Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and fitness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Dimitri Giankoulas, founder of Pure Motivation Fitness Inc., located in Vaughan, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

PURE Motivation Fitness is a Boutique Fitness Studio in Vaughan specializing in Body Type Specific Training & Nutrition Counseling! We also provide online coaching to any/all international clients seeking assistance living outside of Vaughan.

Tell us about yourself

I've been a certified fitness coach & exercise sports nutritionist for 26 years. I have held records in competitive swimming, wrestling, football, and rugby during my varsity years and competed in Drug-Free Bodybuilding from 2001 to 2009 in the IDFA, FAME, and Musclemania federations. I'm a motivator of all ages and have an infectious personality that never lets anyone quit or give up.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Won Small business of the year award in 2011 by the Vaughan Chamber of commerce, expanded our studio in 2014, & raised over $60,000 for our charity Building muscle for Autism and Type 1 Diabetes. In 2020 I started my online training & nutrition business.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Dealing with managing people...from staff to customers to vendors, it's all about HR, and no one teaches you that. Working with limited resources at many times or none at all. Having to wear many hats at the same time and having lost 3/4 of our business with COVID lockdowns.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Spend min 3-6 months in the exact field you are seeking to work in so you can see if you love it. If not, don't do it.
  2. Know that there are no hours to your shift; some days, it's 8, 10, 16, and some you work all weekend to get the job done.
  3. Don't listen to others that don't own a business that gives you advice. They don't get it.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Our business specializes in training based on people's body types. We help them learn to eat and exercise according to it, so it's a much more customized approach. We all need fitness whether we like it or not and whether we feel we have the time, money, or resources. My wife Francesca has been by my side for the entire 16-year journey. At the same time, we have been self-employed and also helped me with my bodybuilding dieting and food prep. we have two kids, 15 Milena and 9 Dimitrius Jr. My end goal in life, is to be able to retire providing educational, motivating, and impactful seminars and consult with fitness professionals around the world.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.puremotivationfitness.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Dimitri.Giankoulas/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pure_motivation_fitness/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/puremotivation
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimitri-giankoulas-aab29232/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.