My experience building an educational platform for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Since I was 15 years old, a ‘gi and a belt’ have been essential when I think about practicing sports. Transitioning from Judo, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu has always been part of my life, and from the first-week of training I realized that this martial art would play a pivotal role in my future.
In 2013, more than a decade after my first training, I decided to do something that would combine my abilities as a web developer, my experience as an entrepreneur and my passion for BJJ. This led me to think about how I could give back to the sport as much as it gave to me. Analyzing the experience from friends looking for sponsorship to compete in international championships, I started to test a crowdfunding idea for BJJ athletes.
To test this idea, I spoke with people inside the market who were both knowledgeable and experienced and were eager to help me determine if it would be a good investment of time and money.
I used LinkedIn, as an approach platform, to find people from the market. Following this, I began to talk with Luca Atalla, who was the CEO at GracieMag, a magazine that I had bought, since the beginning of this story.
He shared the statistics with me regarding this market, and gave me feedback about the idea. However, the most intriguing thing about our conversation was that he was looking for a CTO for a company, called CrayonStock, he was about to start in Brazil. Unfortunately, after few years we did not succeed in consolidating as a Brazilian stock photo company.
After we had put our heads together again, we decided that it was time to change and test a new idea in a known market for us, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. During this period we started planning our new endeavor, Gallerr.
Founded in 2016, Gallerr was created from the concept that everyone should have “access to idols.” This prime online educational platform provides affordable, engaging, and inspirational online classes taught by world-renowned instructors, making it possible for anyone to learn from the best.
One year ago, we started it not knowing what the future would hold, beginning as a social platform for BJJ we worked at looking to improve the interaction between the people inside this environment. This atmosphere gave us different situations to deal with, and it was not an easy process, even with a living experience of the sport.
Our first significant validation occurred when we went to cover the 2016 World Championship in Long Beach, California. There we talked and discussed with stakeholders working to validate our assumptions and sought internal information from the experts about what to expect.
After that, we started to test live broadcasting for events and seminars; concluding that our business is not about events, it’s about learning. We analyzed a bunch of posts and realized a large part of the audience wants to learn the basics right up to the advanced level.
Moreover, we improved our media type as a result of feedback, because photos were not the best format for those wanting to learn more, videos are much better for the public. Using this knowledge we have started to make our own film productions in Brazil and United States. This action has been critical to our present success.
We shot with great BJJ celebrities, such as Lucas Lepri, Kyra Gracie, Roger Gracie, Edwin Najmi, Fernando Terere, Fabio Gurgel, and many others. These guys showed their skills, techniques, and recommendations for practitioners who want to improve their game.
Working as a lean startup, we went through the natural evolution from a social platform focused on photo galleries to an educational video platform, and this transformation was due to the lessons learned along this journey. In one year we had understood the problems and necessities of our audience, for BJJ practitioners the primary goal is to improve each day because this martial art form is all about learning from every training.
Today we are launching our new product, Gallerr Academy, an educational platform for the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu market presenting elite classes taught by masters. It was produced directly with the professors providing you with high-quality lessons focused on solving common problems and mistakes.
For the first course, Gallerr Academy presents, “Mastering Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu” an original class featuring Renzo Gracie, where practitioners can study concepts and improve techniques from over 25 video lessons, 30+ page workbook, communication, and more. The course helps anyone in the world to learn an effective self-defense, to improve their training, and to acquire a healthy lifestyle through the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu way.
Renzo Gracie is a Brazilian Martial Artist and Jiu-Jitsu practitioner. A member of the Gracie family, Renzo is a 6th Degree Black-Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He is the son of Robson Gracie, grandson of Carlos Gracie, and grandnephew of Helio Gracie. One of the most respected and charismatic figures in martial arts, Renzo has opened his mat for Gallerr Academy to produce never seen before professional material for students to take advantage of and to learn from his most complete class ever.
With the creation of Gallerr Academy, we are striving to build a unique platform featuring big names in the BJJ world and introducing the customers to a meticulous lesson plan that would result in a never seen before ultimate learning experience tailor made for you.
To learn more visit www.gallerr.com/academy, see the “Mastering BJJ” class featuring Renzo Gracie and give us your feedback ;)
Oss!
