The Ground Floor: Boxing club can build confidence, entrepreneurs say

It began over after-work weight lifting and cardio sessions, and grew out of a shared passion for boxing. Today, Chad Wiltz and Ibrahim Funmilayo are more than just workout buddies.

They're entrepreneurs, business partners and owners - along with Wiltz's wife, Mandi - of what will become Iowa City's newest fitness club in October.

Title Boxing Club is “rooted in traditional boxing techniques” while providing a variety of alternate workout opportunities, including cardiovascular training and weightlifting, Chad Wiltz said. The Kansas-based club has opened 30 franchise locations, with another 17 under construction and 50 in the real-estate site selection process.

Wiltz said Funmilayo decided to bring the business to Iowa City after “falling in love” with the program.

“We thought it would do very very well up here,” Wiltz said. “So we started forming a plan and doing our due diligence to find out what it would take to open it here and how we would finance it and how it would operate.”

Chad and Mandi Wiltz and Funmilayo have decided to keep their full-time jobs and hire a general manager to handle the club's day-to-day operations. They're financing it through private funds, a secured bank loan and a city grant.

The club will fill the now vacant space in east Iowa City's Sycamore Mall at 1604 Sycamore St., where the Par-Tee Zone used to sit across from the Marcus Sycamore Cinema. Construction is slated to start this week and wrap up by October.

The club is special, according to Wiltz, because it provides structure for members who need the extra push as well as freedom and variety for those who want to take charge of their own workout. Wiltz, who declined to specify any prices, also said the club and its programming can be shaped around individual members' skill levels.

The gym is centered around its “power hour” class, which owners promote as an “explosive total body” class employing various boxing techniques. Wiltz said the classes are best for people who struggle with motivation or feel stuck in a workout rut.

“Hitting that bag gives you a mental release,” he added. “It gives you stress relief and it builds confidence in a lot of members.”

Club membership will require monthly payments and come with unlimited classes and equipment access. Witlz said the owners are still recruiting trainers, and when the club is fully operational he expects to offer 5 to 7 classes five days a week and 3 to 4 classes on the weekends.

Owner: Chad Wiltz, Ibrahim Funmilayo and Mandi Wiltz

 Company: Title Boxing Club

Address: 1604 Sycamore St., Iowa City

 Phone: Not yet in operation

Website: www.titleboxingclub.com

Advice for other entrepreneurs? “Pick something you're passionate about.”

Know a Corridor business open for less than a year that should be considered for “The Ground Floor”? Contact Vanessa Miller at vanessa.miller@sourcemedia.net.