Students develop business plan for a sustainable gym

hand-painted sketch of a building

sketch: private

How should a sustainable fitness studio be structured? Students from the bachelor's degree programs in Business Administration and International Management at THI Business School thought about this as part of an interdisciplinary project. Prof. Dr. Torsten Graap, Professor of Socioeconomics and Accounting, supervised the project.

In their holistic design, the students considered sustainability at all levels and integrated economic, ecological and social aspects: The building in which the gym is created would have to be constructed from renewable and sustainable raw materials, such as wood. In addition, it could be designed in biophilic design, i.e. with plant growth (see sketch).

Much would be recyclable: Water could be recycled, and the drinks and snacks offered would be all organic. A charging station for e-cars could be installed in front of the building. The gym would be run by Mindfull Businessleading, a comparatively new management concept that is all about being mindful of oneself, but also of employees and the environment, for example.
The concept was finalized in a planned balance sheet, a planned income statement and a planned cash flow statement.

With a little luck, the plans could even be put into practice: There are already potential investors interested in the project.