In the Spotlight – Newcastle Aikido….

What business are you in? ­­­­­Martial Arts Instruction*. I teach Aikidio – Japanese martial art, Sword and Zen meditation.How long have you been in business? We have been in business for 10 years!What is the most pleasurable part of being in business? In my business, it’s watching people grow and develop. After a few years they are fitter, happier and reaching their goals. This is by far the most rewarding thing.

Why have you been successful?
Because I am very authentic, I do things really traditionally.
There is a lot of corner cutting in my industry,
and we like to keep it authentic.

 What is the least pleasurable part of being in business?
The least pleasurable part of business is losing relationships when people leave.
Sometimes life gets in the way and people just disappear, it is a hard conversation to have,
I understand. But it is still hard to say goodbye and I hope that they don’t have to leave.

What type of experience do you want to create for your customers?
We like to create a challenging experience, deep and challenging.
We do spiritual stuff as well as physical. Pushing people through thinking
they can’t do it, and then realizing they can.

What input or support do you expect from your accountant/bookkeeper? Novabp save me from things I’m bad at, receipts, payments, computer work etc. – Separating the teacher from the finances – and also it saves me lots of time & effort.

What advice would you give someone starting a new business?
To be committed, have faith in you, back yourself and
put everything into it. It’s important to do your research,
create a business plan etc.

Where do you see your business in the future?
I see the business having a lot more community involvement.
The growth of our business has been deliberately slow.
After 10 years, I have a good body of people with lots of experience.
Ideally, we want to aim to have the members becoming more
involved and again, some extra investment into the community**.

*Classes for adults, kids and school sports.

**Mention this add for an exclusive
NovaBP discount.