Case Study: How Ron Kuhn Grew Revenue 21% Across Three Fort Wayne Schools During the Pandemic

Ron Kuhn owns three martial arts schools in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and he did his homework before joining anything. He was already part of a franchise and several martial arts mastermind groups. So when he grew revenue 21% year over year during the pandemic — the year most schools were fighting just to survive — it wasn’t luck. It was the result of a careful, engineer’s-eye decision to add the one thing his franchise and other groups were missing.

Watch Ron Kuhn’s story

Due diligence: the $250 tuition that got his attention

Ron first came across Stephen Oliver’s group early on, when he opened his school — but at the time he was still in the beginning stages and didn’t yet meet the criteria to be a member. As he grew and joined a franchise, he stayed active in several mastermind groups. What eventually pulled him in was a pricing number. He came across two members — Larry and Olga, and Keith — who were charging $250 a month for basic tuition. That stopped him: “Geez, I want to know more about this.”

He got on the phone with them, heard how they were operating, and got connected to Bob Dunne. Then Ron did what a careful operator does: he called three or four other members to make sure those results weren’t outliers. They weren’t. His conclusion was that these schools were “operating in the top one percent of all the martial arts schools in the industry” — and that’s exactly where he wanted to be.

Filling the gaps a franchise leaves

Ron joined the QuickStart program and quickly saw the value. His franchise provided great support, he says, but there were a lot of gaps — and this group was excellent not only at identifying those gaps but explaining why they mattered. For Ron, an ex-engineer, that “why” was essential. After nine or ten months he moved up from QuickStart into the Leadership and Mastery program, where he found even more value.

The specific things he picked up read like a business-school curriculum for school owners:

• Pricing — especially price elasticity.
• Budgeting — what percentages of revenue should go toward rent, payroll, and the like.
• Marketing — particularly the Marketing Parthenon.
• Operations, staff development, and program development — making his programs more successful and more valuable, which means more revenue.
• Wealth management — something not part of his franchise at all. Ron was impressed by Master Oliver’s contacts in that world and the ability to get support to actually grow wealth, not just move money in and out.

The result: up 21% in the pandemic year

Ron came on board just before the pandemic and followed Master Oliver’s advice through it. The outcome: his schools posted a 21% increase year over year — in the pandemic year. Some of that came from guidance and some from pricing suggestions. In fact, Ron ended the year with a few fewer students, but because he had changed his pricing, his revenue went up. That’s price elasticity in action: the right pricing move can grow revenue even as the student count dips.

And during the months his schools were forced to close, Ron’s locations ranked in the top 10 schools in his entire franchise — both of those months. For an owner surrounded by other systems and groups, the message is hard to miss: the gaps he closed with this coaching were the difference between struggling and outperforming.

What Ron’s story should teach you

• A franchise or a mastermind can still leave gaps. Ron had both and still found major missing pieces — pricing, budgeting, wealth management — that changed his results.
• Pricing can beat headcount. Ron grew revenue 21% while ending the year with slightly fewer students, purely by changing his pricing.
• Do your due diligence — then act. He verified the results with multiple members before joining, confirmed they were top 1%, and committed.
• Understanding the “why” drives implementation. The coaching didn’t just tell Ron what to do; it explained why, which is what made him actually do it.

Related Reading

• The Marketing Parthenon: Why Your School Needs Many Columns, Not One
• Raise Martial Arts Tuition to Premium: Escape the Commodity Trap
• Should You Hire a Martial Arts Marketing Agency or a Business Coach?
• Case Study: How Colby Winkler Doubled His Mankato School to $57K a Month

Frequently asked questions

Who is Ron Kuhn?

Ron Kuhn owns three martial arts schools in Fort Wayne, Indiana. A former engineer, he was already part of a franchise and several mastermind groups before joining Stephen Oliver’s Martial Arts Wealth Mastery.

How did his schools do during the pandemic?

Ron’s schools grew revenue 21% year over year during the pandemic year, following Master Oliver’s guidance and pricing suggestions. He ended the year with slightly fewer students but higher revenue, and his locations ranked in his franchise’s top 10 during the closed months.

If he already had a franchise, why join?

Because the franchise, while supportive, left gaps. Martial Arts Wealth Mastery added pricing and price-elasticity strategy, budgeting benchmarks, the Marketing Parthenon, staff and program development, and even wealth management — areas his franchise didn’t cover.

Find the gaps in your own school

Even a well-run, multi-location operation usually has gaps worth real money. The fastest way to find yours is a free, no-obligation Personal Evaluation with our team. Call or text our National Director Bob Dunne at +1 (720) 256-0208, or book online below.

About the Author

Stephen Oliver, MBA and 10th Degree Black Belt, is the Founder and CEO of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, CEO of NAPMA (National Association of Professional Martial Artists), and Publisher of Martial Arts Professional magazine. A martial arts school owner since 1975, he and his coaching team — including World Champion Grandmaster Jeff Smith and Dr. Greg Moody — have helped owners across the country build stronger, more profitable schools and $1M+ businesses.