Matt and Kate Shull are the proud new owners of the Advanced Fitness Centre, which is scheduled to open to the public during the second week in October. The Shulls have purchased the older Sears retail outlet building on 85th Street and have been working with a renovation crew to turn the 4,300 square foot space into a modern gymnasium and fitness centre. The couple, who have three young children, say they have dreamed of owning their own fitness facility for many years. (Keith Lacey photo)
With three young children and an expanding vitamin and nutrition supplements company, Matt and Kate Shull have proven they’re not afraid of hard work.
And they know they’re going to need their youthful energy and be commited to hard work when their new gym opens in Osoyoos.
The new Advanced Fitness Club is scheduled to open during the second week in October and the Shull family is very excited about it.
“It’s like a dream come true for us to own our own gym … it’s something we’ve been talking about for the past few years,” said Matt, who was raised in Osoyoos after moving to this community with his family from Vancouver as a young child.
The Shulls have purchased the old Sears building on 85th Street and have had crews working on turning the building from a retail outlet to a modern gymnasium with state-of-the-art equipment for the past two months.
Matt and Kate said they have talked about opening a gym since they returned to Osoyoos after living in the Bahamas for much of the past several years.
“We loved the Bahamas, but we both knew it was time to come home to friends and family,” said Kate. “With three young kids, our family is very important to us and Osoyoos is a beautiful place, so we’re very happy to be home.”
Their nutritional supplement company is called Advanced Nutrition, so calling their new gym Advanced Fitness wasn’t a difficult choice, said Matt.
The tentative opening date for Advanced Fitness is Oct. 10 as they hope to have the entire 4,300 square foot building completely renovated and all their new fitness equipment installed, he said.
Besides large areas for free weights and cardio machines, there will also be a separate area for training and fitness classes, he said.
The front desk area will showcase their nutritional supplements and also have space for healthy sandwiches and snacks as well as a juice bar, said Kate.
Their cardio machines will all be Life Fitness and all weight lifting equipment will feature the respected Hammer Strength brand, he said.
Special fitness programs like Boot Camp, Body Fit, yoga and spin classes will be offered to all members.
“This place is brand new so we’re committing to using only brand new equipment throughout the entire building,” he said. “All of our cardio machines will also be equipped with televisions and Wifi so people can plug in and enjoy their workouts.”
There will be large and separate change room and shower facilities for men and women and the entire building will be air conditioned, which will benefit members during the hot Osoyoos spring, summer and fall, he said.
They plan on being hands-on owners, said Kate.
“Our life will be this gym and making it a success,” she said. “We’ve wanted to open our own gym since we met and to be able to do something we love is very exciting.
“We have three young kids, but they are going to be spending a lot of time with mom and dad here as we hope to offer a babysitting service soon after opening.”
Their children are ages 8, 3 and four months and being able to open this business will allow them to continue to raise their children in Osoyoos, which is a top priority, said Matt.
Advanced Fitness will be open Monday to Friday from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m.
Matt said a key system will be made available so members can access the gym 24 hours a day soon after opening.
All memberships will be 50 per cent off – and more for seniors and students – for at least six months after Advanced Fitness is open, said Matt.
“There is a lot of competition in this business right here in Osoyoos, but we’re confident we will have a lot of people interested in joining with these reduced rates for the first few months,” he said.
For more information, go online and visit www.advancedfitnessclub.ca or call 866-496-0495.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
