Today we’d like to introduce you to Charles Moore.
Hi Charles, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I have been in the cheer world for over 16 years. I ended my college career doing cheer and loved the way it helped me connect with other people. I knew that wherever life took me, I wanted cheer to be involved.
Our gym technically started in a park in the thick of Covid (2020). I wasn’t set on opening my own gym to begin with but we had over 30 kids show up the first day. From there, we rented space at other gyms and finally got our own location.
Along the way, the original ownership partnering split and our program lost most of the athletes.
At the end of that season (two seasons ago), all of our athletes decided to leave our program and while it was a bit intimidating to begin with, we are grateful for the opportunities we have had to rebuild since then.
From there, we went from a small all star program to a micro gym that specializes in training. Now we work consistently with over 50-100 athletes from all walks of life. All that matters is getting to share the passion of tumbling and cheer.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Before moving into our current space, we rented from what was then, Emerald Gymnastics. Unfortunately, I did not realize that my business partner (who was also my significant other at the time) was stealing money from our families while ignoring the responsibilities of paying the overhead costs of the gym. When I realized it, I knew we needed a change.
So I left my relationship, lost my gym space, had thousands of dollars stolen from me, lost half my athletes from the drama of the split and had to come to terms with dismissing half the athletes left due to non-payment, all within a matter of months.
While I look back and see that God was actually just protecting me from people and situations not meant for me, at the time I didn’t know what was going to happen to me. I even considered leaving Kansas City.
I’m so glad I didn’t, we have built ourselves back up and continue to reinvent who we are every season.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We have a few specialities. The first is offering all star cheer at an affordable rate for families. We charge less than half of what other local gyms charge for our program and we deliver the same product. We want to make cheer accessible to as many athletes as we can. We don’t monetize our teams, we pour our fees all back into the athletes.
Secondly, we specialize in training. I consistently have done over 100 private lessons per month with athletes from around the Kansas City area. I work with gymnasts, dancers, cheerleaders, and even adults who just want to learn new skills. I teach in a very unorthodox way, teaching athletes how their bodies work in each skill and using basic skills as building blocks.
Additionally, we aim to lead with love. Instead of spending hours yelling at athletes, we explain what we need and why we need it. If we can’t just explain it, we show them what to do until it makes sense.
We aim to have a family based environment. You spend a lot of time with your teammates and their families, you might as well feel like a big family while you’re together and beyond. We want bonds that people want to invest in, in an atmosphere that people want to be in.
We prioritize Jesus in our facility and usually you’ll hear us playing music that reflects that (Christian Rap is where it’s at). You’ll never find us in the gym before 12:30 on a Sunday, we want our families (and ourselves) to be able to go to church if that’s their desire.
We also specialize in working with athletes of all ages. We have athletes from 2-52 that we train using all the same techniques.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Kansas City always has something going on. There’s always a festival, an art show, a family event to check out. I also love that there is so much diversity in our city. We are the only black owned cheer gym in Johnson County and the athletes we work with represent the melting pot that is Kansas City.
Our city does not always cater to the inner city families. There are too many kids on the streets with nothing to do and not enough places for them to go. Our goal is to give as many of them a place to go and an activity to do, as possible. If we aren’t willing to initiate change, who will?
Pricing:
- Our cheerleaders pay $250 per month. It covers everything from gym fees, tumbling class, competition fees, uniforms, shoes, all of it.
- Our tumbling lessons start at $80 per hour.
- Our stunting lessons start at $100 per hour.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.theofficialttkc.com
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/Theofficial_TTKC
