Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Johnson.
Hi Michael, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, you could tell our readers some of your backstory.
In high school, I was a 4-year Varsity Starter in basketball and football and started running track my senior year. I had numerous scholarship offers in all those sports but decided to pursue track and field. I attended Mississippi State University on a full athletic scholarship to run track, competed in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay, and was an 18x All-American. When deciding to pick a major, Exercise Science stood out because I learned about the Anatomy of the body and the physics of how everything moved together! I knew I wanted to coach, but I didn’t want to be a high school or collegiate coach; I wanted to be a high-level coaching professional who trained athletes.
After college, I was offered a contract to run professionally for Nike and train with some of the best athletes in the world. I moved to Orlando, FL, to be coached by world-renowned sprint and hurdle coach Brooks Johnson at the Disney Wide World of Sports complex. Being coached by Brooks Johnson, I ran 9.98 in the 100m and qualified for the 2000 Olympic Trials but unfortunately could not compete due to a motorcycle accident that I was in 3 weeks before the trials. After a 7 year professional career, I decided to hang up the spikes.
During my pro career, I met many influential people, and one was Loren Seagraves, former Founder and CEO of the franchise Velocity Sports Performance. When I was done competing, Loren asked me what my plan was because he knew my degree was in Exercise Science and thought I would be a great candidate for his brand. So he had me go into the local Velocity Sports Performance in Orlando, FL, as a speed consultant to work with high-end athletes to get faster and more explosive, and things just took off from there!
I was then asked to move to Los Angeles, CA, to be part of the Velocity Sports Performance corporate office to work with more pro athletes and then write the training programming for every Velocity Sports in the country. So, after spending a couple of years in California, I was allowed to buy my first Velocity Sports Performance in Greenville, SC. I then purchased Velocity Sports and had to hit the ground running because the Greenville location was not up to corporate standards. After a year, I completely turned the Greenville location around. I made a name for myself in Greenville for getting athletes faster and more explosive and competing at a high level. Unfortunately, after a few years in Greenville, Velocity Sports started dying as a brand, so I did not renew my franchise agreement and was recruited by another thriving franchise, D1 Training.
In December 2019, I purchased the franchise D1 Training. Two months later, the nation was hit with COVID-19 and had to shut down for five months. After some trials and tribulations from COVID-19 and other life-changing events, I shut down franchise mode in February 2022, refocused, and started my brand to franchise and scale. I learned much from both franchise companies: programming, systems, events, etc.
I started working on launching my own company, PAP Sports, which had been my LLC for both franchises. In December 2022, PAP Sports was officially launched at our branding party. We went into construction in January 2023 and officially opened our doors to the first location in March. The team that was put together is all-stars and brings a lot to the table. Everyone has college in either Exercise Science or a related field, Master’s degrees in Strength and Conditioning, and Business. The last 7 months have been exciting; we have grown and learned a lot. We are now working on mastering our systems before opening up the following location.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It could have been smoother, but I had some obstacles and challenges. I overgrew in becoming a high-level performance coach and getting results for athletes, but being an entrepreneur and running a business is the same. I took some losses because I was so emotionally attached to coaching that I was not making the right decisions for the business. So, over the last year or so, the focus has been developing as a business owner to help scale and have a thriving brand. Attending conferences, having a business coach, and being part of coaching programs have helped me tremendously!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Simply put, our mission is “Athletic Evolution.” After spending time in our facility and with our team, we want our members to walk out of our doors after a workout and feel like they are a better version of themselves. PAP Sports is here to meet the wide range of our athlete’s needs. We coach our clients to gain the competitive edge they want. Our team cares about guiding and encouraging each client to obtain the goals they seek for themselves. Whether to coach a competitive outlet to an athlete to be bigger, faster, and stronger, guide weight loss through personalized direction, or encourage the everyday chase of a healthier lifestyle through responsible programming, we will help you defy all odds. Our client’s goals are specific, and if we can assist in realizing their aspirations, we have truly helped them change their life.
Before we go, how can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
Just stop by our state-of-the-art facility at 1461 Woodruff Rd Suite B, Greenville, SC 29607, or call us at 864-732-7779
Contact Info:
- Website: www.papsports.com
- Instagram: pap_sportstraining
- Facebook: Papsportstraining
- Other: ceo_papsports
