Get Your Gym Running Without You With a Hired-for-You GM

Barbell Jobs GM Recruiting finds, vets, and delivers a general manager who can actually run your floor so you can step out of the day-to-day without watching your gym slide.You didn't open a gym to become a prisoner of it.

But here you are. Coaching the 5am and the 6pm. Chasing failed payments. Covering the desk when someone no-shows. Writing programming at 10pm. Answering every lead, closing every sale, fixing every problem, because if you don't, no one will.

You've thought about hiring a general manager. Maybe you've tried. And maybe it went sideways: someone who interviewed like a rockstar and couldn't hold the floor, killed the vibe your members loved, and cost you three months and a chunk of your roster before you finally cut them loose.

That's the real problem. It's not that you can't delegate. It's that hiring the wrong person to run your gym is worse than doing it all yourself.

The math on a bad manager hire is brutal.

The U.S. Department of Labor puts the cost of a bad hire at a minimum of 30% of that person's first-year pay... but closer to 50% for a management role. Take that further and replacing an employee can cost between one-half and two times their annual salary once you factor in the search, the lost productivity, and the do-over.

For a general manager, the number on the spreadsheet is the smallest part. A GM touches retention, culture, and sales. These are three things that decide whether your gym grows or quietly bleeds out. Members feel a bad manager within weeks, and members who feel it leave. Replacing them costs far more than keeping them would have. That's the whole reason retention, not just marketing, is where gym profit is won or lost.

So most owners freeze. They keep grinding, tell themselves they'll hire "once things calm down," and stay chained to a business that can't run without them.

A gym that only works when you're in the building isn't an asset. It's a job you can't sell.

I know both sides of that equation.

I've owned, operated, and sold a gym. I know the criticality of a GM and I know what it takes to build a floor that runs without you standing on it.

I'm also a Colorado-licensed business broker who specializes in selling gyms and fitness businesses. I've sat across from buyers and seen what separates a gym that commands a premium from one nobody wants. The answer to that is owner-dependency, and a strong GM is the single biggest lever on that.

Because I've hired it before (multiple times), I know what the job actually is.

What you get

• Done-for-you recruiting. You stay focused on your gym. I run the search end to end.
• A role blueprint and hiring scorecard built around your gym so that candidate selection is not just by feel.
• Active sourcing through the Barbell Jobs network and my own industry contacts (not a job post and a prayer).
• Screened, pre-vetted candidates measured against the scorecard, with honest notes on each.
• A shortlist you can actually choose from, plus support through your interviews and the offer.
• A 90-day replacement guarantee. If the GM I place doesn't work out within the first 90 days, I find you a replacement at no additional fee.

You make the final hire. I make sure the people in front of you are worth hiring.

How GM Hiring Works

1. Intro call (20 minutes). We diagnose the role and your gym: where you're stuck, what you need off your plate, and what a great GM would own.
2. Role blueprint. I build the profile and scorecard we'll hire against, so the target is clear before the search starts.
3. Search and outreach. I source and reach out across the fitness-specific network, actively.
4. Screening. Candidates get vetted against the scorecard. Most never reach you.
5. Shortlist. You get a small set of pre-vetted candidates with straight write-ups, plus my help through interviews.
6. Placement + guarantee. You hire. The 90-day replacement guarantee has your back.

Simple, flat pricing

$5,000 flat. No percentage of salary. No surprises.

• $2,500 to start the search.
• $2,500 on placement — due when you hire someone I've delivered.

Compare that to a traditional recruiter's 20–25% of first-year salary ($10,000+), or the DOL and SHRM cost of getting the hire wrong on your own. Instead its one flat fee, with a guarantee behind it.

Who this is for

• Independent, single-location gym owners.
• You're the one holding the whole thing up, and you're ready to step back from the day-to-day.
• You can support a general manager's salary (or you're close), and this is the hire that gets you there.

Who this is not for

• Pre-revenue gyms that can't yet carry a full-time manager.
• Owners who want a hand on every decision. A GM only works if you let them manage.
• Anyone shopping for a cheap coach. This is a search for someone to run your business.

FAQ

How long does the search take? It depends on the role, your market, and how specific your requirements are. We set a realistic timeline on the intro call, before you pay anything. I'd rather give you a straight answer than a number that sounds good and isn't real.

Do you guarantee you'll fill the role? I guarantee the work and the standard: active sourcing, real vetting, and candidates measured against a scorecard we build together, backed by a 90-day replacement guarantee on the placement. What I won't do is promise a warm body by Friday to close a sale. That's exactly how bad hires happen.

How is this different from posting on a job board? A job post is passive; it catches whoever happens to be looking. This is an active, managed search run by someone who has operated and sold gyms. Every candidate is screened before they reach you.

What if the GM doesn't work out? If it falls apart within the first 90 days, I find you a replacement at no additional fee.

Who actually makes the hire? You do. I deliver a vetted shortlist and support you through the decision. The final call is always yours.

Ready to stop being the only reason your gym works?

Book a 20-minute intro call. We'll diagnose the role together, and you'll leave with a clear read on whether this is the right hire. No pressure and no pitch until it makes sense.