertise that is important for achieving the company's shared goals.

Growth

In business, stagnation can lead to regression. Repeating the same strategies year after year without any growth indicates a need for a strategic reassessment. For Coach Q, this involves deciding whether to maintain or shut down Quest's second gym in Gurnee. The decision depends on maximizing resources: either close the gym to focus on the more profitable locations or develop it to achieve peak efficiency. Quest must operate efficiently. If revenue remains stable while efficiency improves, the business is on the right track. This not only sustains the business but also supports continuous improvement and satisfaction in management.