Your Affiliation and what you get out of it?

It used to be that you identified with who gave you your black belt (and it was thought you you were "their" blackbelt in that they directly supervised and endorsed your growth to black, knew your game, had helped you with it, etc.). Now those see to be boxes that are checked off in a "sure, i helped him, I know him, we did some seminars and trained a few times".

But there are lots of affiliations where someone doesn't mention who they got their black belt under, they rep their recent associated affiliation as if they are a product of it and are producing products of it the same as the home academy.

In reality though, it's more of a licensing agreement. If I wanted to use the official Chicago Bears logo, on my apparel, I would need to get permission and pay fees. But that doesn't mean that the Bears actually train at my academy or that we produce Chicago Bears football players at my academy. It's not truly a Chicago Bears training camp I'd be running and it would be a misdirection and unethical business for me to use the Bears logo to imply such.

Get your Blackbelt from Marcelo, Renzo, etc and open an affiliate to them, makes sense. But pay for logo and signage of random big name you aren't a product of and you're back to the Chicago Bears scenario IMO.

Isn't that almost the definition of McDojo? A franchise like McDonalds looking to capitalize on the name to churn out product and make money without standing on the strengths your own product?

Why wouldn't I open up a Renzo, Marcelo, Atos affiliate? Because I'm not a Renzo, Atos, Marcelo guy. Taking six months and a couple of trips wouldn't turn me into one, it would just make them guys I'd trained with a few times.

As to it being "business". Ethical business is "building the better mousetrap" not ensnaring customers any way you can to make a buck. Providing a quality product or service at a fair price is what good business is fundamentally at it's roots. People purchase quality goods like Honda and Toyota but feel robbed by knock-offs bearing a brand name that lack the quality.

/Rant mode off

^^^^ that was extremely well explained. VU Phone Post 3.0

Most people that seek a Jiu-Jitsu school have no clue what or who is Atos, Alliance or Checkmat are unless they have prior training in Jiu-Jitsu or have done their homework on what Jiu-Jitsu can offer. The only name that a lot of people who seek Jiu-Jitsu training are familiar with is the Gracie name. So being part of a Gracie association as a means to help the business in pulling in prospective students might be beneficial but other than that I see no need to be part of a non-Gracie association unless an instructor wants to help develop his comeptition team to a higer level or use the association to help pull in students from other non-affiliated schools.

Ernest Estrada - 


Most people that seek a Jiu-Jitsu school have no clue what or who is Atos, Alliance or Checkmat are unless they have prior training in Jiu-Jitsu or have done their homework on what Jiu-Jitsu can offer. The only name that a lot of people who seek Jiu-Jitsu training are familiar with is the Gracie name. So being part of a Gracie association as a means to help the business in pulling in prospective students might be beneficial but other than that I see no need to be part of a non-Gracie association unless an instructor wants to help develop his comeptition team to a higer level or use the association to help pull in students from other non-affiliated schools.


That's how I see it too. The gym I'm a member of affiliated with one of the big non-gracie schools about about a year ago. Personally I did not see the point. I don't think the affiliation brings in much business to be honest. There is also this strange feeling of obligation to attend the frequent seminars that happen now with the affiliation. I don't mind the seminars, but they get expensive for a broke ass student.

I also find the instantaneous loyalty to an association that we had no connection with a couple years ago strange. We now take pride in the wins earned by those in the upper ranks of the affiliation.

Personally, I think small gyms that have built up their own brand should take pride in that. It is not checkmat, atos, or alliance that have built these gyms in far off cities. Why would these small gyms give away their identity that they have worked hard to build and maintain.

Foos - 
Ernest Estrada - 


Most people that seek a Jiu-Jitsu school have no clue what or who is Atos, Alliance or Checkmat are unless they have prior training in Jiu-Jitsu or have done their homework on what Jiu-Jitsu can offer. The only name that a lot of people who seek Jiu-Jitsu training are familiar with is the Gracie name. So being part of a Gracie association as a means to help the business in pulling in prospective students might be beneficial but other than that I see no need to be part of a non-Gracie association unless an instructor wants to help develop his comeptition team to a higer level or use the association to help pull in students from other non-affiliated schools.


That's how I see it too. The gym I'm a member of affiliated with one of the big non-gracie schools about about a year ago. Personally I did not see the point. I don't think the affiliation brings in much business to be honest. There is also this strange feeling of obligation to attend the frequent seminars that happen now with the affiliation. I don't mind the seminars, but they get expensive for a broke ass student.

I also find the instantaneous loyalty to an association that we had no connection with a couple years ago strange. We now take pride in the wins earned by those in the upper ranks of the affiliation.

Personally, I think small gyms that have built up their own brand should take pride in that. It is not checkmat, atos, or alliance that have built these gyms in far off cities. Why would these small gyms give away their identity that they have worked hard to build and maintain.

Honestly? Some people like pack mentality and also want to feel as if they belong to something greater than themselves. Or at least that is my own personal thoughts.

Hunter V - 
Foos - 
Ernest Estrada - 


Most people that seek a Jiu-Jitsu school have no clue what or who is Atos, Alliance or Checkmat are unless they have prior training in Jiu-Jitsu or have done their homework on what Jiu-Jitsu can offer. The only name that a lot of people who seek Jiu-Jitsu training are familiar with is the Gracie name. So being part of a Gracie association as a means to help the business in pulling in prospective students might be beneficial but other than that I see no need to be part of a non-Gracie association unless an instructor wants to help develop his comeptition team to a higer level or use the association to help pull in students from other non-affiliated schools.


That's how I see it too. The gym I'm a member of affiliated with one of the big non-gracie schools about about a year ago. Personally I did not see the point. I don't think the affiliation brings in much business to be honest. There is also this strange feeling of obligation to attend the frequent seminars that happen now with the affiliation. I don't mind the seminars, but they get expensive for a broke ass student.

I also find the instantaneous loyalty to an association that we had no connection with a couple years ago strange. We now take pride in the wins earned by those in the upper ranks of the affiliation.

Personally, I think small gyms that have built up their own brand should take pride in that. It is not checkmat, atos, or alliance that have built these gyms in far off cities. Why would these small gyms give away their identity that they have worked hard to build and maintain.

Honestly? Some people like pack mentality and also want to feel as if they belong to something greater than themselves. Or at least that is my own personal thoughts.

Yeah, bro. Think of all the sweet patches from your gym's new association you could paste all over your brand new Shoyoroll gi...

From the Association's perspective, it seems like the fundamental question is what makes a sustainable business model.

Too high a price for too little value - no client retention in the long term.

Too little price for too high a value - not enough capital to keep you afloat

Which brings us (back, in a way) to the question of "what value would you LIKE to receive from your association, and what would you pay for it?"

 

is someone really your instructor if he sees you once or twice a year? how much can you really learn from him? it does legitimize your school. is that school ran by a purple with an affiliation halfway around the globe more legitimate than the no name black belt with no affiliation down the street? being "under" someone doesn't really mean what most think it does.