Featured affiliated academy: Destination Jiu Jitsu, Australia
Where is the gym located?
Engadine, Southern Sydney (New South Wales in Australia).
How many people train there?
16 and growing.
Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
Yes – 4-5 a month.
What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
We have all belts – from brand new white belts up to brown in classes.
When did the gym open?
We opened in December 2022 nearby, in a community hall in Yarrawarrah (the next suburb). We decided to take the leap and open a permanent space late in 2023, because it was increasingly difficult to manage consistent times for classes. We opened our permanent space in Engadine, Easter 2024 (April). The permanent space allows us to offer way more classes for adults and kids.
Our space was formerly a crystal healing retail space, so it took a lot of renovations and approvals from council to get the place open!
Some facts about you:
Name: Trenton Laurance
Age: 51
Belt: Black
Profession: Public servant – senior investigator (day job) / BJJ coach
Years in BJJ: 16
Other martial arts: I originally started training at 16 years old in Wing Chun kung-fu. I’ve also dabbled in Muay Thai and Boxing, and I’ve trained in judo, wrestling and MMA.
Currently living in: Southern Sydney (Sutherland Shire), New South Wales
Originally from: Perth, Western Australia
Please tell us the story of how Destination Jiu Jitsu, Australia came into existence
I was coaching at some other gyms from the time I was a brown belt. The last gym I coached at for an extended period (as head coach of their BJJ program for 6 to 7 years) went through some “cultural changes”, and it seemed that my services were no longer required (lol).
After this experience, I was going to stop coaching and just find a non-political place to train once a week. However, when I left that gym, some of my students wanted to come and train with me, rather than staying at the place we were training. This prompted me to look at how I could facilitate this, as I enjoyed coaching and socialising with my (former) students. I wanted to build a place where people could learn BJJ and have fun at the same time. We worked out what was important to us (what are our values), and how we could build an inclusive, positive culture at the gym. Part of this was rejecting a lot of ideas that we found annoying or did not help to build that culture, and we wanted to remove barriers to training – e.g. forcing students to spend hundreds of dollars on gym branded gis, rashies, paying for promotions, etc. in order for them to train in our space. We also thought about what sort of gym environment we wanted to train in, and so included things like wall paddings, quality mats, and a new bathroom and changing area that people would actually want to use (and didn’t appear to be the bathroom from Trainspotting).
A big goal of ours is to create a modern, adult learning environment, as we value personal growth and understand that people who train with us are clients, and they should be able to get what they pay for. They’re not joining a cult, and we understand that adults have lives and responsibilities, so we’re flexible with memberships, etc. If students from other gyms want to train with us, no worries! We provide a service to the community.
We’re also keen for travellers to visit us and exchange skills and knowledge, and to learn about other cultures.
Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
We have a mixture of professionals, trades people, and kids. Most of our adult students are north of 30 years, with their own careers and families. Many of our students have trained for a while and most have at least a blue belt. Other students new to BJJ have trained in other martial arts.
Why do they train in Destination Jiu Jitsu, Australia?
Our students train for a variety of different reasons. Many train for fun, and for social interaction. A number also train as their primary exercise. We are trying to build a supportive community in the gym, and regularly have informal catch-ups at nearby cafes, bars, etc. after class. We have lots of great options very close by (a micro-brewery, pizza places, burgers and all-day breakfasts, we’re spoiled for choice).
While we welcome competitors to come and train, most of our students don’t have this as a goal. Our students have lives and responsibilities, so BJJ is their way of having fun, getting exercise and socialising, rather than it being a super competitive place where competing is a primary goal.
What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Attracting women to train, and keeping them. It’s very difficult to attract them to trial a class, and convert them into members.
There is a lot of opportunity as there are many people in the suburb we’re located, but also a lot of competition for kids’ activities. We’re currently working on community-based options to advertise/promote our gym, and explain who we are and why they should train with us. It’s sometimes difficult to get people to see the real value of training BJJ.
Satisfying all the council requirements to even open was a challenge! We wanted to create a space in an area with public transport and amenities nearby, and there are very few “industrial” spaces in our chosen area. In Australia, there is a lot of red tape if you need to get approvals as part of your gym space (we needed to change the usage of our space from a retail/shop, to an indoor recreation space), and this was a huge learning curve.
How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
Jiu Jitsu seems to be getting more popular in the area. This is reflected by more independent gyms popping up in the wider area (as well as the larger brand-name gyms). I hope it continues to grow and I want people to see the real value of BJJ.
What’s the best thing about Destination Jiu Jitsu, Australia?
The people – we have a great core group of people who are friendly and respectful. We also have climate control (air conditioning, heating) and the best mats/equipment in the area. We’re trying to create a good, inclusive vibe and make it more than just a place where people train and leave. We also don’t follow all the BJJ traditional norms – we treat our gym as an adult learning environment. You won’t see anyone bowing to pictures on a wall. You can also wear what you like to train; we don’t force people to buy our uniforms.
What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
The beaches in the area are awesome and great for surfing and swimming (go to Cronulla and skip Bondi). The local National parks are amazing too (heaps of Grammable photo opportunities). The beaches are a short drive from us, and the forests in the National park are beautiful. There is also a wildlife park (Symbio) about 20 minutes from us where you can pet kangaroos and koalas. The ‘coat hanger’ (Sydney Harbour Bridge) and Opera House – the city is only 35 minutes away on the train. Go south for a donut at country town Berri and check out the beautiful white beach sands at Huskisson (2 hours away).
