A cursory review of its social media posts reinforces its claim of offering gym apparatus and exercise implements at prices that are more affordable than comparable products of more recognized brands.
A curved treadmill that sells for almost half a million pesos when manufactured in the US or Europe is being advertised for only P80,000 for a China-made commercial grade version that is imported by Primus’ parent firm Bigway Sports and Fitness Inc.
A rowing machine which is priced at around P200,000 for the most popular brand retails for as low as P35,000 for the version being sold by the San Juan City-based distributor.
These products were particularly popular with buyers at the hight of the Covid-19 pandemic when many people — stuck at home for months due to the strict lockdowns — sought ways to stay fit at home by buying exercise gadgets.
But on top of selling equipment, Bigway Sports’ owner and president Justinn Sze says the company now provides comprehensive fitness solutions to clients who want their own home gyms, those who want to go into the gym business, or companies that need to build fitness facilities for their employees.
And in doing so, he makes sure to encourage clients buy only the equipment they need instead of pushing them to shell out more money for the products he’s selling, even if they have money to burn.
“You don’t need to spend P3 million,” he tells InsiderPH in an interview. “Spend P300,000 and you can run your own gym.”
Clients welcome his business philosophy of helping them spend wisely on exercise equipment or when fitting out new gyms. This is especially important as more and more individuals and firms get on the health and fitness bandwagon in the wake of the pandemic.
Having been a competitive athlete himself, the 34-year-old Sze uses his expertise to help clients design their gyms and optimize the available space no matter how large or small.
And it shows in Bigway Sports’ impressive roster of big-name clients. The company has done work for the likes of Surge Fitness, AirAsia Philippines, Aya Hotel & Residences, Filinvest Land Inc., Telus International, Activate Sports Center, and even the kinetics science lab of the University of the Philippines’ College of Human Kinetics.
However, the most challenging projects for him are the small ones. The smallest he’s done had available space equivalent to only two studio-sized condo units.
These small projects leave almost no room for error, require him to optimize the available space, and recommend only the most essential equipment.
“I’ve done a commercial gym at 50 square meters,” he says. “No cardio [equipment]. Just dumbbells and the most important machines for chest and shoulders, leg press, extension curl, lat pulldown, and we’re done.”
“[At the cost of] P250,000 and we’re done,” Sze says proudly. “It was completed in one day.”
The young entrepreneur concedes that Bigway Sports isn’t the market leader at this point, but he is confident that he will be able to challenge his biggest rivals in the near future, especially as the local fitness industry grows.
“I am confident that my strengths are very different from the strengths of my competitors in this market,” Sze says. “I am attacking challenges presented to me by clients very differently and more optimally than others. This is my ‘all-in’, and I feel that I have an ace.”
Senior Reporter
