Meet James Bramwell
James Bramwell started his journey in the fitness industry around 15 years ago as a personal trainer with a dream of building something of his own.
After spending his first few years building a client base, James went into business with a friend, coaching companies in the city and becoming a training provider that helped people qualify as personal trainers.
But despite that progress, James still had a burning desire to build his own business.
Around this time, he first met Nicky.
James was preparing to get married and trying to figure out how to turn his ambition into a sustainable business.
“I remember saying to him, look, I'm trying to grow this business, I'm about to get married, how am I going to make this work?”
The Challenge
Up to that point, James’s experience had centred on one-to-one personal training.
Nicky introduced him to small-group personal training and started talking to him about the numbers behind the business.
James could see the potential.
But he didn’t act on it straight away.
For around nine to twelve months, he held back.
As James admits, he was nervous about taking the leap and changing what he already knew.
It wasn’t until he returned from his honeymoon that he decided it was finally time to give it a go.
Knowledge — and the Belief to Use It
For James, one of the biggest things he gained from Nicky wasn’t simply business knowledge.
It was self-belief.
Over the years, James considered simply keeping the business as it was.
Nicky challenged him to think differently about what he was creating and its potential to become something bigger than one person.
That message stayed with James.
“One of the biggest things that Nicky gave me, number one, was knowledge, but number two was self-belief.”
James believes there are times in business when you might not have enough confidence in yourself to take the next step.
At those moments, having somebody else who believes in what is possible can make a real difference.
“Sometimes when you're on your journey, you need to borrow someone else's self-belief to get you to the next step.”
The Results
James’s story isn’t defined by one particular revenue figure.
Instead, it shows the longer-term development of both the business and James himself.
From starting out as a one-to-one personal trainer, James describes:
- Remaining in the fitness industry 15 years later and still loving what he does.
- Building a business he describes, humbly, as “thriving”.
- Moving beyond the one-to-one PT model he originally knew.
- Developing his knowledge and confidence as a business owner.
- Building greater belief in what he could create.
- Continuing to grow personally alongside the business.
- Becoming an FBDA coach himself, a role he had held for approximately five or six years at the time of the testimonial.
- Being able to use his own experience to help other fitness business owners develop.
Looking back, James credits the information and inspiration he received from Nicky and FBDA as being part of that journey.
From Business Owner to Business Coach
James’s relationship with FBDA eventually developed into something more.
Alongside continuing to operate as a business owner, he became an FBDA coach.
That has given him the opportunity to see the fitness business journey from both sides.
He understands what it feels like to be the personal trainer trying to work out how to take the next step.
He also understands the challenges of owning a business.
And now, as a coach, he can use those experiences to help others navigate their own journey.
“It's amazing now to see business from both sides, as a business owner and as a coach.”
For James, that comes back to the reason he entered the industry in the first place: helping people.
Whether that's as a personal trainer, fitness coach or business coach, the underlying purpose remains the same.
What This Means for Other Fitness Business Owners
James didn’t immediately act when he was first introduced to a different way of building his fitness business.
He waited around nine to twelve months.
Looking back over a journey that has now spanned around 15 years, his experience highlights the importance of having both the right knowledge and the confidence to take action on it.
For James, working with Nicky provided both.
The knowledge helped him see a different way forward.
The self-belief helped him take the steps needed to pursue it.
Today, he remains in an industry he loves, describes his business as thriving, and helps other fitness business owners through his work as an FBDA coach.
James’s Advice to Other Fitness Business Owners
For somebody considering FBDA but unsure whether to take the next step, James’s message is simple:
“Take our knowledge, borrow some self-belief, and we'll help you get to the next step.”
And having experienced FBDA as both a business owner and a coach, his final recommendation is equally clear:
“If you want some help, if you want to grow, if you want to move forward, join FBDA. You won't regret it.”
Find Out More About FBDA
Experience a Complimentary FBDA Coaching Session. We don’t want to sell you into a coaching programme that isn’t right for you. Instead, we’d love you to experience how FBDA coaching actually works before you make any decisions.
We’ll take the time to understand your business, where you want to go, and what might be holding you back. You’ll experience real FBDA coaching, leave with greater clarity on your next steps, and get a feel for how we could help move your business forward.
Then we can both decide if working together feels like the right fit.
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