Fitness Solutions a local leader
Dan Bowman, left, Brian Bowman, right, and Louise Bowan, front, are pictured at Niagara Fitness Solutions, Photo by: Bill Potrecz
Brian Bowman will always remember the Christmas of 1986.
Bowman and his wife, Louise, had opened a fitness equipment store, Niagara Fitness Solutions, earlier in the year and things were not going well. In fact, sales were so slow the store was on the verge of closing.
“We started in April and hired a salesperson and laid him off in November,” said founder/president Brian Bowman. “We were going to go through Christmas and probably after Christmas close the store down.
“It was very difficult. I can remember sitting over at my old store on Welland Avenue and some days there would be only maybe one person come through the door, plus the mail delivery. That would be about it.”
Then came a Christmas miracle.
“It was pretty slow. We were very upset but we did more sales in December of 1986 than we did the previous six or seven months,” Bowman said. “That turned things around.”
From that point on, Niagara Fitness Solutions has been a leader locally in providing residential and commercial fitness equipment.
“It took a couple of years to get my feet on the ground and get going but gradually we made strides every year. There’s not too many that started back in 1986 that are still going,” Bowman said proudly.
Bowman said he saw an opportunity for the business while working as an accountant after graduating from Brock with a Bachelor of Economics in 1977.
“It was something new in the market,” he said. “I had left a previous job as an accountant. There wasn’t anything here in St. Catharines selling exercise equipment so it was a shot in the dark.”
The business, now located at 25 Maywood Ave., South Service Road in St. Catharines, has evolved from selling bikes, weights and rowing machines, to providing virtually anything and everything in the world of fitness equipment.
“There is quite a variety of equipment here,” said Bowman’s son Dan, who is the general manager, commercial sales and former captain of both the Port Colborne Sailors and the St. Catharines Athletics. “We carry mid-level to high end. We don’t carry anything low-end in the store. We made that decision about 10 years ago. It’s not our niche. People who come here expect better, they expect more, so we decided to up our game.
“The equipment has really changed over the years and the number of accessories so you have to stay current.”
For example, cross trainers and functional trainers are the current trend while treadmills and strength equipment are always a staple in the store.
Things have been going so well for the business that six years ago a second store was opened on Millen Road in Stoney Creek.
“We saw a bit of an opportunity there,” Dan said. “We were servicing some of that area up to Stoney Creek over the years but we saw that people in those areas were going more to Hamilton and Toronto instead of coming into Niagara.
“We wanted to stay on this side of the Skyway.”
The store, which was opened by Dan’s brother and former St. Catharines Falcon and St. Catharines Athletic Dave Bowman, is now managed by ex-Falcons captain Matt O’Brien.
“It’s been holding its own. We’re satisfied with it,” Dan said.
The business had also expanded into commercial sales.
“The industry has changed. You have to do both to survive,” Dan said. “We can literally do anything in this industry in terms of fitness equipment, residential or commercial.
“We’ll partner with manufacturer and do full installations for YMCA. We’ve done many of the YMCA’s across Ontario.”
Brian’s nephew, Pat Bowman, is the manager of the Niagara store. He and Dan make a great team. They have recently acquired the Family Recreation Store, which specializes in pool tables and other gaming products, and have added it to the fold.
The two stores employ 20 people and Brian Bowman is quick to give credit to his staff.
“Hiring good employees is the key, you can’t do it all yourself,” he said when asked the secret of success. “You need good, dedicated employees.”
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