Equipping a Small Gym or Studio: A Practical Buying Checklist

Equipping a studio, a small gym or a fitness room for your building or office is different from building a home gym. More people use each piece, often at the same time, and everything has to stand up to daily wear. This checklist covers what to buy first, how much of it you need and how to get it delivered.

Start with your busiest hour

Count how many people will train at the same time at your busiest hour, then make sure each of them has something to do. Eight members at 6 pm might share two benches with a dumbbell rack, a Smith machine, a barbell station, two cardio machines and open floor space for mats and bodyweight work.

Then think about who they are. A personal training studio needs variety for one or two clients at a time. A building or office gym needs simple, safe equipment that people can use on their own without instruction.

The core list, in order

1. Dumbbells and a rack

Dumbbells are the most-used equipment in almost every gym. Choose rubber hex dumbbells or round Elite Series dumbbells: both are cast iron in a protective rubber coating. As a guide:

• Studio or building gym: the 555 lb rubber hex set, with pairs from 2.5 to 50 lb, or round dumbbells from 5 to 50 lb.
• Busier gym with experienced lifters: the 1055 lb rubber hex set (up to 70 lb) or the 2105 lb set (up to 100 lb), or round dumbbells up to 100 lb. If you order a rubber hex set with racks, sets of 655 lb and up include two.
• Heavy end: add pairs up to 150 lb, sold as singles in both styles.

2. Adjustable benches

Plan one bench for each person who will use dumbbells at your busiest hour. For commercial use, the F39 adjusts flat, incline and decline and is rated to 2,000 lb, and the FF39 goes from flat to upright. Add an F38 as a dedicated seat for shoulder presses and curls. See every HAJEX bench compared.

3. A Smith machine or power rack

In a shared space, a Smith machine is the safer choice: the bar runs on a guided track and can be racked at points along its path, so members can train without a spotter. The Smith Machine X3 is the one we put on commercial floors, with a 660 lb frame of 3.0 mm steel and two 165 lb weight stacks for cable work. For free barbell training, add a Power Squat Rack X1. Compare all six Smith machines in our Smith machine guide, and check your space with our guide on measuring for a Smith machine or power rack.

4. Barbells and plates

A 7 ft Olympic bar (20 kg, rated to 700 lb) covers squats, presses and deadlifts. On a gym floor, rubber-covered plates make sense: they are quieter and kinder to the floor than bare iron. Bumper plates are the ones to use when the bar comes down from height, onto a lifting platform or thick rubber flooring, and our competition steel hub bumpers are made to the IWF standard 450 mm diameter for members who train the Olympic lifts seriously. See weight plates compared.

5. Fixed-weight barbells (optional)

A row of fixed-weight barbells lets members move straight from one exercise to the next without loading plates, which is ideal for classes and circuits. They come in straight and EZ curl styles from 20 to 150 lb in 10 lb steps, with rubber-coated heads. A rack is not included.

6. Flooring

Use hard floor mats under racks, benches and dumbbell storage, and EVA foam tiles where people stretch and do floor work. To work out how many you need, count tiles:

• Hard mats: 50 × 50 cm tiles, 6 per pack. A 6 × 4 m lifting area (about 20 × 13 ft) takes 12 × 8 = 96 tiles, which is 16 packs.
• EVA foam tiles: 60 × 60 cm tiles, 6 per pack. A 3.6 × 2.4 m stretching area (about 12 × 8 ft) takes 6 × 4 = 24 tiles, which is 4 packs.

Hard mats are made for everyday training. If members will drop barbells from overhead, add a proper lifting platform.

7. Cardio

Our walking pad, folding treadmill and exercise bike are built for home use, which makes them a good fit for a condo or office gym with light traffic. For a busy commercial floor, choose cardio machines rated for commercial use.

A sample starter list for a small studio

Scale the quantities to your busiest hour, and add a power rack if members will train with free barbells.

Ordering for a business

• Contact us with your list before you order. We can check stock and how everything will ship, which matters most for large quantities and crated machines.
• Shipping is calculated at checkout from the total weight and your region, with one handling fee per order, so one combined order costs less to ship than several small ones.
• Orders over 10,000 lb are quoted individually. Choose Request a freight quote at checkout and our dispatch team will contact you.
• Free shipping may be offered on large or commercial orders over $10,000 paid by bank transfer, as long as shipping is no more than 10% of the order total. Contact us for details.
• Near Montreal? Our own truck may deliver for a flat fee, or you can pick up for free at our Anjou warehouse by appointment.
• Ordering from the US? Orders ship Delivered Duty Paid, with duties and brokerage included in the shipping amount at checkout.

Delivery day

Standard delivery is to the curb or your building entrance, so plan staff or movers to bring everything inside, and a pallet jack if you have a loading dock. Smith machines X2 to X5 arrive in a wooden crate on a pallet, so you will need a tool to break the crate down and at least two people to carry the parts. Check every box when it arrives, report any damage within 24 hours and keep the packaging until the claim is settled.

Keep it running

• Daily: wipe down benches, pads and handles, and put weights back on their racks.
• Weekly: check bolts, pins and cables, and tighten anything loose.
• Monthly: clean and lubricate guide rods and moving parts as the manual describes.
• Straight away: take worn cables, cracked collars and torn pads out of use until they are replaced.

Every HAJEX product carries a 12-month warranty against manufacturing defects. Keep your order number, and take photos if something goes wrong: it makes a claim much faster.

Frequently asked questions

Can I pay by bank transfer?

For large orders, yes. Contact us before you order and we will arrange it.

Do you carry equipment inside and assemble it?

Standard delivery is to the curb or building entrance, and it doesn't include carrying items inside or assembly. If your site needs more, ask us before you order: anything beyond standard delivery must be agreed in writing.

Which Smith machine suits a commercial gym?

The X3. Its 660 lb frame of 3.0 mm steel is the heaviest we build, and it is the machine we put in commercial gyms. If members want heavier cable stacks, the X4 carries 440 lb.

How many dumbbells does a small gym need?

Enough that two or three people can train at once without waiting. For most studios, that means every 5 lb step from 5 to at least 50 lb, plus a few heavier pairs. See how heavy your dumbbells should be for the set sizes.