Modern Growth for Medieval Combat: Building a Sports Club Like a Startup
Growth isn't just about getting more people through the door – it's about finding the right people and giving them the best possible start. Over three years, my business partner and I ran a number of experiments to discover which onboarding approaches actually converted curiosity into long-term commitment.
2021–2023
My (business) partner & I
Hypothesis development and experiment design
Course curriculum design and planning
Website and payment flow optimisation
Data collection and outcome analysis
Cohort tracking and retention measurement
Project coordination and execution
Three systematic experiments (one successful, one inconclusive, and one failed) that doubled our club membership in the first year and revealed an actionable strategy for future growth.
Some valuable lessons and takeaways about balancing growth appetites with operational sustainability, lead quality versus quantity, and more.
What the hell is Armoured Combat?
If you're picturing people in full medieval armour trading blows in an MMA-style match, you're getting close to understanding what full-contact armoured combat is. Originating in Eastern Europe, this unique sport came to the UK only about 10 years ago and is slowly gaining popularity since.
In 2017 my partner established a new club in Gloucester, which I joined as co-founder in 2019. We ran every aspect of this micro-business until 2023; in these four years we tried on every hat imaginable: player-coaches, marketers, accountants – you name it.
Learning new skills wasn't our biggest challenge though – it was figuring out how to grow sustainably in such a niche market. This is where my growth experimenter skills came in handy.
Experiment #1: On-ramp program for beginners
The Problem:
The idea of being thrown at the deep end during your first martial arts class can be pretty off-putting. How can we help new starters feel more comfortable during their first training and get them to return after?
Experiment card #1
Designed by:
Ira
HMB Foundations – a specialised on-ramp beginners’ course.
It’s desirable (the course sells out).
Those curious about buhurt will be more eager to give it a go in a safe, beginner-friendly environment.
If we group beginners together and give them a structured introduction to the sport then they will have a better learning experience and will be more likely to come back after their first training.
A 5-week, 10 classes-long program focusing on duelling skills.
80% of the course filled,
80% of participants complete the course,
50% retention rate per cohort.
If it passes, we start running the courses regularly;
If it’s inconclusive, we run another cohort to get a new dataset by the end of the year;
If it fails, we roll back to individual onboarding and explore alternative ways to increase the number of returning visitors.
Timeframe:
Jan-Dec 2021
Execution:
To bring this experiment to life, we divided the work: while my partner developed the course curriculum, I focused on building everything we needed to find and convert potential newcomers. This included:
Creating a landing page for the new course,
Designing the signup form to capture leads
Setting up basic analytics to track conversion from page visit to signup.
Actual outcomes: Success
100%
places sold
The waiting list was filling up pretty fast, too!
👍
All
participants completed the course
👍
80%
attended 2+ regular sessions after the course (retained)
👍
Next steps:
Since our first-ever beginners course was an overall success, we agreed to carry on with the practice but adjust the program slightly to include group disciplines, too, and run another cohort by the end of the year.
2018
Experiment #2: Shortening the course duration
The Problem:
Last year’s HMB Foundations was a great success, with the average retention rate of 55%. The interest in joining our sports club is now picking up, too. How might we bring even more people on board without burning ourselves out?
Experiment card #2
Designed by:
Ira
Shorter but more frequent beginners courses.
Increased yearly onboarding numbers without us going nuts.
Shorter, more frequent beginner courses are more resource-efficient compared to the previous setup.
If we reduce the duration but increase the frequency of the courses then the results will stay the same but the strain put on us as coaches will reduce.
Two-week program run 4 times a year.
x2 people onboarded compared to last year,
Retention rate maintained at 55%,
Better work-life balance for the coaches.
If it passes, we keep the new program and course frequency;
If it’s inconclusive, we adjust the course and run v2.1 to get more data;
If it fails, we roll back to the previous program and explore alternative ways to boost numbers whilst optimising resources.
Timeframe:
Jan-Sept 2022
Execution:
Making this work required scaling our systems – processing payments manually was not an option anymore. Some of the steps I took:
1
Updated the copy of the course page to match new schedule and curriculum
2
Replaced the signup form with an automated booking flow using Calendly and PayPal
3
Created a bunch of email workflows (booking confirmation, cancellations, course reminders)
Actual outcomes: Inconclusive
161%
increase in signups compared to last year
👍
16%
👎
Happier coaches
8 weeks of work split into 2-week chunks spread throughout the year felt much more manageable
👍
Next steps:
To hit our signup targets, we run short Facebook ad campaigns for about 2 weeks before each cohort started. Whilst it did help us to fill the courses, it diluted the quality of leads compared to the previous year's organic traffic.
To improve lead quality and identify candidates who are more likely to commit to the sport, we decided to introduce a lead qualification form and planned an additional men-only cohort in November to gather more data.
Experiment #3: Armoured Combat taster sessions
The Problem:
After leadership changes in late 2022, all beginners courses were suspended and the newcomers were invited to join regular sessions instead. This led to a significant decline in recruitment. How can we reintroduce structured onboarding without overwhelming the new leadership team?
Experiment card #3
Designed by:
Ira
Beginners’ Nights – a new monthly taster session.
The new approach is feasible for the new leadership and the recruitment and retention numbers climb back up.
Making people pay upfront reduces the no-show rate;
Dedicated one-off introduction session
If we offer frequent paid-upfront taster sessions then more people who expressed interest in the sport will show up and try it out.
Dedicated taster sessions run once a month until the end of the year.
Reduction in no-show rates,
Retention rate back to 16% minimum (2022 results).
If it passes, we keep the new approach and frequency;
If it’s inconclusive, we extend the experiment into Q1 ‘24 to gather more data;
If it fails, we study the post-taster feedback for improvement suggestions or explore alternative ways to solve The Problem.
Timeframe:
Q3-Q4 2023
Actual outcomes: Fail
32%
reduction in no-shows compared to Q1-Q2
👍
12%
👎
Next steps:
The last 2 experiments demonstrated that shortening the onboarding experience harms the long-term retention. I recommended the club’s new leadership to explore the possibility of training additional coaches to create a rotation and re-introduce longer 4-week programs.
Learnings & takeaways
Quality beats quantity every time. Our most successful cohort came from organic traffic and word-of-mouth, not paid advertising. When we prioritised filling seats over finding the right fit, our retention plummeted. Lesson learnt: expensive acquisition means nothing if you're acquiring the wrong users.
Onboarding depth drives long-term value. The data consistently showed that longer, more comprehensive programs produced 5x better retention than quick introductions. Cutting corners on user onboarding almost always backfires – early investment in user success pays compound returns.
Small barriers filter for genuine intent. When we introduced upfront payment for taster sessions, no-shows dropped by 32%. Not all friction is bad for conversion – sometimes it acts as a commitment device: people who invest something upfront are more likely to follow through.
Running a small business can be extremely insightful; this long three-year experiment has taught me some good growth lessons I'll definitely take with me into my next chapter.