Want to work out with your friends but you’re all busy and in different parts of the city or even country? Surely you could do this in 2017? Maybe with a Hololens… Turns out one of the few capable of creating this ideal user experience is Peloton, which is now on its Series E funding and has raised as much as $444 million.
But that is focused on cycling and, well, let’s face it, it pretty expensive. Then there are celebrity fitness apps (like Joe Wicks) but these are limited to a single trainer, not social and don’t incorporate technology, so there’s no feedback loops, fitness tracking etc
What would be great would be a fitness startup that offered convenience, proper trainers, real-time feedback and the ability to work out against your friends no matter where they were – that isn’t in cycling or running (neither of which you can do at home).
Step in London-based Fiit. This offers a real-time performance feedback and live leaderboards allowing you to, they say, challenge your friends from anywhere in the world. Over 60% of people cite cost and travel issues as barriers to exercise according to some figures. Fiit is currently signing up users for early access. The platform is set to launch early next year.
Co-founded by a team of ex-Google employees the startup has now secured a £2.4m / $3.2m seed investment round, led by London-based Connect Ventures and supported by former Innocent co-founders and current JamJar Investors, Rooks Nest Ventures and Westminster Capital.
The idea is that people work out in their own home in a live scenario with their friends.
Co-founder Daniel Shellard says: “Traditional gyms and studios have limitations for most people because they haven’t successfully broken down the barriers to regular exercise and don’t easily fit into people’s busy lives. Boutique studios are expensive and elitist. At Fiit we are focussed on the future of fitness, and plan to make it addictive by combining the motivation of a world class studio experience with the convenience of a home workout powered by the fitness stars people follow.”
JamJar’s Richard Reed says: “Fiit is one of the most exciting companies I have seen since setting up JamJar investments. They have noticed a gap within the health and fitness industry and are set to disrupt the traditional model, offering a unique platform providing unparalleled consumer choice and access.”
Sitar Teli, Partner at Connect Venture says: “Fiit combines the intensity of boutique fitness classes with the convenience of an on-demand platform, motivation from real-time feedback and social competition to create an experience that surpasses [anything currently available]. This is Connect’s first investment in the fitness space and we think it represents the future of home fitness.”
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