Empowered Sports Club was a long time coming — about fifteen years, according to owner Will Robbins.
“It’s progressed from a volleyball court at my house to a small gym called UFIT in Leo [Indiana], to an Anytime Fitness I [owned]…each step kind of progresses to the next step, grows into the next step.”
And the most recent step landed them here. A year and a half ago, Robbins and his business partner had the opportunity to purchase a small tennis club. In the time since — including about a year of full-time operation — they’ve grown exponentially, adding indoor and beach volleyball courts, and revamping the fitness facility and staff.
“I knew sports, that area, is where I wanted to be. I didn’t know if it was coaching, [or] if it was continuing to play as long as I could,” Robbins said. “But then I had gotten saved in 2002 after a particularly rough patch, and God started to reveal that it was more a ministry intermixed with sports.”
At Empowered Sports Club, trainers and staff members focus on high-level skill development. And Robbins describes their approach as holistic, dedicated to developing the entire athlete.
Though Robbin’s constant travel schedule makes it challenging to network or attend community functions (he still plays professionally in addition to coaching and running the business), he recognizes the importance of such activities to continued success.
When it comes to accomplishing these tasks, Empowered has found a partner in Greater Fort Wayne Inc.
After all of this, the business is thriving, and Robbins says they’re already looking to expand. A number of groups are interested in partnering to bring more sports programs to their current facility, and others are looking to develop an approach that can be replicated elsewhere.
“I’m happy and content with just our facility, and if this is all God has for us then I’m ecstatic,” Robbins said. “But if it’s 10 facilities or 25 facilities across the country that we’re involved with, I’m okay with that too.”
####
