Karate America / American Taekwando Association Deceptive, Unethical, Fraud, Chicanery, Scam Little Rock, Arizona

I've taken Tae Kwon Do classes off and on for quite a few years and have looked at (and purchased) quite a bit of equipment from various online sources (some of the largest and most respected in the industry) and your "expected" prices of equipment is way out of line. From the sounds of it the dojo is right in the ballpark of where they should be equipment-wise... you will not find a "$15 chest guard" anywhere, even a quality used one on Ebay would never be that cheap and it's not a good idea to buy used when it comes to that equipment. The belt charges seem ok too.. whenever we did belt testing our dojo had to pay for ranked masters to come in as a judge panel as well as rental of a larger gym or place to test plus the cost of the belts themselves, award certificates, etc.... nothing is free in life. If you are serious about Tae Kwon Do (or Karate in this case) do your homework and you will see all of the well known/professional dojos are in the same price ranges for this type of thing (depends on the type of martial arts as well - ones that use weapon forms are going to be significantly higher for cost of equipment). Just offering my .02!

This site should be reserved for genuine rip-offs, not just complaints about the cost of services. If someone doesn't like the prices charged, they are free to just not buy the products or services. If someone is too poor to pay to learn learn martial arts, maybe they can just read books about it from the library, or become a Shaolin Monk. Karate America's classes range from $10-$20 per class depending on the package you buy. That's nor a rip-off.

In Response to tnitke: We are sorry to hear that you feel our prices are unreasonable. Unfortunately, as far as the price of the gear is concerned, there is little we can do. (If you check out CenturyMartialArts.com, which is one of the biggest martial arts suppliers in the country, youll see our prices are comparable.) We might be able to find cheaper equipment somewhere else, but we are more concerned with quality, which equates to safety for our students.

Im not sure from where you are getting the prices youve quoted, but I can assure you face shields, which protect the students face and head, cost significantly more than $2. Anything that cheap would do very little to protect. Also, our chest protectors are not $175.

We understand the cost of gear may add up. Thats why we work with families as much as possible. We can split up the total cost over several months, and we have special programs that allow the students to earn proshop credit for referring friends.

Our insurance company does require students to use new gear bought at our facility (so that it can be proven that the gear is new). This is the insurance companys way of ensuring the students are as well protected as possible, which is also Karate Americas aim. Used gear can be found online, but we cannot be certain of its quality. Also, used gear brings with it issues of hygiene.

As far as testing fees, ours are comparable to other martial arts schools across the country (Actually, I just heard a horror story from a friend of mine where the instructor charged upwards of $500 per test. In that case, yes, she was being ripped off.) Our fees pay for the national organization fees (which means our ranks are supported by a worldwide organization, not just one instructors opinion), and any supplies (anything given to the student upon graduation as well as anything needed to set up the school or costs for changing the venue).

Competitions are optional. If a student does not wish to participate, they are not obligated in any way. Many students thrive in a competitive environment and are able to push themselves further, but again, this is a personal choice for each family.

Sincerely, Karate America Employee