The Short Version

• Investor Marc Nuccitelli joined Bout Boxing as a capital partner after seeing the brand successfully scale from one New York location to a second in Queens.
• The company’s newest studio is launching in Charleston, South Carolina, at Continental Realty Corporation’s Central Island Square.
• Local leadership played a key role in the decision to expand, with longtime trainer Rachael Baxter overseeing operations and marketing.
• Nuccitelli and Baxter share how they chose their new location, built community buzz using grassroots and hyperlocal marketing strategies and handled the challenges of launching in a new state.
• Rather than announce a hard opening date, the team has kept customer excitement high through newsletters, pop-up classes and neighborhood partnerships.
• Their approach offers actionable insights for small business owners expanding to new markets, particularly in boutique fitness and experiential retail.

A Passion for Boxing Meets a Scalable Business Model

Marc Nuccitelli is both an investor and a boxer. “I started in 1998,” he said of the sport. “I was at [the gym] and saw this boxing guy hitting some mitts and I thought: ‘This is amazing training. I want to do this.’”

Over the years, he became convinced that a boutique boxing gym concept, offered in a class format, could really take off. But he hadn’t found the right setup until just before COVID hit.

The Origins of Bout Boxing and an Early Investment

That’s when Nuccitelli moved to Roslyn, a village on Long Island’s north shore. There, he met Alek and Nell Kucich, the owners of Bout Boxing, which had opened its first location in 2018. “I trained with them through COVID. I was in the best shape of my life,” Nuccitelli recalled. “I thought: ‘This is the dream format. This is what I would create.’”

After the Kucich siblings opened a second Bout Boxing in the Long Island City neighborhood of Queens, New York, in late 2021, Nuccitelli — a longtime investor who’s held senior roles in investment banking and asset management, as well as directly backed small businesses and real estate ventures — joined the team as a capital partner.

“I kept watching to see, can they take a single-store model and replicate it somewhere else?” he said. “When I saw they could build something systematic and repeatable in two very different markets, that’s when I knew I could help. [Expansion] is where my expertise comes in.”

Launching in Charleston With Local Leadership

Bout Boxing is on the brink of launching its newest location, in Continental Realty Corporation’s mixed-use Central Island Square on Charleston’s Daniel Island. Rachael Baxter, a trainer from the Roslyn gym who relocated to South Carolina in 2023, has taken the reins as general manager and marketing director for the new studio.

Here, Nuccitelli and Baxter share with ICSC Small Business Center contributing editor Rebecca Meiser how they selected their latest location, built hyperlocal buzz ahead of the launch and are navigating common opening delays with smart marketing strategies.

What made Charleston the right market for Bout Boxing’s expansion?

Nuccitelli: It really came down to Rachael. She was absolutely key in making that happen. I wasn’t going to expand into a new market without having a strong lead — someone who could be the head trainer, the general manager and carry the culture into that market. Someone who could take the philosophy and build a team locally around it. When Rachael [decided to] move to Charleston, that’s when we said: “OK, now’s the time.”

Why does Charleston align with Bout Boxing’s target customer and fitness philosophy?

Nuccitelli: We loved the demographics and felt like it was a perfect fit for one of our target markets.

Baxter: The market’s here. You basically are replicating what we have in Roslyn and Long Island City. You have young professionals and families in both places.

Because the weather is warm, it keeps people active year-round. People here are really into fitness, and boxing keeps you seriously fit. Plus, a lot of people from the north are moving to Charleston. It’s becoming an exploding market.

What challenges have you faced expanding your fitness business across state lines?

Baxter: Charleston has its own way of doing things. You can’t just come in and start bashing things around. You need to take time to learn the culture. [It works in our favor that] Daniel Island feels more like a transplant community. A lot of people aren’t originally from South Carolina. They’re from places like Boston, Connecticut and so on.

I’ve been local here for two years now, and that time helped. I’ve built my own community, from knowing the city councilman to connecting with other top business owners and presidents of different associations. Having that kind of presence here has been really important.

How did you use hyperlocal marketing to build buzz for your Charleston launch?

Baxter: Daniel Island has a neighborhood Facebook forum with daily activity. Throughout Charleston these local forums are super active. I’ve been targeting them with tailored messaging depending on the group. There’s the Daniel Island Moms group, the general neighborhood group, Charleston social circles for people in their 30s and 40s, women in business — you name it.

We also have a flagship social media page and have been collecting signups for our newsletter. On top of that, we’re running targeted ads on social. I’ve also been personally visiting different businesses, and saying: “Hey, we’re coming to town.” [I’ve been] introducing who we are, what we’re about and exploring potential collaborations. For example, there’s a burger place that’s really happening. I pitched a Boxing and Burgers night. [We teamed up] with a mobile car wash on Daniel Island for Mother’s Day. We designed a custom postcard with a mom-focused message, [and they handed them] out to moms who pull up.

These kinds of grassroots, hyperlocal marketing efforts are fun and personal, but they’re strategic, too. Each postcard has a unique QR code, so we’ll be able to track the response and see what’s working once the collaborations kick off.

You originally planned to open by early April, but the timeline has shifted. How are customers responding to a postponed opening date?

Baxter: I keep getting texts and emails [asking]: “When are you opening?” So the buzz has been created. People are excited. I’ve been clear that we’re still in the coming-soon phase. I tell [people who contact me] to sign up for our newsletter to stay in the loop. The newsletter is also where we’re going to share news about free pop-up classes.

We’ve been consistent about never giving an actual opening date. Other neighbors have done that and they’ve had to say: “Sorry everyone. We thought we were opening this time, but we’re delayed again.” We just keep saying instead: “We’re coming soon. Come check us out!”