Want a summertime activity for your kid? Try this new Market Common gymnastics place

Across the street from Market Common’s Grand Park Athletic Complex resides a new business geared towards little kids.

The Little Gym, a national chain of gymnastics facilities for kids ages four months to 12 years old with 300 worldwide locations, is opening in Market Common. The facility, at 1390 Farrow Parkway, will open on May 4, 2024, featuring face painting and Italian ice.

The Little Gym offers classes for kids of all ages —with names such as funny bugs, giggle worms and super beasts for different age groups— and parent-child classes. It will also have a summer camp, host birthdays, and offer ‘parent survival night’ as a form of structured babysitting for parents looking to have a relaxing—and fleetingly quiet—date night.

When walking into The Little Gym in Market Common, you must remove your shoes before stepping onto the mat. You’ll see a high beam, balance beam, parallel bars, uneven bars, and other acrobatic opportunities for your child to play and learn with. The space is colorful, featuring nearly every color of the rainbow. Before your child engages in their first athletic activities, they’ll introduce themselves with a hello song. Of course, the class also includes a wrap-up song.

While the gym focuses on acrobatic endeavors, the space is supposed to foster a learning, fun environment, not a competitive one, gym owner Angela Lewandowski said.

She owns the gym with her husband, Henry, and operates it with Program Director Hailey Jacobs. Originally from Long Island, N.Y., Lewandowski said she moved to the Grand Strand in July 2022.

She added that she was looking for things her son could do due to pandemic-era lockdowns that curtailed many opportunities. She ultimately found Little Gym and chose a location across the street from where her son plays soccer.

The facility has hired several coaches with experience in gymnastics, one of whom is a professional dancer. The Little Gym is still hiring, said Lewandowski. Lewandowski added parents interested in enrolling their children can sign up for a membership, which includes one class a week.

Interested parents can sign up for a membership or book a class online.