Fighting the good fight
In 2017–18, an Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report found that while most children aged 5–14 (67% or just over 2 million) were a normal weight, an estimated 24% (746,000) of children were overweight (17%) or obese (7.7%)[i].
To combat this trend, TRANSFORM-US Fitness For Kids delivers fun, structured PE/Sports programs to primary school-aged children who are overweight or obese and help increase fitness levels and fundamental movement skills.
Kevin says, “I have a team of 16 qualified sports loving classroom teachers and PE teachers to deliver these curriculum approved programs.
“We are a mobile business with vans, trucks and trailers that are full of all the relevant sports equipment to visit schools and other recreational facilities to deliver our programs.”
Supporting the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
Over the past three years, TRANSFORM-US Fitness For Kids has also worked closely with the NDIS to help deliver physical activity programs to children and young adolescents.
These younger people could be suffering from physical, mental, and emotional disorders such as obesity, ADHD, Anger Management, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, and Tourette Syndrome. Kevin explains, “International studies have shown that physical exercise stimulates the memory receptors and provides a unique opportunity for these kids to enjoy what would normally be painful experiences.”
TRANSFORM-US Fitness For Kids is deservedly receiving plenty of recognition for its work including a nomination from NSW Ministry of Health in 2018 for a NSW Premier’s Award for Public Service. The nomination was for the SME’s work in tackling childhood obesity. Kevin said, “The recognition gained from this nomination helped us to build a pathway into more schools to deliver our range of programs.
“More importantly, it has provided credibility among several occupational therapy facilities who have been asking us to assist with keeping their children with disabilities active and moving due to the techniques we adopt.”
The impact of COVID and a silver lining
In March 2020 TRANSFORM-US Fitness For Kids shut down and ceased the delivery of all PE/Sports programs into schools. “In fact, virtually 100% of its business was cancelled,” recounted Kevin. This shutdown continued until July and the beginning of Term Three in NSW when several schools invited Kevin and his team to recommence their programs. Then by the beginning of Term Four, most schools were happy for TRANSFORM-US to resume its active kids’ programs.
The TRANSFORM-US team also remained active during the five months of shut down. “We focused on building our delivery capability by conducting one-on-one programs for children from families who wanted to keep their kids healthy and active.
“We also continued our PT/Bootcamp style one-on-one sessions for those children referred to us from NDIS.”
COVID-19 ironically enabled Kevin to re-evaluate his business model and pivot into new revenue opportunities. Apart from the launch of the new FiT AS Testing App, these pivots include:
- Summer sports camps
- More one-on-one training sessions
- A more substantial focus on providing fitness testing in schools.
Working with OnDeck
Working with OnDeck through the pandemic has been critical to maintaining the momentum of innovation at TRANSFORM-US Fitness For Kids. “When we went to OnDeck, within three days, the funding was available,” said Kevin.
“It was a straightforward, low-doc loan application process which enabled me to keep my eye on the ball rather than searching for more financials/evidence to prove our credibility as a small business.
“I also enjoyed excellent communication with our Account Manager at OnDeck Bradley Weeks during the process.”
Get in touch today to find out about funding options to help finance your business’s recovery planning which may be available to you.
[i] https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/children-youth/australias-children/contents/health/overweight-and-obesity
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