There is a local small business that serves the Montgomery County community highlighted in the Hello Woodlands Small Business of the month.
Condition 1 Combat Center is this month’s small business of the month, and owner Joe Morris.
Please tell us about the Condition 1 Combat Center. What is your story? Why did you decide to open the business?
The story of how we started our school is old. I began teaching defensive and self-defense in 2010. Three years had passed since my active duty service in the Marines ended. After returning from deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan, I sought to find an outlet for many of the frustration and anxiety I felt. I wasn’t getting the proper care from Veteran Affairs and self-medicating was taking me further into the downward spiral we hear about every day with many post 9/11 vets. I stopped the insanity and started working on myself in 2008. I joined the Marine Corps because I wanted to challenge myself, and then I decided to start training in Mixed Martial Arts. In 2009, I began training in Krav Maga. I was the lead instructor at a school in Spring, Texas. I enjoyed teaching people how to defend their own. It gave me a sense of purpose again, something I lost after I returned from overseas. Training others became about giving back to the community andstilling confidence in those who need it the most. I don’t know what kind of baggage a student is carrying that is a constant strain on their well being. To hear that I was able to help someone regain confidence and make a difference in their life was a great accomplishment. I realized I needed to help others and give back in order to heal and recover from my past experiences. I realized that my need to make a positive impact on someone’s life and well-being wasn’t always aligned with the business objectives of the organization I was with. A legitimate grappling program, strategic striking skills, and technical sparring are included. I waited until my non-compete agreement expired before I resigned from the school. My wife and I are going to open a new school in Montgomery County, where we call home. We opened Condition 1 Combat Center in May of 2022.
Where and what do you serve? What products or services do you offer?
We are here to serve the community. If one has a desire to learn how to defend themselves and/or their family, gain or regain confidence, or if they want to do something different from their everyday fitness routine and learn a vital skill while doing so, we do that. We offer specialized training for law enforcement and first responders in the area, including the Montgomery County Precinct 3 Constable’s Office and Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department. Children are welcome with all ages. At our school, we love to see people of different generations. We have Muay Thai and striking classes, grappling classes, a kid’s program, and Fit to Fight Krav Maga classes. The organization we are affiliated with, Fit to Fight, is amazing. Unlike other retail Krav systems, they understand the need to implement combat sports skills into their program. Our program takes the best of our grappling and striking programs, taught by subject matter experts in their field, and enhances our members’ individual skills and forges them into a fight centered form of Krav Maga that enhances one’s ability to actually fight.
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What is the unique thing about Condition 1 Combat Center?
Our approach to self-defense and fighting, our instructors qualifications, as well as a member focused mindset make us unique. We don’t take a very strict approach to training. Combat sports such as Muay Thai, jiu jitsu, boxing and wrestling play a critical role in fighting but are also important to self-defense. There are no magic pills that can be taken and you have to be well-versed in self-defense to take them. Self-defense schools promise that. Those places don’t spar or pressure test their techniques or defenses. It will take some time. It requires training. It takes getting conditioned to contact through technical sparring, so the first time a person receives contact from someone, it is not in a parking lot or a garage. The mats should be used to teach people how to spar properly and to ease them into contact. It takes hard work and dedication to get the skills to defend yourself and your family. We teach our members how to fight with their weapons, such as everyday carry weapons. It is one thing to go to a shooting range and put rounds on a piece of paper with little to no stress involved. It is a completely different situation when one is fighting for their life. Time and space are not considered when one is firing at a static target. Does one have enough time to properly deploy their handgun from a concealed location? They may have to fight before the weapon can be used in the situation. People react to situations differently when they are in a state of duress. Our members are trained to fight to their weapon, as well as retaining that weapon under duress, and pressure testing everything we do. We don’t discount the importance of getting to the range and working on one’s shooting fundamentals, which is training we can provide as well.
When forming and adding to your team what did you look for?
We sought experts in the fields of grappling and striking in order to form our team, but they also needed to have the experience of training across several disciplines and have a passion for helping others. We thought it was important to build a team that had real-world experience as well as experience operating in unpredictable environments. We were fortunate to add two veterans with combat experience to our team. A Muay Thai fighter with several victories under her belt, Astacia V. served in the Army and was deployed twice to the Middle East. The Head Grappling Coach is Professor Matt Smith, who served in the Army and deployed to Iraq from 2003-2004, and is a 3rd Degree Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Black Belt. As a result of their experience in combat theaters overseas, we are well-rounded to be able to train our members in everything from hand-to-hand engagements to getting to a concealed handgun and effectively using it when necessary. We have three other coaches, along with us, on our team who are very well-versed in multiple martial arts disciplines. All of our coaches have years of coaching experience and want to help anyone who comes through our door.
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Is there anything that did not go according to plan? What would you change?
There were things that didn’t go as planned for a new business owner. The supply chain challenges were not planned. We believed those issues would have been fixed by the time we were ready to open, but they are still an issue for most people. We’ve tried to be flexible. We have more than 100 members in just three months.
How has your business changed since it started?
The amazing talent we have been able to hire has evolved our business. To be a well-rounded, advanced multi-disciplined martial arts school that we want to be, we need the specific skills other martial arts provide, such as sparring, and we started this school with my extensive training primarily in Krav Maga.
What can the community do to support Condition 1?
Anyone is welcome to try a class at our school. We will work with anyone at any skill level in your first class. Children are welcome with all ages. Multi-Generations are great to see at our school. There are seminars that are open to the public as well. You can learn about these opportunities by following us on social media.
Military and first responders get discounted membership rates. 15% off any membership is what we offer.
We are looking forward to working with the law enforcement. We want to give back to our community because we know the importance of law enforcement being trained for duty and we back the blue!
Where can the community learn about new things? Is there anything else you can tell me about Condition 1 Combat Center?
You can learn more at our website and sign up for a class for free. If you would like us to teach something specific, please reach out to us directly. You can email us at info@condition1combat.com.
There is a Combat Center in Spring, Texas.
Most small or micro business owners start their business with little to no staff or assistance. It is important to have a clear plan and an effective strategy to succeed. To be successful, you need to untangle the various items that you need to understand, determine and implement. If you would like to learn more about Conganas, please call (832) 651-1616 or email miguel@conganas.biz.
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