Today we’d like to introduce you to Angel Guzman.
Hi Angel, I am so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
We are a family business: myself, my mom, and my stepdad. My mom used to love doing kickboxing back when we lived up north, but ever since we moved down here to Orlando, she couldn’t find anything that was what she was looking for in her workouts. She had tried everything, but nothing seemed to be fulfilling to her. There was no kickboxing in the area, so she was permanently settling for other options, but she still wanted to kickbox like she used to. She was shopping around one day after getting bored at yet another gym, and she found a 9Round, quite far from home but still a kickboxing gym nonetheless. When she tried it, she saw the potential the workout could hold. She fell in love with the concept of the gym, but it was just way too far for her to justify the traveling she had to do to get to the gym. That’s when she got the idea to open her own 9Round, nice and close to home, to give the people another option for their gym life since there are few options in the Lake Nona/ Lee Vista area. Just under a year and a half ago, we opened our gym after all of us went through the long and hard process of learning the “9Round way” and finding the perfect location. At first, we were lost and were off to a rocky start; after all, it was my first experience working, my mom’s first time owning a business in over a decade, and my stepdad’s first time owning something as well. None of us knew what we were doing; we were all just winging it as we went along, but slowly, we got the hang of things. We all became proficient trainers, going from only being able to train 1-3 people at a time to eventually caring for over a dozen people at once. We had to learn how to operate as a business as well: hiring employees, teaching them “the 9Round way”, marketing, and everything in between. We learned how to become more unified as a family and how to work together to keep the business healthy. Both my mom and stepdad have Spanish as their first language, which at times made it difficult for them to get themselves out there because they were scared; they both greatly improved and are now more confident than ever when talking to people. I have only had a job or worked once this business was open, leaving me to have to learn how to manage school and work at the same time, how to be a good worker, and how to run a business. It was hard at first, but as I got used to it, I fell in love with the process and the whole business ownership thing, inspiring me to study business in college. All in all, what seemed almost impossible over a year ago now seems like something that our family and the community love.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, has it been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road could have been smoother. The biggest challenges have passed since they were mainly at the beginning. However, they were big ones. The biggest improvement that all of us have seen is going from having virtually zero kickboxing knowledge to becoming certified kickboxing trainers, which was a journey all of us struggled to succeed in. Opening a new business is never easy either, so starting from the ground up took a lot of work and brainstorming from us to find ways to get people to come through our doors. We had to think of all sorts of promotions we had to do, what events to attend, what posts to make, the whole 9 yards. Something we still struggle with to this day is working as a family. We sometimes have our moments of disagreement where everyone thinks they’re right, and we fight all the time over how some things should be done. Still, we are all just business partners and a family, so we treat each other as such to keep the business up and our family happy. We will probably always have our differences, but the important thing we have to overcome almost every day is how we resolve them.
Thanks for sharing that. So, you could tell us a bit more about your business.
Our business is a 30-minute kickboxing gym. We are one of the most unique gyms out there because at 9Round, our HIIT workouts last just 30 minutes, and you will get one of, if not the best, workouts of your life. In 30 minutes, you will go through 9 different 3- minute stations that change daily. Our champion trainers will be with you every step of the way to ensure your safety, teach you techniques, and motivate you. The best part is there are no class times; you can come and do the workout at your convenience. If we are open, you drop by the gym, hop into an open round, and our trainers will handle the rest. You will gain muscle, lose fat, and, most importantly, have fun in this dynamic workout and unique gym environment. Missing your gym sessions is a thing of the past at 9Round because you are always on time: your time! In just 30 minutes, we will make you stronger, both physically and mentally.
Please talk to us about happiness and what makes you happy.
For me, watching the community we have built makes me the happiest. People from all over come to us and trust us to get them where they want to be with themselves. They come in looking for a place to work and leave with a new family: the 9Round Family. I love walking in and seeing our members interacting with each other, having fun, and creating such a positive environment for everybody. We have made some unbreakable bonds and have really united the community at our gym, and I can only hope that it will continue to be like that for many more years to come.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.9round.com/locations/fl/orlando/lee-vista
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/9roundleevista/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/9RoundLeevista
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/9round-leevista-no-title
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@9roundleevista
