If you haven’t watched the episode of “The Simpsons” when Marge decides to open a gym for ladies, you should. She realized that a regular gym was not meeting the needs of “ordinary” women, so she took the matters into her own hands. This is just one of many examples where fiction reflects reality.

It happens all too often that women find themselves in awkward and unpleasant situations in a gym. They are often mansplained, looked down on, hit on or even touched inappropriately. For all those reasons, it makes perfect sense for some gyms to allow only women members. Still, that poses some problems when it comes to equipping such establishments.

It should offer various amenities

Gyms that accept only women often make a mistake and specialize in what is perceived as “feminine” workouts, such as Pilates or yoga, but not all women want that. If such a gym was to be a resounding success, it should also offer weightlifting and high-intensity interval training, for example. Although the main focus may be shifted to other types of exercises, it’s the variety that attracts more customers.

It should be run by a woman

No matter how successful and experienced a man entrepreneur is, he can never understand the needs of women as well as a woman can. Who can provide better service than a person who knows exactly what is required and desirable? This is also important when it comes to purchasing bathroom supplies. To most men, women products are a mystery they’d rather have nothing to do with, so you can’t expect the same level of service and care from them.

It should stand out

Needless to say, a ladies’ gym should have all the best gym equipment available and hire the most skilful and devoted instructors, but it still may not be enough to attract enough members. In order to make it unique and more appealing, some small touches are needed. For example, the gym might feature a space where clients can socialise when they’re not working out and where they can treat themselves to a glass of wine or some other beverage.

It should cater for special requirements

Religious reasons might prevent some women from working out and staying fit or removing some items of clothing in front of men. Should they be confined to their living rooms to get the benefits of exercising? Of course not. Also, women who have just had a baby or have certain health issues might feel uncomfortable in the presence of pumped up men. Should they give up on their needs? Of course not.

It should show that you think outside the box

Long gone are the days when we had a pretty clear distinction between activities for men and women. It may have been unimaginable until some time ago that women would be interested in boxing, weightlifting or Krav Maga, but the situation is quite different today. Some women take up such activities in order to learn self-defence, while others simply experience sheer joy when venting their energy (and frustration). Whatever the reason, a modern gym for ladies should have all the necessary equipment and trained professionals who can cater to such requirements.

If you are looking to market your new ladies gym make sure you make a flyer related to your gym offers so that you can put  your word out easily.

As you can see, there are a lot of reasons why women-only gyms make perfect sense. This, of course, shouldn’t be interpreted as some exclusive feature available to a certain group of people, but merely as an attempt to provide services that an increasing number of clients are interested in. Finally, it is important to equip such a gym with the right kind of equipment and staff it with professionals who are able to respond to the needs of women. Only then does the idea become successful and sustainable.