Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen and Chris Torres.
Karen and Chris, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My grammar is awful, lol, but I make up for it in personality. Chris and I had always loved sports and lived an active lifestyle before we started dating. Our love story is far from romantic but a wine and cheese party later, along with some extra wine, here we are nine years later and two girls, Elizabeth – 13 years old and Kayla – 6 years old.
Chris graduated from UM and then from YALE with a Masters in Business. He loves numbers and had a passion to one day own his own gym, fast forward into managing a health spa, being a manager at Carnival, now a director at Holistica, and a few other ventures. Yeah, he is kind of smart and he has a black belt too.
I managed my family’s Tae Kwon Do studio, Better Families, for around 13 years, earned my fourth degree black belt, in between that I have done some stunt work, consulting around the country for other martial arts school, then found a passion for fashion which led me to start my image consulting business.
That was not enough for us. Just kidding, we’re just nuts and enjoy finding ways to entertain ourselves with new challenges and opportunities. We should learn how to say no, lol.
Chris was in search for a new sport, and then there was Ameican Ninja Warrior. So in his search to find somewhere to train he found Miami Freerunning (MFR) where we then made a great friend with the owner. Fast forwarding a few years later, while I was attending Paul Mitchell for my cosmetology license, Chris calls me and asks, “what do you think about owning a Parkour gym..”, and there we go again, not knowing how to say no. How could you, it’s not every day you get to own a playground! Between his business degree, my experience managing the martial arts school, and an awesome team at MFR, we were down for the challenge.
MFR is not just a place where people come to play, it’s a community and that is what drives us to keep our gym running to its best ability. We both know that sports is more than just moving; it gives people of all ages, genders, and backgrounds to come together, grow in confidence, and express themselves in a healthy way. Our team is one of the best. I am sure we annoy them often with our chats and meetings, but they know we adore them and that without them our vision could not come to life.
After three years in Doral, we were finally convinced to open our second location in Kendall, yes, again, not knowing how to say no. This past November, we were up and running in both locations. Our never ending goal is to spread as much joy throughout the community, help those who do not have a voice find freedom through movement, and create the world’s largest family.
Owning a business is one of the hardest things, yes so awesome, but yet so difficult. Balancing our time as individuals, a couple, and parents has had it’s challenges but because we continue to say yes we have only gotten better at it. A break would be nice but for now we will keep running off of cafecito. Not to mention it helps to have two amazing and crazy little girls who are down for the chaotic lifestyle, who are pretty amazing as well.
Again, if you were an English major and was forced to read this, I apologize.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Owning a business is like becoming a first time parent. It’s nerve wrecking. There is always something to do. There is no sleeping, but it’s one of the most rewarding experiences.
It has not been easy. You think you have a plan but then it has to change in a very last minute frantic way. Managing a team of different personalities takes a special skill all while making sure they know how appreciated they are. We have had to learn so much along the way including through our failures. No one likes to fail, but luckily, we do our best to make a positive change.
When we bought MFR, Chris already had a full-time job and was doing his best to be a part of MFR. It may sound simple but it made things very stressful in many ways. Eventually, we came to the agreement that I would manage things and he would be the numbers guy. Even so, we had a lot to learn about each other’s working style.
One of the things that makes the obstacles worth it is when people tell you how easy you make it look, how wonderful things are coming together, and how proud they are of you. If they only knew the tears and doubts behind it, but at least we look good going crazy. I will say it over and over again though, without our team this would not be possible and our girls have been troopers.
Tell us more about the business.
We play all day long! We are a Parkour and Freerunning teaching facility. Parkour is how to get from one point to another as quickly and efficiently as possible, whether you are running, jumping, or rolling. Freerunning is Parkour mixed with acrobatics, flipping, cartwheels, and it has a bit more swag to it.
When we took over MFR, we wanted to make sure when people referred to us, they knew we were about community and having an awesome time with the sport we love. To walk in a stranger and leave part of the family. We believe this is what makes us different and we are very proud of that.
Our class is suitable for ages as young as four and as experienced as 104. We created a curriculum that allows students to achieve goals but also the freedom to enjoy training. In addition to our regular classes, we provide open gym times to give students the freedom to focus on what they want. Free play! If group sessions are not your thing or you have something specific you want to work on, we offer private sessions, whether it be related to the sport or general fitness we do it. We also offer “P.E. class” for students who are Homeschooling. We started with one class a week to five classes a week. That has been a pretty awesome experience.
Birthday parties, school appearances, summer and Spring break camps, Team Building Workshops, Career Days, FUNdraisers, and field trips are more services we offer. Like I said, we try to reach out to the community as often as possible.
Just recently, we started a toddler class which we host in pre-schools and daycares. It has been a blast but I will tell you I am done after that hour. We call it “Monkeying Around”… Lol! Our next goal is to have an after school program and to try and take a family vacation.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
My husband could strangle me for how often I use the words, “I feel..”, Lol, but this is the way we balance each other out. He is a walking spreadsheet, and I am a unicorn. I believe what you put into this universe is what you will get in return, and I believe everything happens for a reason. I “feel” because we don’t give up and are always trying ways to do more. We are bound to find some success, and when we do to run with it.
For our homeschool class, a friend I used to workout with started homeschooling her daughter. She mentioned that we should offer a class, so we hosted a demo class and here we are two years later with a phenomenal program.
Our Kendall location was something we wanted to do for some time. Still, it wasn’t until an old martial arts student I taught came in to Doral. He put us in contact with an awesome Broker who helped us find a location. This was a favor of a lifetime.
I could mention a few more random acts of awesomeness. It is definitely a mix of luck and taking advantage of the opportunities that luck presents us.
Pricing:
- First class – FREE
- Walk-ins $20
- Open Gyms $10 – $15
- Memberships $130 – $160
- Punchards $160- $300
- Homeschool $40 – $100
- Private Sessions $60 – $75
- Parties $350 – $550
Contact Info:
- Address: Doral – 8284 NW 66 St, Miami, FL
Kendall – 12770 SW 125 Ave, Miami, FL - Website: www.MiamiFR.com
- Phone: Doral – (305) 994-7557 Kendall – (786) 732-0056
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/ miamifreerunningacademy/ - Facebook: https://www.
facebook.com/miamifreerun/
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