Stephen Oliver, MBA, is a 10th Degree Black Belt, the founder of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, a Georgetown University honors graduate, and one of the most accomplished strategic advisors in the martial arts industry. Known industry-wide as “The Millionaire Maker,” he has spent more than five decades in the martial arts — as a practitioner, instructor, multi-school operator, tournament promoter, industry publisher, and business coach to elite school owners worldwide.

For more than four decades he has built, operated, and scaled martial arts schools while coaching thousands of school owners across the United States and internationally to higher levels of professionalism, enrollment, retention, and profitability. In April 2026 he was promoted to 10th Degree Black Belt — the art’s highest rank — in recognition of more than five decades of continuous contribution to the martial arts.

Early Life and Martial Arts Training

Stephen Oliver began training in 1969 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, during what practitioners of the era recall as the “Blood & Guts” period of American karate. His first instructors — Bob Olinghouse and Gran Moulder — were Black Belts teaching under the Jhoon Rhee Institute system, placing him directly in the lineage of Jhoon Rhee, Allen Steen, and Pat Burleson, the founding generation of Korean martial arts in America.

By 1974 he was actively teaching, and he founded his first school in 1975 while still a teenager. In 1976 and 1978 he traveled to Washington, D.C., to train at the Jhoon Rhee Institute headquarters alongside Jeff Smith — then the reigning PKA World Light-Heavyweight Kickboxing Champion — and the elite stable of fighters and instructors that made the Jhoon Rhee organization the preeminent martial arts institution in the country. In 1978 he tested for and received his First Degree Black Belt with one of the highest scores ever given on the Jhoon Rhee Black Belt Exam. While in Tulsa he also cross-trained in Kenpo Karate, Goju Ryu, and Judo.

Georgetown University and the Jhoon Rhee Institute

A National Merit Scholar, Oliver earned a full scholarship to the University of Tulsa, where he spent two years as a University Scholar before transferring to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He graduated from Georgetown with an honors degree (A.B.) in 1982.

While at Georgetown, he served as a head instructor and branch manager for the Jhoon Rhee Institute — at the time widely recognized as the number-one martial arts business organization in the world. During those years he trained and worked directly under Jhoon Rhee (the father of American Tae Kwon Do), Nick Cokinos (then president of the Jhoon Rhee Institute and later chairman of Educational Funding Company), Jeff Smith, and Ned Muffley, absorbing the operational, teaching, and business systems that would form the foundation of his own school-building career.

Upon graduating, Oliver chose to forgo Wall Street and corporate America. Instead, he spent twelve months at the Library of Congress and the Small Business Administration studying direct-response marketing, business management, and sales strategy — building the blueprint for what would become Mile High Karate.

Founding and Building Mile High Karate

In 1983, Stephen Oliver moved to Denver, Colorado, and with $10,000 founded Mile High Karate, bringing the Jhoon Rhee system to the Rocky Mountain region. The results were immediate: five schools opened in eighteen months, six in thirty months. By 1985 — at age 25 — he had grown to more than 2,500 active students and surpassed $1,000,000 in annual revenue, an achievement virtually unheard of in the industry at the time.

At its peak, the Mile High Karate organization employed nearly 50 staff members and enrolled more than 3,500 active students across multiple locations throughout the Denver-Boulder metropolitan area, becoming the number-one martial arts school organization in the region and one of the top five in the world. Over the decades, Mile High Karate has promoted well over 1,000 Black Belts — ranging in age from 5 to 76 — and developed tens of thousands of students in Denver and through affiliated schools across the United States and internationally. Oliver later expanded Mile High Karate as an international franchise, with locations across the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

Martial Arts Rank and Lineage

Stephen Oliver’s lineage traces directly through the founding generation of American Tae Kwon Do and kickboxing — beginning in the Jhoon Rhee–Allen Steen–Pat Burleson lineage in Tulsa, continuing at the Jhoon Rhee Institute headquarters in Washington, D.C., and evolving through decades of training with Grand Master Jeff Smith, the first PKA World Light-Heavyweight Champion.

His promotions reflect that lineage: First Degree Black Belt in 1978 from Jhoon Rhee; 6th Degree in 1994, also from Jhoon Rhee; 7th Degree in 2001 from Grand Master Jeff Smith; 8th Degree from Jeff Smith; and 9th Degree from Jeff Smith, Bill Wallace, Pat Burleson, and Joe Corley, continuing in the same lineage. In April 2026 he was promoted to 10th Degree Black Belt — the highest rank attainable in the art — by Grand Master Jeff Smith, with recognition also from the Uechi-Ryu Butokukai under Grandmaster Buzz Durkin and the Senior Council.

