Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Egan.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in gymnastics and was fortunate to have coaches who taught me far more than skills. They taught perseverance, goal setting, teamwork, and how to work through fear to accomplish something difficult. Those lessons shaped how I view both sports and life to this day.
Those lessons stayed with me and eventually led me into coaching at a high level. Over time, however, I also witnessed parts of the sport that did not align with the values I believed gymnastics should represent—environments where pressure and negativity replaced encouragement and growth.
That experience ultimately inspired me to do something different. In 2007, I opened Jump! Gymnastics in Austin with a simple vision: create a place where children could learn real gymnastics in a positive, confidence-building environment. The goal was to help children develop resilience, independence, and belief in themselves through movement and accomplishment.
What started as one small gym has grown into four locations serving families across the Austin area. Along the way we developed our own curriculum and teaching approach focused on breaking skills down into achievable steps so every child can experience progress and success.
Today, Jump! offers gymnastics classes, camps, and early learning programs designed to help children stay active, build skills, and discover what they are capable of.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Of course there were obstacles. Entrepreneurship has a way of testing how badly you want something—but the challenges are also what make you stronger. Jump! started with very little and grew step by step.
In the beginning, I rented space inside a volleyball facility and started the program with a surprise $5,000 teacher retirement check. I built the program to about 100 students, but still could not convince anyone to lease me a small 2,000 square foot space or approve a loan to grow. Eventually, my boyfriend at the time’s parents took a chance on me by co-signing a lease and lending me $20,000 so I could open our first location. A few years later I had the opportunity to buy the business back outright, which required giving every dollar I had to regain full ownership and start again from essentially zero.
In 2012, with help from SCORE, I connected with PeopleFund and finally secured an SBA loan after about five years of trying. That allowed us to move from 2,000 square feet into a 3,500 square foot space and continue building the program. After paying that loan off, we opened our second location in 2014.
Around that time life changed in big ways personally as well. My husband and I welcomed our two children in 2016 and 2017, and I had to grow from being a coach and program developer into building leadership teams and training managers to run the day-to-day operations. My husband has always been incredibly supportive and willing to jump in and help whenever needed.
Between 2016 and 2018, the demographics surrounding our original location shifted dramatically and enrollment began to decline. It was a difficult but important lesson in how quickly local markets can change. We made the decision to relocate the gym in 2019 to better serve families in the area. Just as we were settling into the new space, the pandemic hit in 2020 and turned everything upside down overnight.
With the help of government relief programs and an incredible team that believed in the mission, we were able to rebuild. We opened our third location in 2022 and our fourth in 2025.
Building Jump! has taught me that persistence matters more than perfect timing. If you care deeply about the mission, you simply keep finding a way forward.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Jump! Gymnastics?
Jump! Gymnastics is a children’s activity center serving families across the Austin area. For more than 18 years we have specialized in helping children ages 2–12 build strength, coordination, confidence, and a love of movement.
One of the things that sets Jump! apart is that we teach real gymnastics in a fun, positive, non-competitive environment. Children learn authentic skills while being supported by coaches who encourage effort, persistence, and growth.
Our teaching method focuses on skill deconstruction, which means breaking movements down into small, achievable steps so children can experience progress and success. We also use a proprietary level system that allows children to advance through mastery of skills rather than simply moving by age. This keeps every child appropriately challenged and motivated to improve.
Over time Jump! has also grown into a place where families gather, celebrate milestones, and stay active together.
Today Jump! serves families through:
• Gymnastics Classes
• Camps
• Preschool Programs
• Parents’ Night Out
• Birthday Parties
Together these programs create a place where children stay active, build confidence, and leave proud of what they can do.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
My perspective on risk has definitely evolved over time.
In the early years, when Jump! had one location and then two, decisions often felt easier. The business was smaller, I knew most of the families personally, and I felt comfortable trying new ideas or making quick decisions. There was a closeness with the community that made those early risks feel manageable.
As the business grew—and especially after starting a family and opening additional locations—the way I think about risk naturally changed. When you have multiple locations, employees, and families relying on the program, the decisions carry more weight.
Opening the first location was a risk. Signing leases for new spaces was a risk. Expanding to additional locations was a risk. Each time I had to believe in the mission and trust that if we continued to serve families well, the business would grow.
One thing entrepreneurship teaches quickly is that waiting for the perfect moment rarely works. Markets change, challenges appear, and unexpected things happen. The key is to stay focused on the mission and be willing to adapt.
I think of risk less as something to fear and more as something to manage. When the purpose is clear and the mission is strong, it becomes much easier to take the next step forward.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jumpgymnastics.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jump_gymnasticsaustin/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JumpGymnastics/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-egan-75b37236/
