Business to open in former Benchmark Fitness in Bluffton. Owners hope you’ll flip over it
A vacant Bluffton gym is getting a new life in the new year.
When Halle and Neil McComb realized families were driving from Beaufort County to their Charleston gymnastics center, they knew there was a good reason to expand their business. Then, finding a gym for sale in Bluffton’s Sheridan Park sealed the deal.
The couple plans to open Flip! Gym in the space that previously was home to Benchmark Fitness Center at 11 Sheridan Park Circle. Benchmark closed on Sept. 13 after the owners announced their retirement.
The target date for Flip! Gym’s grand opening is Jan. 4, Halle McComb said.
“We heard from so many different families that there is a need there for businesses like ours,” she said.
Flip! Gym has been open in Charleston for about 12 years, but the McCombs have been in the gymnastics center business for about 20 years. The Bluffton programs will build on the couple’s experience, Halle McComb explained.
Once open, the Bluffton facility will be a fully equipped gymnastics center that will accommodate toddlers through the highest levels of the sport.
In addition, the center will have a ninja course in the style of the “American Ninja Warrior” television show. Athletes jump, swing and climb over obstacles as quickly as possible to score points and advance through competition.
“It’s the newest, fastest growing individual sport,” McComb said.
The center will offer recreational classes and competition programs in both gymnastics and ninja. The size of the Bluffton building and its high ceilings mean the gym also will be able to host larger competitions.
McComb said people are already signing up for classes on the business’ website, and a discount is being offered to the first 100 families who sign up for a one-year membership. Class prices vary based on a child’s age and skill level.
While the gym won’t be sponsoring a competition cheer team, she said the tumbling classes may be attractive to those in that sport.
The weekly classes and open gym time — you pay by the hour — will be supplemented by an after-school program and events like “Ninja at Night,” a drop-off time with music and lights that will keep children entertained so parents can enjoy a date night.
Ninja- or gymnastics-themed birthday parties can accommodate up to 24 children and also are available for booking on www.flipgym.net.
Building changes
The signs on the building still say Benchmark Fitness Center, but workers inside have begun making the transformation to Flip! Gym.
The parking lot has a fresh coat of asphalt.
Inside, walls will be removed and everything will be painted in the gym’s signature blue and yellow colors to give the space a fresh look, McComb said. All of the equipment will be brand new.
“It will feel very different,” she said.
“We feel like it’s a huge opportunity,” she said. “We’re super excited to get going.”