Over his career, Oliver has trained in Tae Kwon Do, kickboxing, Goju Ryu, Judo, Kenpo Karate, Escrima (Philippine weaponry), traditional Ko-Budo (Okinawan weaponry), modern boxing, and grappling drawn from jujitsu. The Mile High Karate curriculum reflects this breadth — combining practical self-defense, personal development, and artistic expression in the tradition established by Jhoon Rhee.

MBA and Business Education

In 1989, Oliver returned to school to pursue a Master’s in Business Administration at the University of Denver, completing the MBA in 1992 with a primary focus on marketing. The program gave a formal academic framework to the direct-response marketing, sales systems, and operational strategies he had been developing and testing in his own schools for nearly a decade. He also served on the Entrepreneurship and Venture Management Board at the University of Denver.

Tournament Promotion and Sport Karate Leadership

In 1989, Oliver founded the Mile High Karate Classic, an international competition that quickly earned NASKA World Tour status — which it held from 1989 through 1999 — drawing competitors from all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, and Haiti. He was appointed to the Board of Directors of the North American Sport Karate Association (NASKA) and served as its national sanctioning director from 1989 to 1999. To date, his organizations have produced over 110 intramural tournament events.

Industry Leadership and Publishing

Stephen Oliver’s influence extends well beyond his own schools. He served on the Board of Directors of Educational Funding Company (EFC) from its inception through 2001 and was one of the organization’s first high-profile clients and national speakers for close to twenty years. He was the lead developer of the NAPMA Squared program (later renamed Maximum Impact), the Inner Circle, and the Peak Performers coaching program for the National Association of Professional Martial Artists (NAPMA). In 2007 he became CEO and Chairman of NAPMA and publisher of Martial Arts Professional Magazine, distributed to 23,000 professionals in the industry.

He was recognized as the U.S. Martial Arts Association’s number-one multi-school operator and inducted into its Hall of Fame in 2000, and was named one of the top 200 school operators internationally by Andrews International. He has been featured on the covers of Martial Arts Business Magazine, Martial Arts Professional Magazine, The Eagle Express, and other industry publications.

Author and Speaker

Stephen Oliver is the author of numerous books on martial arts school management, marketing, and leadership, including Everything I Wish I Knew When I Was 22: Essential Skills for Martial Arts School Owners, The Way of the Mile High Maverick, Direct Response Marketing for Martial Arts Schools, Six Simple Steps to Add 100 New Students to Your School, and the co-authored Extraordinary Teaching. In 1999 he published the first book written specifically for martial arts schools on internet marketing, and he later co-authored a book with legendary marketing strategist Dan Kennedy.

As a speaker, Oliver has shared the stage with Dan Kennedy, Brian Tracy, Jay Abraham, Tony Robbins, Lee Milteer, Chuck Norris, former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, and many others, delivering keynotes and seminars for martial arts professionals throughout the United States and internationally.

Martial Arts Wealth Mastery

Martial Arts Wealth Mastery is the culmination of more than four decades of school-building, coaching, and business strategy. The organization works exclusively with serious martial arts school owners — including BJJ academies, MMA gyms, Muay Thai gyms, and Krav Maga schools — to improve every dimension of their business: marketing and lead generation, enrollment systems, student retention, staff development, pricing and profitability, teaching quality, and long-term growth.

The team includes Grand Master Jeff Smith (10th Degree Black Belt and former PKA World Champion), Chief Master Greg Moody, PhD (8th Degree Black Belt), Bob Dunne, Lee Milteer, and other specialists. The program combines high-level coaching, peer mastermind groups, quarterly in-person sessions, monthly problem-solving, and staff training. Oliver has also extended his methodology beyond martial arts through Advisor Wealth Mastery, applying the same systems to financial advisors and other professional service firms.

Community Service

Since 1983, Stephen Oliver and the staff and students of Mile High Karate have maintained an active commitment to charitable work and community outreach. Mile High Karate has been the number-one contributing school to Chuck Norris’s Kick Drugs Out of America program, has supported The Children’s Hospital Foundation, and has volunteered in hundreds of area schools while raising well over $100,000 annually for local elementary schools through its Educational Foundation Outreach and Fostering Leadership programs.

