BOLTON’S ‘Father of Fitness’ will give his top tips for succeeding in business at a free event tomorrow.

Ken Heathcote, who set up the country’s first ‘health club’ in Bolton in 1968, will share his life story at Bolton Central Library as part of the centre’s Start Up Engines programme.

The son of a miner and former paratrooper, Mr Heathcote set up the Bolton Health Studio in a disused factory and developed the first multipurpose fitness centre — including squash courts, aerobics classes and a restaurant —which became the blueprint for the industry.

He told The Bolton News: “Business is about the head — what you’ve got to think about — and the passion, or the heart.

“You have got to have the passion to succeed. We worked 18 hours a day in those early days, not knowing how we were going to do. It was fabulous.

“We set up the business in a cellar underneath a typewriter shop, in a 26 foot length room, with no equipment — just bars and dumbbells.

“And somehow we saw the start of an industry.

“We managed to persuade Barclays to lend us £7,500. It’s peanuts today but in 1971 it was a lot of money.

“If you really believe in what you’re doing, you’ll succeed. There was an enormous amount of failure to begin with, but then it all happened.”

Mr Heathcote’s success extends to his family, as Ken’s son is celebrity chef Paul Heathcote and daughter Karen Thorpe is a successful businesswoman in the fitness equipment industry.

Cabinet member for culture and youth, Councillor John Byrne, said the Start Up Engines events provide a fantastic opportunity for people looking to start up their own business.

He added: “To have someone like Ken Heathcote on board is a real coup as he has a wealth of experience in a genuinely successful business that he built up from nothing.”

Start Up Engines events are being held in libraries across Greater Manchester and are aimed at helping budding entrepreneurs start up their own business.

The event takes place at the Central Library on Le Mans Crescent this Thursday, October 16, from 6pm to 7.30pm.

Attendees will get the chance to speak to advisers from Business Bolton and the Business Growth Hub.

Places can be booked in advance here.

For more information call 01204 332853 or visit www.boltonlams.co.uk.