Entrepreneurs work to find success at home and at work.
To have a storefront or to hang a shingle represents a willingness to venture out into the unknown of the variable and somewhat volatile business landscape. Generations' past might explore ownership because of familial roots in a sole proprietorship or because the idea, born from their own inspiration, was novel and, in turn, uniquely valuable to the market.
Today’s economy is fueled by droves of entrepreneurs of all ages and stages of life aiming to stand out above the fray of a socially driven world. Businesses can begin life with a URL instead of an umbilical cord and be ready for game time with the assignment of an email address as opposed to a set of parental guidelines.
It has become easier to take an idea from concept to market than ever before. And, as the glide path has accelerated opportunities, so have the number of complexities causing friction for entrepreneurs to advance from startup to scale-up stage.
Industry variance plays a significant role in the initial factors that may or may not impact the outcome for the entrepreneur.
Female entrepreneurs in the fitness industry have historically struggled to find footing in a traditionally male-dominated sector. As female entrepreneurship continues to grow worldwide, so does the need for a network of support. The Women In Fitness Association, in cooperation with Sport Alliance, notes that approximately 70% of gym owners are men and that nearly 30% of women in the industry cite their gender as a roadblock to advancement.
“These data show the trend that men are more likely to be in leadership roles in businesses than women. Among the self-employed, most women are trainers rather than running their own businesses,” said Maike Kumstel, International Business Developer at Sport Alliance.
Kim Constable, a mother of 4 children and homeschool educator, is also the owner of the vegan fitness program The Sculpted Vegan, which has generated millions of dollars in revenue since her launch in 2017. Her path to success was littered with naysayers, eliciting fear that she was embroiled in a zero-sum game in an industry publicly thin on endorsing female innovation.
Constable, from Belfast, Ireland, was content as a yoga instructor, mother, and wife surrounded by friends, family, and tradition. She had not dreamt of starting a business, but business eventually found her.
“I was in my late 30s and a mother of four children. I wanted to feel like myself again, and I wanted to get into shape. I was a yoga instructor, but I wanted to add to my workout in a manner that matched my vegan lifestyle,” says Constable.
Constable began searching for vegan weightlifting programs prepared to join and pay. “I couldn’t find a single program,” she says. “The lightbulb went off for me. If I couldn’t find a vegan program for weightlifting, then maybe there were others just like me.”
Against the requests of her family and community members, Constable decided to take her exercise journey public and committed to competing in fitness competitions.
“I was on a mission of health and performance even if my goals didn’t match many women in my demographic. I decided to document my training regime every day, and as a result, I developed a repeatable exercise program for others to utilize. My business was born.”
Since the fall of 2017, Constable has collaborated with and assisted over 100,000 students of The Sculpted Vegan. Like most entrepreneurs, the early days were not centered on the task at hand but rather on her children and family.
“I can’t believe it when I look back, but in the beginning, the only hours to work were from 4 a.m. until 7 a.m. or until my children awoke.”
Constable struggled to find support from her community and her family at first. “I was competing in a sport [weightlifting] that was seen as manly, or not feminine, and the nontraditional path I was taking didn’t match with the community around me.”
After taking a risk on Facebook advertisements, she found that her parallel lives were finally coming into focus.
Kim Constable has found success building her fitness business while assisting clients and future ... [+]
“I took a lot of risks, but I knew that the schedule I was keeping ultimately landed me where I am currently. I have built a business that was not popular or existed into an extremely gratifying venture as a woman, a mother, and a community member of healthy men and women from around the world,” says Constable.
As confidence built up for Constable, so did the ideas to expand her business through technology, always ready to support others. “I received many inquiries from aspiring fitness business professionals wanting to know how to replicate my success. Naturally, I wanted to help, but I had so many demands on my time,” said Constable.
Constable is releasing a fitness app for those clamoring to learn from her, adding, “I’m excited to provide a platform for other professionals to share their expertise while building a business.”
Constable represents a growing segment of the international business population that finds professional footing and expands rather than contracts. She has carved out a business that has taken public scrutiny and woven a tale of healthy, sustainable opportunity.
2023 is set up to expand business opportunities for Constable and the countless fitness professionals targeting similar success paths for their programs.
Monetizing a motherly instinct to support other business owners in the fitness industry has Constable poised to break the $10 million a year mark in revenue. “It’s incredibly empowering to provide answers and a platform for others to share their knowledge to the benefit of the clients and their respective businesses,” says Constable.
Whether she is competing on stage or for customers, the actualized sculpted vegan has proven entrepreneurship, like dedicated weightlifting and fitness, is a lifestyle, not a profession.
Hard work isn’t an American ideal but an international mantra open to empower any and all willing to sign up.
A Constable, by trade, is a peace officer often residing in a small town. Kim Constable lives in the 12th largest city in the United Kingdom. Small town Belfast, as Constable labels her hometown, provides enough of a platform for this burgeoning entrepreneur to command a global stage.
Interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity.
