Fitness Tech Winners 🥇

Happy Valentine’s Day. Considering the holiday weekend competed with Super Bowl Sunday, I hope you were able to enjoy romance and pure competitive sports in equal measure.

After last week’s announcement that Peloton is slashing 2,800 jobs and its CEO had stepped down, you might be wondering if a similar fate awaits other pandemic darling at-home fitness companies. As mask mandates, variant spikes, and snow all melt away, people are getting back to the gym. According to recent data from class subscription app ClassPass, people are eager to get back into live instruction, in-person, with 60% of respondents saying in-person workouts are better for mental health, and 67% saying it is better for maintaining a routine.

Image: Cityrow

The CEO of Cityrow, a Peloton-esque at-home rowing machine, told Crunchbase News that we’re experiencing a recalibration–people who switched to home workouts during the pandemic will continue to work out at home but will be adding gym and class workouts to bring an in-person element the routine. 

Relative newcomers to the playing field include colorful equipment and personal training startup Tempo. Hydrow is another rowing company that features instructors in sublime locations aspiring to transport you away from your one-bedroom apartment. Tonal is endorsed by Serena Williams and boasts unicorn status for its wall-mounted tv/weights machine.

Image: Planet Fitness 

As for gyms, the L.A. Fitness franchise had the highest annual revenue among private companies. Meanwhile, Planet Fitness just acquired Sunshine Fitness, a 100 location franchisee, for $800MM. Gympass is a growing business offering employers a subscription model for a variety of gyms and classes.

For more ways to break a sweat, search our keywords ‘gym’ or ‘fitness equipment.’