Noted 9Round Fitness Franchise Opens in Bentonville

One of Entrepreneur magazine’s top 500 franchises this year has sprouted up in Northwest Arkansas.

9Round Fitness LLC, a fast-growing kickboxing gym franchise originated in South Carolina, opened its first Arkansas location July 18 in a retail strip center at 2200 S.E. J. St. in Bentonville.

The fitness company was founded in 2007 by professional kickboxer Shannon Hudson. He began franchising the concept in 2009.

The company was ranked No. 443 on Entrepreneur’s list of best franchise opportunities this year, published in February.

 “We haven’t even stepped on the gas pedal yet,” Hudson said in a summer blog post on the website 9round.com. “The chain is aggressively working on a financing package that will let people get into the business if they come to the table with just $20,000.”

9Round in Bentonville was the 60th location to open. There are currently 65 locations in 25 states, with a target to have 100 gyms open by the end of the year.

9Round gyms use boxing and kickboxing fitness methods in a 30-minute circuit training format. Customers move between nine different workout stations while supervised by a personal trainer. There are different workouts ready for clients for each day.

The local franchisee is Benton County native Andrew Davitt, a Bentonville High School graduate and later a music teacher at his alma mater for five years.

Davitt, 30, said he was happy as an educator, but fitness was also a hobby of his. He was leading his own small group at another gym in Bentonville when he learned about the 9Round franchise from one of his students.

After researching the company, he decided to leave the comfort of his teaching profession and invest in 9Round.

“I enjoy teaching, but this is another passion of mine,” he said. “I wanted to take a new step.”

Franchise fees, according to Entrepreneur, are $18,000, with an ongoing royalty fee of $449 per month. Total investment is between $40,000 and $52,000.

Davitt said the Bentonville gym already has about 90 members. The franchise benchmark is to sell 100 memberships through the first three months.

“We have been very pleased with the initial reception,” he said

Davitt said a standard membership fee of $49 per month for unlimited workouts is one of five different rate options.

What makes the 9Round program unique, according to the 9Round website, is a proprietary system of nine challenging workout stations.

Clients can go through the 30-minute, full-body workout circuit when their schedule allows, as opposed to a class schedule set by the gym.

Davitt also noted what sets 9Round apart in the fitness industry is personal attention, without the high price of a personal trainer.

“Every program at 9Round includes a trainer at no extra charge,” he said.

9Round in Bentonville is closed from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day, but opens each day at 8 a.m. and closes at 8 p.m.

Adhering to the philosophy of 9Round’s founder, Davitt is being aggressive in planning for other francihse locations in Northwest Arkansas.

He said he would like to open two more locations “within the next year or two.

“A really aggressive goal is to have a second one open by Christmas,” he said.