An Olympic Gold Medalist Fell in Love With This Franchise While Traveling. Now He’s on Track for $275k in Revenue: ‘I Would Choose It Over a Million Times’

Olympic golden medalist Michael Cherry, 30, is accustomed to difficult activity paying off. Cherry qualified for his first Olympics successful Tokyo successful 2020, competing successful some the men’s 400 meters and men’s 4 x 400 meters relay. He won gold successful the relay, earning his first Olympic golden medal.

Now Cherry is bringing an Olympic-style activity ethic to his adjacent venture: a overgarment and sip studio. For years, he harbored a passion for Painting pinch a Twist workplace events, making it a constituent to sojourn their locations crossed the state wherever his moving profession took him. 

“I attended astatine slightest astir 30 classes myself, conscionable to spot what it was like, and I ever enjoyed it,” Cherry tells Entrepreneur successful a caller interview. “I went location for a day 1 time, and aft that I benignant of fell successful emotion and started to spell successful each azygous metropolis that I stayed successful and lived in.”

Cherry lived successful Orlando, Los Angeles, New York City and Miami. He made judge to sojourn Painting pinch a Twist locations successful each city. “I consciousness for illustration I’m ever person to the customer than I americium to the existent owner,” Cherry says. “For me, it’s nosy art, not good art.”

Why he precocious bought a studio

In October 2025, Cherry acquired a Painting pinch a Twist workplace successful his hometown of Chesapeake, Virginia. At the time, gross was down astir 16% from the anterior year. 

“What I saw was a workplace that was declining, but had potential,” he says. “I conscionable thought it would beryllium ace typical to ain thing for illustration this.”

Since taking ownership of the studio, he has brought astir a transformation, reversing the gross diminution and generating much than $168,000 successful gross done early June, an 11.5% summation compared to the aforesaid clip past year. 

Overall, Cherry’s workplace generated $231,000 successful gross during 2025 and is presently connected gait to scope up to $275,000 successful yearly gross successful 2026.

“If I had to make this determination each complete again, I would still take Painting pinch a Twist,” Cherry says. “We person truthful galore resources to thief us. I would take it complete a cardinal times.”

The pursuing question and reply has been lightly edited for clarity and concision. 

Michael Cherry. Credit: Painting pinch a Twist

From Olympic way to franchise operator

How did your erstwhile profession arsenic an jock construe into moving this benignant of business?
My main arena successful way was the 400 meters, the longest sprint, and that title teaches patience, pain, tolerance and execution nether unit — each of which business requires. You can’t panic successful a 400, and you can’t panic successful business. There will beryllium slow days, but you person to spot that things will move astir if you support working. In sports, you support showing up, staying disciplined, building the instauration and doing the correct things, and yet it pays off.

I look astatine business the aforesaid way. That’s why I emotion being an entrepreneur — it forces discipline, calm execution nether unit and changeless experimentation. In track, you mightiness effort thing different successful a title to get amended results; successful business, you mightiness put retired thing that doesn’t activity 1 week and past effort thing caller the adjacent week that becomes a hit. The cardinal is to enactment fresh, effort caller things, stay disciplined and ne'er panic.

How he won a golden medal

What regular aliases mindset group you up for occurrence successful way and section — and really did you triumph that gold?
It comes down to subject and execution nether pressure, backed by a accordant routine. Every time you aftermath up and travel a system plan. Track and section is unforgiving because you person to execute perfectly successful a little model — those 43 to 45 seconds of a race. There’s nary “next play” for illustration successful football; you hole for that nonstop moment. I built a manner astir that: waking up early astir 6 to 7 a.m., hydrating well, eating cleanable (no junk food, sweets aliases alcohol), and sticking to that subject for 15 to 20 years. That regular made maine successful successful the athletics I love.

I’ve simply transferred the same subject and structure to business. Being an jock gives you the gift of subject and a model for chasing goals; successful track, that extremity was winning Olympic gold, and successful business, it’s building a sustainable, high-performing studio. Every time requires dedication and sacrifice, and yet that pays off.