Philosophy

At the core of Stephen Oliver’s career is a conviction that great martial arts and great business are not in conflict — they are inseparable. Profitable schools survive, attract better instructors, serve more families, maintain higher teaching standards, and create more Black Belts. A school that cannot sustain itself financially cannot fulfill its mission on the mat. His approach has always been operator-first: build and test systems in real schools with real students and real staff, then share what works.

Honors and Recognition

  • 10th Degree Black Belt (April 2026)
  • Go2 Karate Lifetime Achievement & Recognition Award
  • U.S. Martial Arts Association Hall of Fame (2000)
  • U.S. Martial Arts Association #1 Multi-School Operator
  • Andrews International Top 200 School Operators
  • NASKA Board of Directors and National Sanctioning Director (1989–1999)
  • EFC Board of Directors (inception through 2001)
  • CEO and Chairman, NAPMA; Publisher, Martial Arts Professional Magazine
  • University of Denver Entrepreneurship and Venture Management Board
  • Author of numerous books on martial arts school management and direct-response marketing

Frequently Asked Questions About Stephen Oliver

Who is Stephen Oliver?

Grand Master Stephen Oliver is a 10th Degree Black Belt, founder of Mile High Karate and Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, a Georgetown University honors graduate, MBA, author, speaker, and one of the most accomplished strategic advisors in the martial arts industry. He has spent more than five decades in the martial arts as a practitioner, instructor, multi-school operator, tournament promoter, industry publisher, and business coach to elite school owners worldwide.

Where is Stephen Oliver based?

He is based in the Denver–Golden, Colorado area, where he founded Mile High Karate in 1983, and also maintains offices in Tulsa, Oklahoma; Phoenix, Arizona; Washington, D.C.; and Tampa, Florida. He works with martial arts school owners and business clients internationally.

What rank does Stephen Oliver hold?

In April 2026 he was promoted to 10th Degree Black Belt — the highest rank attainable in the art. His progression reflects his lineage: First Degree in 1978 from Jhoon Rhee; 6th Degree in 1994; 7th Degree in 2001 from Grand Master Jeff Smith; 8th Degree from Jeff Smith; 9th Degree from Jeff Smith, Bill Wallace, Pat Burleson, and Joe Corley; and 10th Degree from Jeff Smith in 2026, also recognized by the Uechi-Ryu Butokukai under Grandmaster Buzz Durkin and the Senior Council.

When did he start training, and when did he start teaching?

He began training in 1969 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, during the “Blood & Guts” era of American karate, began actively teaching in 1974, and founded his first school in 1975 — while still a teenager.

Where did Stephen Oliver go to college, and does he have an MBA?

He attended the University of Tulsa for two years as a University Scholar and National Merit Scholar, then transferred to Georgetown University, graduating with an honors degree (A.B.) in 1982. He earned his MBA from the University of Denver in 1992, with a primary focus on marketing.

What is Mile High Karate, and how fast did it grow?

Mile High Karate is the school organization Oliver founded in Lakewood, Colorado, on August 6, 1983. Starting with $10,000, he opened five schools in eighteen months and six in thirty months; by 1985, at age 25, the organization had more than 2,500 active students and surpassed $1,000,000 in annual revenue. By the late 1980s it employed nearly 50 staff, enrolled more than 3,500 active students, and grew into one of the top five martial arts organizations in the world.

What books has Stephen Oliver written?

He is the author of numerous books on martial arts school management, direct-response marketing, and business operations, including Everything I Wish I Knew When I Was 22, The Way of the Mile High Maverick, Direct Response Marketing for Martial Arts Schools, Six Simple Steps to Add 100 New Students to Your School, and the co-authored Extraordinary Teaching. In 1999 he published the first book written specifically for martial arts schools on internet marketing, and he co-authored a book with marketing strategist Dan Kennedy.

What is Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, and who does it serve?

Martial Arts Wealth Mastery is the coaching and consulting organization Oliver founded to help serious school owners — traditional martial arts and karate/taekwondo schools, BJJ academies, MMA gyms, Muay Thai gyms, and Krav Maga schools — improve marketing, enrollment, retention, staff development, pricing, teaching quality, and long-term growth. The core difference is that Stephen Oliver is an operator first and a consultant second: he built and ran schools for decades before coaching others, and the program addresses the whole business rather than a single tactic.

Does Stephen Oliver work with businesses outside martial arts?

Yes. Through Advisor Wealth Mastery he applies the same direct-response marketing, client-acquisition, and practice-building systems to financial advisors and other professional service firms.

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