The Most Common Things Missed by Struggling Climbing Gyms

Most climbing gym owners are doing a lot right - they invest in membership sales, aim to grow revenue, and put effort into attracting new climbers. But when a gym starts to struggle, or plateaus, it’s rarely because they’ve stopped trying to bring in members.

The real issue? They’re focusing on top-line numbers while neglecting the structural foundations that actually sustain the business. If you’re not careful, you can end up in a cycle of trying to “sell” your way out of problems that aren’t actually sales-related.

Here are the most commonly missed areas in underperforming climbing gyms, and why they matter more than you might think.

1. Attrition Rates – How Many Climbers Are Walking Out the Door?

Sales bring people in, but retention keeps your gym financially healthy. If you’re losing 5% or more of your members every month (which many climbing gyms are), that’s hundreds of climbers slipping away each year.

The cost? Massive. Not just in lost revenue, but in wasted marketing spend and staff time trying to replace them. Tracking your attrition rate helps you spot early trends, fix onboarding gaps, and improve engagement - all before members decide to leave.

🛠 What to do: Track monthly attrition, analyse exit reasons, and measure the average length of membership. Don’t guess - benchmark.

2. Sales Process & Conversion Rates – You Have Leads, But Are You Converting?

Many climbing gyms attract a steady flow of first-time visitors and enquiries, but without a structured sales process, a large percentage never convert into paying members.

Low conversion rates often point to inconsistent enquiry handling, lack of follow-up, or ineffective introductory experiences. And here’s the reality: more leads won’t fix a broken system.

🛠 What to do: Audit your sales journey. Train your front desk and coaching team to confidently handle enquiries. Use scripts as flexible guides, not rigid rules. Track your visitor-to-member conversion rate and refine your follow-up process.

3. Average Length of Stay – Your Silent Profit Driver

This is one of the most important (and most ignored) numbers in a climbing gym’s business model. If the average member only stays for six months, your revenue will look very different from a gym where members stay for 12–18 months.

Selling 50 DD/"reoccuring" memberships a month doesn’t mean much if people don’t stick around. Increasing the average length of stay is one of the fastest ways to boost profitability.

🛠 What to do: Calculate your average member retention. Develop strategies to improve early engagement, onboarding, and social integration - particularly in the critical first 90 days.

4. Staff Training, 1-on-1s & Team Meetings – A Team Without Direction Will Drift

Your staff directly shape member experience, community culture, and overall retention. But many climbing gyms only focus on H+S and basic staff training.

Lack of regular feedback, unclear expectations, and poor communication lead to staff disengagement and underperformance. A well-trained, motivated team improves both customer experience and sales.

🛠 What to do: Implement regular 1-on-1 meetings, structured team meetings, and ongoing training in both coaching and customer service. Clarity, consistency, and culture start at the top.

5. The Full Client Journey – From First Visit to Long-Term Loyalty

Most gyms are great at getting people through the door - but what happens next often lacks intention. A disjointed first experience or a neglected onboarding journey can turn curious visitors into one-time climbers, leaving your marketing budget doing all the heavy lifting without a return.

Your client journey starts before someone becomes a member and continues well beyond their first payment. From how they’re welcomed at reception, to how they’re followed up with after their first session, to the events, coaching, and connections that keep them coming back, it all matters.

If your new member plan is “send them an email,” you’re leaving loyalty, referrals, and long-term revenue on the table.

🛠 What to do: Design and map the full client journey, from initial enquiry to regular climber. Create consistent, welcoming first-visit experiences, build in personalised follow-ups, and structure the first 30 - 90 days to maximise connection, value, and retention. Track first-to-second-visit conversions and continuously refine your approach.

6. Average Spend Per Visit – Are You Maximising Value from Every Climber?

Whether they’re on PAYG, a membership, or a coaching programme how much is each climber really worth? Average spend per customer is a powerful indicator of both customer value and business efficiency. And it directly ties back to how much you can afford to spend on acquiring new members.

If your average customer spends £6 per visit, but it costs £20 in marketing to bring them in… you’ve got a problem. Boosting this metric even slightly (through retail, classes, food, or upsells) can significantly change your margins.

🛠 What to do: Track average spend across member types and visit types. Identify key upsell opportunities, coaching, retail, F+B, gear hire, and train your team to promote them with confidence and authenticity.

Final Thought: It’s Not Just About More – It’s About Better

Yes, bringing new people through the door is essential, but it’s what happens next that determines your gym’s long-term success.

From that very first visit, every interaction counts. If your systems for conversion, retention, and upselling aren’t working together, you’re constantly running on a hamster wheel, pouring energy into marketing without building the structure to hold onto the value you create.

Instead of chasing top-line growth alone, fix the foundation:

• Nail the first-time experience

• Convert more leads

• Keep members longer

• Maximise spend per visit

• Support your team to drive all of it

When you align your sales, operations, and coaching with a clear, consistent customer journey, you create a business that doesn’t just attract climbers, but turns them into a loyal community.

Need help building that kind of system? As an Indoor Climbing Industry Consultant, I work with climbing gyms to optimise their operations, build sustainable coaching programs, and turn performance plateaus into growth.

Let’s talk. Because in this business,

“Recruitment AND Retention are Key.”