Fitt Insider

Today I'm joined by Ethan Agarwal.

Ethan is the founder and CEO of Aaptiv.

In today's episode, we talked to Ethan about building an executive team as a solo founder, how Aaptiv creates community among its users, and the role of personalization in the future of fitness.

I had a great time chatting with Ethan and I hope you enjoy listening.

Let's get into it.

More from Ethan & Aaptiv >>

Aaptiv Founder and CEO Ethan Agarwal first thought of Aaptiv while working as a business consultant – tired, traveling, and 30 pounds overweight. During this time, he realized there was no product on the market that removed all of the barriers he and so many others were up against when trying to make fitness a priority.

He set out to transform the way everyone works out and founded Aaptiv in 2016. Three years later, the company – backed by leading venture capital firms and top companies including the Amazon Alexa Fund and Disney – is a leader in the digital health space with over 230,000 paying members who have taken more than 30 million Aaptiv classes.

Prior to launching Aaptiv, Ethan spent three years at McKinsey & Co, advising clients in the technology, media, and financial industries. He was previously an investor at LionEye Capital, a $2.5B AUM hedge fund, focused on a merger arbitrage strategy across energy, tech, and healthcare. Ethan began his career as an investment banker at Lehman Brothers, focused on healthcare M&A.

Ethan holds bachelor's degrees in economics and political science from The Johns Hopkins University, with a minor in entrepreneurship. He earned his MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Get in touch >>

https://aaptiv.com/

https://www.instagram.com/aaptiv/

More from Fitt Insider >>

Fitt Insider is a weekly newsletter and podcast about the business of fitness and wellness.

From product launches and funding news to game-changing innovation, Fitt Insider provides listeners with insights and analysis on this ever-evolving industry.

Join your peers and colleagues from companies like Equinox, lululemon, Peloton, Beyond Meat, Nike, and ClassPass by subscribing at http://insider.fitt.co.

Let's talk about the business of wellness...

Adam Thompson is the former Managing Director (aka Chief Rebel) of plant based brand, Rebel Kitchen. With a mission to challenge the status quo, the line of coconut based products are sold in 22 countries globally, has B Corp status, and most recently (September 2019) went carbon neutral. 

With annual sales exceeding £6 million, Rebel Kitchen does things differently. From company culture, to their MYLK with a ‘Y’, the business has been built to ask questions, challenge the norm and ultimately be a force for good that can stand the test of time.

In this episode, Adam chats about the rise of the conscious consumer, waking people up to what they are being told and sold, as well as sharing the highs and lows of launching an F&B brand into new markets. We also discuss the importance of taking a personal approach to the welfare of staff and how this can determine productivity (read more about Rebel Kitchen’s company culture here).

Thank you to our sponsors:

The go-to legal firm supporting the wellness industry Bird & Bird.

Software booking experts, MINDBODY.

Creative agency for all your wellness business needs, Skipper & Skipper.

To find out how Welltodo can help you grow your business and support your career objectives, head to welltodoglobal.com today.

Today I'm joined by Sadie Kurzban.

Sadie is the founder and CEO of 305 Fitness.

On today's episode, we talked to Sadie about her journey from winning a pitch competition to scaling a boutique fitness business, her mission to democratize fitness, and the importance of staying true to who you are.

I had a great time chatting with Sadie and hope you enjoy listening.

Let's get into it.

More from Sadie & 305 Fitness >>

Sadie Kurzban is the 29-year old founder and CEO of 305 Fitness. Named "the next fitness cult leader," by the New York Observer, Kurzban, a graduate of Brown University, has been featured in numerous media outlets like Good Morning America, Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, the TODAY show, Vogue, Refinery 29, and Fast Company for her unique ability to turn painful workouts into outrageous fun.

Just months out of college, Kurzban launched 305 Fitness, a dance cardio workout with a live DJ. She won Brown University's prestigious Entrepreneurship Pitch Competition and took her $25,000 prize to launch 305 Fitness in New York City. In seven years, Kurzban has grown a tremendous following. Over 100,000 clients have experienced the brand, which boasts a family of 100 instructors and 50 DJs. 305 Fitness currently has 6 locations in New York, Washington D.C., and Boston, with weekly pop-up experiences in Los Angeles and Chicago and San Francisco. 305 Fitness has certified hundreds of dancers around the country to teach their method as licensed 305 instructors.

Get in touch >>

https://305fitness.com

https://www.instagram.com/305fitness/

More from Fitt Insider >>

Fitt Insider is a weekly newsletter and podcast about the business of fitness and wellness.

From product launches and funding news to game-changing innovation, Fitt Insider provides listeners with insights and analysis on this ever-evolving industry.

