Photo by Erin Nelson.
Larry Johnson, who owns Maximum Effort Supplement Shop with his wife Kyla, at the newly open store at Chelsea Crossings.
Larry Johnson remembers making trips to the Zone 1 Game Store in the Winn-Dixie shopping center when he was in middle school and high school. He has now come full circle and recently opened his own business in the same location.
Johnson, a National Academy of Sports Medicine-certified personal trainer, and his wife Kyla, a math teacher at Vincent Middle High School, recently opened Maximum Effort Supplement Shop in the former Zone 1 space.
“We looked at different spaces in Chelsea, but there wasn’t much available,” Johnson said. “We got a call back from this property and just jumped on board with it.”
Three short months later, Johnson’s dream became a reality, and the couple, both Chelsea High School graduates, fulfilled their wish to open a store in the Chelsea community.
Johnson has committed his work life to coaching and encouraging people to live a healthy and purposeful life. He worked three jobs to put himself through college at University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he chose to obtain a communications degree because he has always been a natural salesman and great with people.
In 2019, Johnson was named Alabama’s Strongest Man. Weighing 240 pounds, he also advanced to nationals and placed 23rd in the country despite having a torn hamstring.
The first from his family to graduate from college, Johnson chose to do an internship in management and worked at a GNC supplement shop for almost six years.
“I fell in love with that industry, with health and wellness and working out,” he said. “I knew I wanted to do something professional with it. I managed GNC for a while and kept telling my owners that Chelsea was booming and let’s get a store down there, but they did not express an interest.”
He said GNC was great to him and he is not trying to compete with them but instead aims to pursue his own opportunity. In March, he and Kyla began building spreadsheets and budgets, and they decided to go for it. Johnson said any kind of job he’s ever had was always built on education and encouraging people, and the retail supplement world is his area of expertise.
“We were talking about how Chelsea is growing, [and] we need to be growing with it,” he said. “This would be a perfect place to be. I think it’s something unique that’s not been here before, and it can save people a trip over the mountain.”
Johnson said Danny Jones, owner of 4th and Inches Nutrition Studio, paved the way for him, and after he saw how well Jones’ business was doing, he was encouraged to see that people in the area are excited about the concept.
Inside Johnson’s store, there is a section for those looking for performance products including protein powders and pre-workout fat burners. There are also a variety of shaker bottles to blend drinks. The wellness section is for everyone and includes proteins, energy drinks, vitamins and more.
“We have items for hydration, vitamins for energy including B-12, amino acids for muscle recovery and other items for heart support, joint support, digestive support, probiotics and an immunity section.”
Also available are ready-to-eat snacks including protein bars, protein cookies, electrolyte waffles, protein peanut butter cups, protein brownies, protein chips and ostrich beef sticks.
Johnson said he seeks feedback from his customers and will offer supplementary inquiry cards for them to fill out and give suggestions of other items they would like to see in the store.
Maximum Effort Supplement Shop will offer a 10% discount for first responders and military, and customers who leave a review will also get a one-time discount. The store will feature its first major sale around the July Fourth holiday.
Maximum Effort Supplement Shop
WHERE: 100 Chelsea Corners (in the Winn-Dixie Shopping Center)
HOURS: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday; 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays; closed Sundays
CALL: 205-677-4191
WEB: Facebook @maximumeffortsupplementshop
The grand opening for Maximum Effort was May 22, followed by a ribbon-cutting May 24.
“Our mission statement is that we are spending our maximum effort to educate and encourage, and what I want to do is to spend my maximum effort to help the community in any way I can,” Johnson said. “If someone walks in my door just wanting a supplement, answers to questions, workout advice, life advice or if they need me to pray for them, I’m here for anything to meet their need. Our function is health and wellness and longevity and to see people transform their lives physically, but also mentally and spiritually, and I want to be a part of that.”