Why Painting pinch a Twist

Walk maine done the root communicative of really you started your ain Painting pinch a Twist franchise.
It really began pinch maine trying to fig retired what I wanted to do next. I knew I wanted to beryllium an entrepreneur because I for illustration creating my ain schedule and doing things connected my ain time, and I already loved the Painting pinch a Twist brand. So, I started looking online for businesses for waste and saw that a Painting pinch a Twist workplace was disposable successful my hometown. I believed that if I took it complete and poured successful the emotion and attraction the erstwhile proprietor couldn’t, it could go thing typical again. I envisioned it arsenic a spot wherever group could flight their play troubles and stresses, person nosy and create without needing to beryllium “real” artists.

This business is astir experiences, not conscionable painting. I’m an “experience guy,” truthful owning a Painting pinch a Twist felt for illustration the cleanable measurement to connection caller experiences to the organization while enjoying them myself.

Birthday party. Credit: Painting pinch a Twist

Deciding to bargain a franchise

What were immoderate of your main considerations erstwhile deciding if it was worthy it to bargain a franchise?
My first mobility was if I could really own and tally a business. I went to schoolhouse for marketing, but this was a different field. My past activity was successful unit and income — clothing, sneakers, smaller jobs — truthful I’ve ever had a business mindset but ne'er owned thing for illustration an creation studio. I’m not an artist, truthful I knew I’d person to build the business from the crushed up, reasoning for illustration an entrepreneur alternatively than a painter.

I asked myself if I could move the business astir without knowing really to paint, and that really worked retired good because I approached it pinch a business mindset: fine-tuning mini things wrong the business and creating systems that would thief it flourish. The numbers showed the workplace was declining, truthful I focused connected whether I could springiness it the love, attraction and attraction to item it needed to improve.

Fixing a declining studio

What were the main weaknesses you identified?
One large rumor was that the erstwhile proprietor was seldom successful the studio. The business lacked unsocial events; it was conscionable modular overgarment nights. Now we’ve added much specialty events for illustration chunky broad workshops, candle-making, execution enigma nights, enigma paintings, trivia and more. The thought is to connection experiences alternatively than conscionable coating sessions, because group will get saturated if they’re conscionable coating the aforesaid measurement complete and over. We besides introduced much collaborations pinch section creators — yoga events, chunky handbag workshops, different imaginative add-ons — to springiness group much reasons to get retired and person fun. Another awesome weakness was our almost nonexistent social media presence. As a trading guy, I knew we had to cleanable up our societal media and raise awareness.

Girls’ nighttime event. Credit: Painting pinch a Twist

Problem solving

Can you show maine astir a clip thing went incorrect and really you fixed it?
I haven’t had a awesome catastrophe, but I’ve had smaller customer issues, for illustration guests not being happy pinch definite sketches, brushes aliases the magnitude of artwork connected the walls. My attack is to jump successful quickly and hole things to support customers happy; I’m a “customer guy” first and judge the customer is ever right. For example, 1 customer mentioned that the erstwhile proprietor had much paintings connected the walls and didn’t for illustration the reduced number. I instantly responded by coating and hanging 60 much canvases to reside that concern.

Secrets for growth

What strategies person you utilized to turn the business?
The biggest strategies are amended societal media and local presence. I make judge we station consistently and support our branding sharp, truthful much group successful the organization admit us. I besides physically spell retired into the organization to present myself to different business owners, letting them cognize we’re present and what we offer. If I’m successful Sam’s Club aliases Michael’s, I’m handing retired cards. It’s astir showing we beryllium and are fresh to service the community. Inside the studio, I attraction connected ever having thing for every type of customer — events, workshops, pop-in options — truthful group want to walk clip pinch america and travel back.

What are your goals 5 to 10 years from now?
In 5 to 10 years, I spot myself owning multiple studios. My first extremity is to move this workplace into the best-performing Painting pinch a Twist location successful the franchise. I deliberation we’ve already improved it significantly, but there’s still a batch of upside and galore things we tin adhd to make it better. Once this workplace is astatine that level, I’d for illustration to get different locations — starting pinch the ones successful Virginia, and past perchance studios successful different states if owners determine to sell. Ideally, I’d extremity up owning 5 studios and past perchance research caller ventures. For now, I’m focused connected improving this workplace and past repeating the process pinch others.