Join your peers and colleagues from companies like Equinox, lululemon, Peloton, Beyond Meat, Nike, and ClassPass by subscribing at http://insider.fitt.co.

Let's talk about the business of wellness...

Julian Hearn is the Co-Founder of Huel, a nutritionally complete, convenient food brand. A serial entrepreneur, Julian developed Huel with the objective to create something he felt proud of. Now, at just 5 years old, the brand has sold over 50 million meals across 80 countries and is turning over £60 million a year with plans to grow by 50% in 2020. 

With two orders placed before the business even launched, it was the power of word of mouth and prominence in the press that supported the early growth of the business. Shying away from retailers, Huel went direct to consumer, allowing the brand to build direct relationships, and gain instant feedback. 

In this episode, Julian talks about building your tribe, Huel’s sustainable approach to nutrition, their new office based NPD kitchen and lab, what it takes to expand into the US market, and the importance of raising money when you don’t need it. We also chat about Huel’s recruitment process and the importance of cultural fit. Want to be a Hueligan (someone who works for Huel)? Then ‘Don’t be a dick’ - as promoted in large letters at Huel HQ.

Thank you to our sponsors:

The go-to legal firm supporting the wellness industry Bird & Bird.

Software booking experts, MINDBODY.

Creative agency for all your wellness business needs, Skipper & Skipper.

To find out how Welltodo can help you grow your business and support your career objectives, head to welltodoglobal.com today.

Today I'm joined by Amanda Eilian.

Amanda is a co-founder of Able partners.

In today's episode, we talked about Amanda's experience as an investor in the positive living space, her take on the future of the wellness industry—including mental health and psychedelics, and her advice for founders looking to break into the space.

I had a great time chatting with Amanda and hope you enjoy listening.

More from Amanda Eilian & Able Partners >>

Amanda Eilian is the co-founder of __able Partners, a venture capital fund focused on early-stage companies in the positive living space. With over 40 companies in the portfolio, investments include Goop, The Wing, Daily Harvest, and Bulletproof.

Amanda was also the Co-Founder and President of Videolicious, an enterprise video creation platform backed by Amazon and acquired by a strategic buyer in 2019. Amanda was instrumental in the launch and growth of Videolicious to over 5,000,000 users in 103 countries, including Fortune 500 companies such as IBM, Walmart, SAP, Verizon and GE. Prior to forming Videolicious, Amanda was a founding partner of Capitol Acquisition Corporation, a special purpose acquisition vehicle (SPAC) that completed a $265 million initial public offering and closed a merger that led to the formation of Two Harbors Investment Corp., a $3 billion NYSE listed REIT (TWO) and Silver Bay Realty Trust (SBY). Amanda previously worked in private equity and mergers and acquisitions.

Amanda is a Truman Scholar and received her MBA from Harvard Business School where she was a Baker Scholar, and graduated Magna Cum Laude from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service with Honors in Economics. Amanda serves on the Board of Directors of Juice Beauty, the largest organic skincare brand in North America, and on the Board of Directors of the Melanoma Research Alliance, the largest private funder of melanoma research with more than $100 million in grants awarded to date. She is also a member of the Tech:NYC Leadership Council. Amanda resides in New York City with her husband and four children.

Get in touch >> https://ablepartners.nyc/

More from Fitt Insider >>

Fitt Insider is a weekly newsletter and podcast about the business of fitness and wellness.

From product launches and funding news to game-changing innovation, Fitt Insider provides listeners with insights and analysis on this ever-evolving industry.

Join your peers and colleagues from companies like Equinox, lululemon, Peloton, Beyond Meat, Nike, and ClassPass by subscribing at http://insider.fitt.co

Let's talk about the business of wellness...

Luke Armstrong is the Global Sales Director of fitness franchise F45. First launched in Sydney, Australia in 2011, F45 is now the fastest-growing fitness franchise in the world. Operating in over 40 countries, it boasts more than 1,700 sites globally and more than 70 franchised studios in the UK.

In this episode, Luke shares what it takes to become an F45 owner, the importance of using strategies like F45’s ‘8 week challenge’ to unite and build an authentic community, and how celebrity Mark Walhberg came to love and invest in the brand. We also discuss the future of the high-growth brand including more sites, a potential IPO and maybe even a new product offering - F45 escapes, anyone?

Thank you to Fora for hosting this recording in their purpose-built recording studios in London, and to our 2019 sponsors:

The go-to legal firm supporting the wellness industry Bird & Bird. Software booking experts, MINDBODY. Creative agency for all your wellness business needs, Skipper & Skipper.

To find out how Welltodo can help you grow your business and support your career objectives, head to welltodoglobal.com today.

