The Climbing Wall Association's blog is a place for indoor climbing professionals to find useful and relevant information from industry and business experts. Stay on top of best practices, thought leadership, and trends by subscribing to our newsletter!
Managing your marketing from a social media account is an easy, free way to advertise yourbusiness and there isn’t only one way to do it well. There are multiple avenues you can go down as a climbing gym to have a successful and engaging platform depending on your available resources. While... Continue Reading
The CWA is excited to announce the hiring of a new Membership Manager. Tilde Bombardo brings a rich tapestry of experience to her new role as the CWA's Membership Manager. Hailing from Naples, Italy, Tilde discovered her passion for climbing at the age of 12. She fell in love with the cliffs of... Continue Reading
Sponsored Content Brought to you by Warrior's Way. The most challenging moment for climbing coaches is when their athletes are shut down, unwilling, or unable to engage in an activity the coach thought was appropriate. The youth athlete that boulders V9 and has only redpointed 5.11c. The thought... Continue Reading
Eating disorders and RED-S have been hot topics in the climbing world in recent years, and particularly in competition climbing of late. In just the past year, two members of the IFSC Medical Commission resigned from their positions, climbers voiced their desire for more extensive athlete... Continue Reading
The indoor climbing industry witnesses a continual flux of personnel, with staff members transitioning to new opportunities, being let go, or advancing within the ranks, leading to recurrent gaps that need filling. For facility operators, prioritizing hiring becomes imperative. While selecting... Continue Reading
For many gyms, the busiest hours are weekday evenings, likely when the bulk of adult and youth programming occurs. A dedicated programming space, or programming-focused space, is vital to successful programming and the interactions between the average member and your programming during busy... Continue Reading
Developing a new climbing gym can be incredibly rewarding. But it’s not a simple process. Carefully balancing many factors—from the business model to the budget, real estate to construction costs—is needed to build a facility that will provide a good return on investment. We sat... Continue Reading
As a climbing wall worker, each day demands a delicate balance between exerting energy to set routes and boulder problems and allowing enough time for recovery to enjoy climbing yourself. Click here to view photos and videos of the exercises described in this article Climbing wall workers are... Continue Reading
“Well, it is that time of year again . . .” . . . is how I was going to start this article about how to implement new ideas into your gym. I am writing this in January, 2024, deep in the New-Year-Resolution-Boom (NYRB) of gym usage. You are likely reading this near the end of Q1,... Continue Reading
In our last article in this series, we outlined the benefits of focusing resources and energy on engaging your members, community, and employees in community-building programs. The research we cited is clear: by engaging your community of support, you increase your market presence, engage new... Continue Reading
When it comes to working with local climbing organizations (LCO’s), often the first thing that comes to mind are organizations that primarily focus on access to the outdoors. However, there are LCO’s out there who are working toward expanding the indoor climbing community.... Continue Reading
I am going to start by expressing a potentially contentious opinion: I love The Catcher in the Rye. While not everyone familiar with the novel may have enjoyed it, the story always resonated with me: a coming-of-age tale where the protagonist struggles with his perceptions of adulthood,... Continue Reading
