Since launching last year, online fitness startup Wello has been trying to democratize training with Google Hangout-like video conferencing sessions. By doing so, Wello enables its customers to get into shape in their own homes and on their own time, while also offering up individual and group training sessions that are usually much cheaper than purchasing through your local gym.
The company started with individual training sessions, allowing customers to set their own workout schedules and connect with trainers that would most appeal to them. Earlier this year it began offering group sessions that were priced lower than individual workouts, and also provided a social component — users could invite their friends to work out with them and a trainer at a time of their choosing.
The next big business move for Wello is to begin offering gym-like membership subscriptions, which packages a group of workouts together and lowers the price further for users. With its subscription offering, Wello is offering a selection of different prices for users, based on whether they want to work out alone or in groups, as well as the number of sessions that they plan to use per month.
Pricing breaks down like this:
Group Class Memberships
- 4 Classes: $49 / mo.
- 10 Classes: $99 / mo.
- Unlimited Classes: $179 / mo.
1-on-1 Personal Training Memberships
- 4 Workouts: $99 / mo.
- 10 Workouts: $199 / mo.
- 30 Workouts: $379 / mo.
If users max out on their number of sessions for a given month, they can always upgrade, or buy more on an a la carte basis. Group classes cost $14 each, while individual training sessions still cost $29 a piece.
Each of its trainers are certified and tested out before they join the platform, and are rated by users who take part in sessions with them. Wello has more than 10,000 options available for different types of workouts at various levels of proficiency, so each user should be able to find something that works for them.
Wello has seen pretty good retention from customers who have already signed up for its video-enabled fitness sessions, but the subscription offering should provide the company with more visibility into recurring revenue on a month-to-month basis. According to co-founder and CEO Leslie Silverglide, about two-thirds of all customers who sign up and try one exercise session come back and do it again. And the average customer already takes about six sessions each month.
For Wello, the new subscription offering is designed to provide a new way to appeal to customers and to get people to sign up to train at home, instead of using a gym. The company has raised $1 million in seed funding from Kleiner Perkins, Mohr Davidow, Aberdare Ventures, Mayo Ventures, Morado Ventures, S-Cubed Capital, PhilQuo Ventures, and other angels.