Today I'm joined by Bruce Smith.

Bruce is the CEO of Hydrow.

In today's episode, we talked about Bruce's goal to make rowing more accessible, Hydrow's place in the connected fitness landscape, and how the company could use augmented reality to create at-home experiences like rock climbing.

I had a great time chatting with Bruce and hope you enjoy listening.

More from Bruce Smith & Hydrow >>

A lifelong entrepreneur, rower and coach, Bruce Smith is the CEO & Founder of Hydrow, the Live Outdoor Reality rower. As a U.S. National Team Rowing Coach and Head of the Charles Regatta winner himself, he coached the U.S. Lightweight Eight to a Bronze medal at the 2015 World Rowing Championships, and is the former Executive Director of Community Rowing Inc. in Boston where he sought to increase access to the sport. With a continued passion for the mental and physical benefits of rowing, plus the empathy and community it creates, Bruce's goal for Hydrow is to make a positive impact through the sport of rowing, allowing people to feel more connected to one another, and live healthier lives on a daily basis. Hailing from Canada, Bruce makes his home in Cambridge, MA just blocks away from the famous Charles River.

Get in touch >> https://hydrow.com

More from Fitt Insider >>

Fitt Insider is a weekly newsletter and podcast about the business of fitness and wellness.

From product launches and funding news to game-changing innovation, Fitt Insider provides listeners with insights and analysis on this ever-evolving industry.

Join your peers and colleagues from companies like Equinox, lululemon, Peloton, Beyond Meat, Nike, and ClassPass by subscribing at insider.fitt.co

Let's talk about the business of wellness...

Tania Boler is the Co-Founder of the largest ever funded ($42 million!) fem-tech business, Elvie. 

With two successful products; Elvie Trainer (a pelvic floor trainer with real-time biofeedback), and Elvie Pump (the world's first silent breast pump), the brand has reinvented out of date products and in doing so, changed the way women live their life after child-birth. 

Built with the intention to break down taboo's around women's healthcare, campaigns such as #LetFannyFly and #FreeTheFeed, have opened up conversations around bladder incontinence, and breastfeeding and pumping in public.

In this episode, we talk about the 'spectrum of wellness'; negative, preventive and improvement, how women have been short-changed when it comes to tech, and how Angel investors opened up the doors for Elvie. 

What's next for Elvie? A whole lot more R&D, offices in Asia and North America, and 6 new products!  

Thank you to our sponsors:

The go-to legal firm supporting the wellness industry Bird & Bird.

Software booking experts, MINDBODY.

Creative agency for all your wellness business needs, Skipper & Skipper.

To find out how Welltodo can support your business and career objectives, head to welltodoglobal.com today.

Hi, I'm Joe Vennare, co-founder and COO of Fitt.

Here to tell you about my new podcast, Fitt Insider — a weekly interview show where I talk with the entrepreneurs, executives, and investors who are redefining the business of fitness and wellness.

Every week, we'll discuss the most important topics impacting boutique studios, the future of food, fitness technology, wellness trends, and more.

From product launches and funding news to game-changing innovation, it's my goal to provide listeners with insights and analysis on this ever-evolving industry.

Join your peers and colleagues from companies like Equinox, lululemon, Peloton, Beyond Meat, Nike, and ClassPass by subscribing to the weekly Fitt Insider newsletter.

And hear every episode of the Fitt Insider by subscribing on Apple podcast or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

Insider.fitt.co

Let's talk about the business of wellness...

Ian McCaig, Sammi Adhami, and Daniel Shellard are the Founders of Fiit. An at-home-workout app recognised by the media as the ‘Netflix of fitness’. Ex-google employees, and Founders of Qubit, the trio have set themselves a challenge to transform the lives of the UK.

Since Fiit launched in April 2018, the Fiit app has been downloaded by 150,000 users, generated in excess of 350,000 starred user ratings, and seen more than 500,000 classes completed. With a solid founding team balancing quick decisions and team morale, and a host of celebrity trainers and influencers leading the workouts, it really is no wonder that the fitness app has attracted investment of £8.9million and won the hearts of the UK.

In this episode, Ian, Sammi and Daniel dive into the inspiration behind Fiit, the use of influencers - in both their product and marketing - and how they stand out against 150,000 fitness apps available now, on the app store.

Thank you to Fora for hosting this recording in their purpose-built recording studios in London, and to our sponsors:The go-to legal firm supporting the wellness industry Bird & Bird.

Software booking experts, MINDBODY.

Creative agency for all your wellness business needs, Skipper & Skipper.

To find out how Welltodo can support your business and career objectives, head to welltodoglobal.com today.