Who would have thought that me, a shy, bullied young boy from a mill town in Lancashire, would join the Army and become a European Martial Arts sporting champion, as well as acting as a bodyguard to probably the most controversial businessman in the country and also one of the most famous women in the world, the Princess of Wales?
Yet all of these things and much more happened to me, thanks to Martial Arts.
My journey started at the age of 15 when I discovered Wado Ryu Karate and the art of fighting and by 17 I was a combat veteran on the football terraces, in bars and on the National Karate Tournament circuit. It had happened - I was now a fighter never to be bullied again in my life.
Karate took over and I quickly learnt to keep the fighting inside the Dojo and by the time I went to work in South Africa, Martial Arts was my obsession. I studied TKD in Johannesburg and was personally taught by the National Coach, absorbing the kicks and new Kata’s like a sponge.
The British Army came next, at a time when it was a bully’s playground where the weak were punished, but it was not going to happen to me again.
My physical prowess, aggression and fighting skills kept me safe. I trained in all kinds of styles and systems in Europe and the Far East, fought some of the toughest guys and studied Close Quarter Battle with the Military Elite.
Ten years of service taught me great resilience and I quickly figured out that the body is strong, yet the mind is weak. This thought alone has stood me in good stead over many years, over many challenges in difficult situations, on the battlefield and also in business.
I needed every ounce of this mindset after spending three months in an Intensive Care Unit at a British Military Hospital and being told, “Operational Tour? Son you’re not going to be able to walk again properly.”
The private security contractor scene came next and at least I could train at one location. Aged 35, I represented a National Association at the EKGB Nationals and was British Kumite Champion.
Now regarded as a good Martial Artist and experienced fighter and also an accomplished CQB instructor in the Military and Specialist Security arena, I had the best of both worlds.
Settling in Scotland in 1999 focused me on teaching my Sport at the highest level possible and I have produced National, European and World Champions in the main associations, WUMA, WKA WAKO, WOAMA and IAKSA.
I have many incredible memories, but my most dear and precious one came when aged 46 I fought on the next area to my son Damon at the WUMA European Championships. We both won Gold medals – in the over 90kgs section for me and over 85kgs for my boy - now that’s family Martial Arts.
My recent trip to the WAKO Worlds in Austria and being part of the Team at the age of 48 was another awesome, stand-out experience. Winning a silver medal without having a heart attack was good too!!!
The
Martial Arts Show Live, returning for the third consecutive year at
the NEC Birmingham. Hope to see you there on 12th-13th of May 2012.
Nest Management will be at Stand 21
About Sansum Black Belt Academy (SBBA)
I started my first Academy in a small Highland town called Forres (population around 7000), with classes held in the back of a pub nightclub. Brushing glass off the floor before classes was mandatory but it was free.
My wife, Kate was a fitness professional with a strong background in business so she started to teach me about accounts, tax, and marketing and also how to be nice to people! I had just come from the Security and Military world and could be a little robust in my dealings with certain situations. Kate taught me ‘the customer is always right’.
Our son Damon has been with us on the whole journey and has helped out from day one through the good times and the bad. He is now a World Champion and in number one position for the 2012 Games with the WTF Olympic Team up in Manchester.
A year after starting up, I had over 100 students paying and training and then opened a full time location in the next town (population 28,000). I started with 28 students and grew that Academy to over 400 paying and training students.
Kate and I are a terrific mix - we could naturally sell our services, are quite outgoing so asking for referrals was second nature, and we are also great motivators so everything was right for the Martial Arts business.
I had little distraction on the mats trying to implement new things to teach (unlike many Instructors who get side-tracked with the latest new systems for success) as I had and still have a simple, clearly defined mission...to train World Class Points Fighters.
Our marketing was mainly from a specific referral system Kate and I designed, school visits and the odd newspaper advertisement. We had free editorial nearly every week and courted the local press or anyone who could pass on the good news about SBBA.
My ambition was to grow the Academy and to take a more managerial role and to do this I needed to trust my staff and the Instructors close to me which was a challenging journey in itself.
Marketing strategies had to change and be more systems driven and I also had to accept that once Kate and I started to manage more we would not attain the same student count in the main centres.
I now have a great Team of motivated Instructors teaching in 12 locations and a crop of young talented fighters in my fully sponsored World Championship Programme.
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Why NEST?
I started using billing companies in 1999 initially with EFC for Martial Arts then UP for Fitness Kick Boxing. I chose this method of fee collection for two reasons:- it had become too big a task to administer the Direct Debits as my schools grew; and all the successful schools in the USA used billing companies and I’m a big fan of copying proven success.
The service from these two operations was ok, however they were often trying to sell me something and lacked a little bit of customer care - they didn’t really seem to have my business interests at heart.
At this time I had no previous experience in business and soon figured out the Martial Arts was as competitive as any other business and not always the open and honest industry I thought it might be.
I was then introduced to NEST by a friend and although initially quite sceptical, I started to use their services and have never looked back.
Gerard Turvey is the most professional businessman I have ever met. His integrity, honesty and transparency is reflected in the quality of the staff at the NEST Office and exceptional customer care given by the team. I just wish I lived closer to Nottingham so I could pop into see everyone more often!
Over the years the Turvey family have become very good friends. We have shared quite a few journeys together and I have seen NEST grow into the company you see today.
NEST have been instrumental in implementing administration systems into my operation and helping out with a huge range of issues from disgruntled parents to legal issues.
I am looking forward to working with the new software and phone apps which will make it even easier for me to keep an eye on the performance of my Group at a glance.
Having the KPI,s at my fingertips helps me spot any danger signs with a particular Academy but also tells me when an Instructor is doing well, so I can share good practice with the whole group.
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