We had the good fortune of connecting with Tony Kosla and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tony, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
After years of helping others start and grow their business’s (a restaurant and then another fencing club) it felt like I had enough knowledge, experience and mentoring help to attempt to do it this on my own.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I own, operate and coach at “Plymouth/Ann Arbor Fencing Academy.” We are a fencing club that serves the metro Detroit area that in under 3 years already ranks in the top 25 largest clubs in the country. Most recently we earned 11 medals at USA fencing’s summer nationals, we have a reining world champion and a contender for a spot in the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The growth and success of the club has come quicker than I expected. I wouldn’t consider it “hard work” but you need to be organized and dedicated to providing a great service to your clients.

Every business has challenges but my mentality has always been to find the opportunity that those challenges can present.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If my best friend was visiting I would definitely take them to Zingerman’s Road House (or Deli) in Ann Arbor. I have to admit because my job mostly revolves around interacting with the public I tend to be a bit of a homebody outside of work.

I will say that northern and western Michigan is great so if I ever found a few days I could get away from the academy a weekend trip up north or to the Saugatuck area would be high on my list of places to go.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Sue and Scott Crompton whom I worked under before starting my own fencing club. They have generously served as business mentors to me ever since.

Website: pa2fa.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/

Image Credits
Tony Kosla and academy members and coaches

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