How Fittr is Revolutionizing Fitness in India

Hey there,

From a 5-member WhatsApp group to a 5-million-downloads fitness app funded by Zerodha & Suniel Shetty, this startup is living the entrepreneurial dream. Read & get inspired 👇

We're talking about Fittr, founded by Jitendra Chouksey in 2014. From its humble beginnings, it now boasts over 5 Mn downloads and 250,000 monthly active users.

Fittr is known for its personalized fitness and diet plans, and for tackling major health issues like diabetes and injury prevention in India.

Recently Fittr raised $3.5 million from Zerodha’s Rainmatter fund to scale rapidly. But, with so many fitness apps out there, what makes Fittr different?

1. Community-First Approach: Fittr started as a WhatsApp group, grew into a Facebook group with over 500,000 members, and now is an app with 5 Mn downloads.

While platforms kept changing, their focus on community remained constant. And, a supportive community helps in fitness, where motivation and inspiration are key.

2. Innovative Business Model and Services: Fittr uses a freemium model, giving free diet and exercise plans when you sign up. It also connects users to a huge community for support and questions, all for free.

They help while nudging users to purchase paid coaching for additional expert support. This drives conversions subtly.

3. Growing Globally: Fittr generates 30% of its revenue from markets such as North America, the UK, and Singapore. This fact makes Fittr appealing to investors, as these countries possess a higher spending capacity for fitness.

Higher spending translates into increased revenue and, consequently, greater value creation for shareholders.

4. Strategic Funding and Partnerships: The recent funding rounds of $3.5 million from Rainmatter and a Series A of $11.5 million are crucial for Fittr's expansion strategy.

These investments are being used to broaden the range of services, transform more lives, and create additional coaching jobs.

This funding provides not only financial support but also builds valuable connections. For instance, Zerodha’s Rainmatter fund, which is a health-focused fund, could lead to beneficial partnerships for Fittr with other health companies.

Fittr's journey over the last 10 years shows their big goal: to change 50 million lives and create 100,000 jobs in fitness. But they're in a tough market with big competitors like Cult Fit and HealthifyMe, who do similar things.

What Fittr decides to do next is important. Will they grow fast to compete with these big names, or will they join forces with one of them? We'll have to wait and see.

✏️ Jargon of the day

Freemium:

Freemium is a business model where basic services or products are provided free of charge, but more advanced features or additional services cost money. It's like a free app with optional paid upgrades.

This approach lets customers try the basic version and pay for more features if they find it useful.

Loved this edition? Or have some thoughts to share? We'd love to hear from you

Cheers,
Karthik