The billion dollar intelligent home gym
Intelligent home gyms are an exciting area, attracting over a billion dollars in investment. Who are the leading companies and what do they offer?
A quick comparison of some of the smart home gym solutions, focusing on resistance training:
Cost
Priced around $2000, increasing to nearly $4000 with accessories included the devices on offer are similarly priced to Peloton’s Bike+ which starts at $2495 rising to $2945 with the fully loaded family bundle.
Instagram followers
Nordic Track is an established brand and understandably has the most Instagram followers. Tonal is a distant second but given it only has a single product to sell it’s well followed.
Delivery time
Here’s where things get a bit interesting. Many of the players in the space are about to launch products and delivery times aren’t available. Tonal states the pandemic has caused significant delays versus a usual 2-4 week delivery. Other manufacturers simply state the product comes from Asia, so it will take a few weeks depending on dispatch and destination - how customer centric.
Instructors
We know from Peloton that instructors are the secret sauce that keep members loyal and in love with the platform. Both Nordic Track and Tonal try to replicate the instructor experience, but it requires a huge investment.
Vitruvian takes a different stance, offering to partner with certified personal trainers within the platform, which is quite an exciting prospect, turning the platform into a semi-open market place.
Investment
Here’s where things get really interesting. Private equity has made some huge bets on home fitness buoyed by Lululemon’s $500 million acquisition of Mirror. Investors are hoping that Tonal and Temple Studio are acquired or go on to become billion dollar businesses in their own right. Investors might be hoping that Peloton is a potential suitor, but it seems likely Peloton will enter the space itself following its acquisition of Precor.
Tonal
Tonal is a cable based system that uses magnets rather than weights to provide the necessary resistance. Tonal has attracted $450 million in investment including celebrity backers such as Mike Tyson and Maria Sharapova. The design lends itself to homes because it footprint minimises the space necessary. The design is somewhat innovative, but the picture above shows a potential flaw, the screen is behind you when using it.
Tempo Studio
Tempo Studio is a weights resistance trainer with some innovative technology that tracks movement and repetitions. It uses a sensor similar to the Apple FaceID technology for iPhone, scanning body movements using infrared. It then offers advice on correcting your form. It’s design is neat and tidy, with a cabinet below that stores the weights.
Nordic Track Vault
Available in July 2021, the Nordic Track Vault represents arguably the best design out there. Its sliding mirror provides access to the weights, hence why the name is so apt.
JaxJox Interactive Studio
Arguably the worse design out there, the JaxJox looks like a weight rack combined with a television. It’s not the most subtle item to have in your million dollar home (as per the picture above).
Vitruvian V-Form
One from the left field, Australian based Vitruvian, offer magnet base resistance on a platform with lights and carbon fibre design. It use of paid sponsorship of Instagram influencers speaks to its bootstrapped approach. Drop shipped from its manufacturer in Asia, delivery times are unspecified.
Summary
What a time to be alive, with innovative products becoming available and large investment made on the future of this exciting category. My background has always been in smartphones, previously working for BlackBerry and Samsung. I see parallels to the early days of mobile phones, with new manufacturers, backed by large investors entering the space. Mobile phones had similar uncharted design paths, before the now standard glass slab form factor. Designers aren’t sure which direction to take and there no clear standards emerging. I’m excited to see who the winners and losers will be and who will be the next Peloton.
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