A Daytona Beach, FL gym can put racks, modular turf, freestanding mirrors and rubber mats on one equipment request when each item sits on a priced quote, and pay for movable equipment in a second studio room with a term loan; fixed room work is excluded. Cardio machines raise the lease-or-loan question. In every case, a partner reads the membership drafts to judge the payment.
An article from Marblepark Funding in Daytona Beach, Florida on gym equipment funding: one equipment quote, a studio room in a leased space, membership drafts and lease versus loan.
Racks, modular turf, freestanding mirrors and rubber mats on one request
Gym equipment and modular surfaces can share one equipment request as long as every movable piece has a price on a vendor quote. A partner then reads the quote line by line; fixed flooring and room work are excluded.
| Line | Price |
|---|---|
| Six power racks with plates and bars | $14,100 |
| Modular turf lane, 1,200 square feet | $7,680 |
| Freestanding mirrors, 48 feet of mirror surface | $5,280 |
| Movable rubber matting, 2,400 square feet | $7,440 |
| Quote total | $34,500 |
The racks are plain equipment: serial-numbered, movable and resold if a gym closes. The $34,500 quote identifies movable equipment by item and price. A partner can review it for equipment financing or a term loan; fixed flooring and mirror installation are excluded. Supplier setup should be listed separately from any fixed property work.
Small crews run a large share of the gyms in Volusia County, FL. County Business Patterns counted 67 fitness and recreational sports center establishments with paid staff in 2023 (NAICS 713940), and 27 of them, or 40.3%, had fewer than five employees. For a studio of that size, the length of the term decides how much of each month's drafts the payment takes.
Equipping a second studio room inside an existing lease
A second studio room, for classes or small-group training, can be equipped with movable items inside space the gym already rents. Fixed alterations are excluded. The lease comes first: it may require the landlord's written consent for supplier setup, and a partner may compare the years left on the lease with the loan term.
| Work | Price |
|---|---|
| Strength and cardio equipment | $9,600 |
| Freestanding mirrors and storage | $8,400 |
| Movable acoustic panels | $4,700 |
| Freestanding lighting and check-in hardware | $6,300 |
| Modular studio flooring | $3,500 |
| Movable-equipment total | $32,500 |
On a 48-month term at an annual rate of 11.5%, the $32,500 movable-equipment package is about $848 a month and $40,699 in all, including $8,199 of interest. If the room sells a class add-on at $39 a month, 22 add-on members cover the payment, by our arithmetic on these invented figures. A gym that can name those members from a waitlist has a stronger case than one counting on new sign-ups.
Fixed walls and heating or cooling work belong with the landlord, not in this funding request. The equipment request should identify each movable item on the supplier quote, with any required landlord consent for setup handled separately.
Membership revenue and how lenders read it
Monthly drafts are the gym income a partner can test against the bank statements. Illustration only, invented figures: a gym that bills 410 members $49 each on the first of the month expects $20,090 in drafts. If 4% of drafts fail in a month, $803.60 does not arrive, and the bank receives about $19,286.40. The billing software shows the $20,090; the bank statement shows what came in. A partner compares the two.
- Cancellations per month against new sign-ups, from the billing reports.
- Prepaid annual memberships: the cash is in the bank, but the gym still owes a year of access, so partners may not count it as monthly income.
- Personal training and class packs, shown apart from base memberships.
- Any fixed debits already leaving the account, such as an equipment lease.
Small fitness businesses without staff sit in a broader Census group. Nonemployer Statistics counted 313 businesses with no paid employees in other amusement and recreation industries in Volusia County, FL in 2024 (NAICS 7139), a group that also takes in golf courses, marinas and bowling centers. For a gap between draft dates, the working capital page sets out the short-term options.
Equipment lease or loan for cardio machines
Cardio machines are where the lease-or-loan question comes up most clearly, because they wear out and new models replace them. Illustration only, invented figures: eight treadmills at $6,200 and four upright bikes at $1,850 total $57,000.
| Equipment loan | Lease, then buy | |
|---|---|---|
| Terms | 60 months, annual rate 9.9% | 36 payments of $1,720, then a buyout of $11,000 |
| Monthly | $1,208 | $1,720 |
| Total paid | $72,497 | $72,920 |
Buying out the lease at the end costs $423 more than the loan in this sketch. The lease earns its place when the gym intends to hand the machines back after 36 months and lease new ones: then the total is $61,920 for three years of use, with no worn treadmills to sell. Equipment financing covers both routes, and the quote is the same either way.
Service plans for the machines are a separate line. A vendor may price preventive maintenance or an extended warranty on top of the $57,000; some partners fold it into the amount financed and some leave it out, so ask for it on its own line of the quote.
By Marblepark Funding · Updated
