MW Climbing
Omaha, Nebraska
Specs: The owners of MW climbing, Matt and Wendy Beio, are planning on opening their second bouldering gym in Nebraska in mid-2023. Originally from Midwestern cities already, both Matt and Wendy moved to Lincoln, Nebraska, for college and soon after met in their university climbing gym. “In 2019, Matt casually (maybe even jokingly) asked if we should open a climbing gym, not expecting that I would say yes,” Wendy recalls. “Matt and I spent all day in our garage cutting plywood panels and drilling t-nuts. We joked how most couples would normally start with building IKEA furniture first, but we dove head-first into a full-on climbing gym and really learned how to work together as a team.” The Beios opened their Lincoln facility in June of last year, choosing the name MW Climbing for Matt and Wendy as well as Midwest.
According to Wendy, she and Matt had been “loosely window shopping for a space in Omaha” since before the Lincoln gym even opened, but they didn’t want to rush things. “We wanted to make sure that our Lincoln location was sustainable and thriving before we jumped into a second location as first-time business owners,” explains Wendy. “Our Lincoln location has been doing great and it’s always been in the plan to expand as soon as it was fiscally responsible.” Those plans took a step forward once Wendy and Matt found their spot in Omaha, the largest metropolitan area in Nebraska. The specifics about the location haven’t been made public yet, but Wendy did hint that it will be near central Omaha in an “already thriving area.”
Although the expansion gym is still in the early stages of development, the Beios did give an idea of the facility’s size, too―twice the amount of climbing (measured in linear feet) and three times the amount of building square footage compared to MW Lincoln. They also outlined the various amenities and programming in the works for new and elite climbers, including a cardio/weights room, beginner climbing room, campus board, coffee bar, pro shop, yoga and fitness classes, and youth programs. “We want to create a world-class bouldering facility that puts Nebraska on the map in the climbing industry,” says Wendy. (Currently, only MW Lincoln and one other commercial climbing facility―Approach Climbing Gym―operate in the state.)
Walls: Self-designed and constructed in-house
Flooring: Self-designed and constructed in-house
CRM Software: Approach
Website: mwclimbing.com
Instagram: @mwclimbinggym
In Their Words: “We couldn’t have done this without our team and our community supporting us. Motivation waxes and wanes, but because our team is disciplined and driven, there’s no question of whether something will be done, it’s only a matter of when. It helps that we have the agency to effect the change we want since we’re a small business. It’s also not just one or two people making every decision, especially the decisions that impact other people directly.” – Wendy Beio, CEO
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