Building Bravé MMA & Fitness: Kenny Bhullar on Martial Arts, Community & Building a Culture of Belonging

In this episode of The People-Driven CEO Podcast, Shane sits down with Kenny Bhullar, Co-Founder of Bravé MMA & Fitness and Head BJJ Coach, to talk about entrepreneurship, martial arts, leadership and building a business where people feel like they belong. Kenny shares how a lifelong relationship with martial arts eventually led him and his brother to start Bravé from a basement in 2023.

What began as a low-risk way to build their first member base has grown into two Edmonton locations, giving Kenny the opportunity to combine his experience in coaching, leadership and business with a mission to make martial arts more accessible to the next generation.

The conversation explores what it takes to create a strong culture inside a martial arts gym, from encouraging experienced students to train with beginners to making every new member feel like they have entered a second home. Kenny also opens up about one of the biggest challenges in the fitness industry: helping people stay long enough to experience meaningful progress. He shares how Bravé is improving retention through stronger check-ins, clearer milestones, community experiences and programs that give members more reasons to keep showing up.

Kenny and Shane also discuss how technology and AI can remove repetitive work without removing the human connection at the centre of the business. For Kenny, the opportunity is not simply to automate more. It is to give his team more time to talk to members, strengthen relationships and create better experiences.

Ultimately, his vision for Bravé goes beyond building more gyms. He wants to help more martial artists turn their passion into sustainable careers while using martial arts as a vehicle for confidence, growth and human development.