How a 17 year old Bergen County Basketball Trainer Succeeded Amidst The Covid19 Pandemic

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Hackensack NJ, My name is Ryan Ang of Ang1 Trainings. I am the CEO and founder of Ang1 Trainings, a basketball training business. I am 17 years old from Bergen County, New Jersey. I am considered the youngest basketball trainer in New Jersey and possibly the whole world.

A little history about my business is that I started it at the age of 15. In the beginning, my basketball training business was doing pretty decent. I had a handful of clients and many repeating athletes. Unfortunately, a year later, the Covid-19 pandemic occurred. At the time, I have thought that my business was coming an end. But I was very much wrong!

Many people can say that the coronavirus negatively affected their lives and businesses. However, the coronavirus did the exact opposite! The coronavirus pandemic helped and boosted both my clientele and business by triple the numbers.

The pandemic and quarantine helped me develop many innovative ideas to boost my business and clientele. One example is transferring my basketball training to virtual training. During the beginning of quarantine, I conducted many free live streaming basketball training sessions via Instagram and Facebook Live. It was such a huge success that many parents, coaches, and athletes offered to pay me for private virtual 1 on 1 and group trainings sessions. I was even able to athletes and basketball teams from Colombia, Japan, Ecuador, etc.

During the beginning of summer when the state opened up, I have received a lot of calls regarding private outdoor in-person training sessions. To the athletes and parents’ safety, I offered home service basketball training sessions. This way, it is more convenient  for the athlete and parent as well as the parents will feel much more comfortable than having their kid train at a local park with other athletes. The home service training took place either on the athlete’s drive way or backyard.

One of the many biggest challenges that I faced with my outdoor training was the weather. If the weather was too hot, too cold, or if it was raining, I was unable to train the athlete. In order to surpass this challenge, I had backup dates and times that would best work with myself and the athlete to reschedule the training. Overall, both the parents and myself had flexible schedules and I often kept tracked of the weather.

Now many people might say that all basketball trainers are the same, but I would like to say that my training is different. What makes my training stand out and different is the following:

– I am a hands-on trainer. In other words, I demonstrate and do the drills with the athletes rather than to tell them what to do. Another difference is that

– I have a flexible time schedule. I am able to accommodate to the athletes and parents preferred times. I would also like to mention that I have very good time management skills as well as scheduling skills.

– I offer home service basketball training sessions. Many trainers might go to a basketball court that is most convenient for themselves, but I am the opposite. I go for whatever is more convenient for the athlete and parent; which would be home service basketball sessions.

– I offer customized basketball training. This means, instead of giving all the athletes I train a generic workout, I change my drills towards the athletes strengths and weaknesses.

– Lastly, I use my age to my advantage. I am young and can relate to the athletes I train. I am able to communicate with the athletes with shared interests, such as video games, and incorporate it toward my training to make it enjoyable for the athletes.

My training is not just all about basketball, it’s also about developing skills. With my business growing throughout the pandemic, some parents have inquired about having their kid intern with me in hopes of their child developing life skills, responsibilities, and how to become an entrepreneur.

With the earnings I have made, I am looking to invest into the real estate market as well as pay for my college tuition. Hopefully you will take my story and share it to the world inspiring others that there will always be a way to grow and succeed even during the darkest of times.