On February 22nd DeltaTrainer announced its business relationship with Anytime Fitness. Anytime Fitness is “the largest gym chain in the world”. The gym chain has over 4,500 locations globally, including one in Antarctica, and over 4 million active members. DeltaTrainer is a market leader in remote personal training. The company also provides fitness technology to gyms like Anytime Fitness, as well as many smaller brands. The help is coming just in time to help gyms stay relevant and competitive in the currently digitally-dominated fitness landscape.
How Did COVID Affect The Fitness World?
The pandemic created some unprecedented challenges and opportunities in the fitness space. Digital companies such as Peloton and Mirror have seen a flood of new investment, while gyms have been hit with closures and bankruptcy. That’s where DeltaTrainer came in! DeltaTrainer has provided a digital bridge for many gyms that would’ve otherwise struggled to stay open.
In fact, DeltaTrainer’s proprietary technology allows gyms like Anytime Fitness to adapt and thrive during the pandemic. And, as the gyms claim, making customer experiences both innovative and sustainable well beyond the pandemic.
DeltaTrainer, a technology start-up based in Pittsburgh,PA, launched their direct to consumer training service less than one year ago in March, 2020. Since then, DeltaTrainer has grown from 1 part-time trainer with a handful of clients to dozens of full-time trainers and thousands of clients across twelve countries. During the last quarter, the company averaged an explosive 100% month-over-month growth rate.
DeltaTrainer pairs clients with a remote 1-on-1 coach who develops personalized workout programs and holds clients accountable. The clients are then guided through workouts using the DeltaTrainer app. The app, using DeltaTrainer’s proprietary smart-watch motion AI, automatically detects when specific exercises are performed and provides live feedback to clients on their form and pacing. All of the guidance is sent straight to your headphones in the voice of your trainer! This hands free guidance and live feedback makes it feel like your trainer is right there with you! The best part is you can workout anytime and anywhere. You don’t have to schedule a Zoom call or stand in front of a clunky mirror. All you need is your phone and Apple Watch. You can workout at the gym, at home, or on the go! DeltaTrainer delivers the same training experience one would receive from an in-person trainer, but for one tenth the cost. DeltaTrainer’s price for the unlimited remote personal training is only $69 per month – significantly less than the $600+ per month cost of a traditional trainer. Clients can also compete against one another for fitness points. The trainer guidance and friendly competition provide plenty of motivation.
CEO and co-founder, Matt Spettel, a recent engineering graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, has a history of entrepreneurship going back to his early high school years. He is joined by co-founder Gabe Madonna, a childhood best friend and computer science graduate of MIT. Spettel and Madonna have built DeltaTrainer’s product and technology from the ground up themselves. They are more than excited to see where the recent explosive growth and Anytime Fitness partnership will propel the company.
A New Digital Fitness Era
Other gyms have had to turn to Zoom classes and Instagram live to maintain engagement. With so many live streaming fitness classes it’s becoming hard to stay competitive as a gym. These live video classes are usually free too. And, without the in-gym revenue of 1-on-1 training, merchandise sales, and other upsells, how long can gyms keep going?
It’s going to be interesting to see how gym chains attempt to stay relevant in a new digital fitness era. Most are still holding out for vaccines to fix their pandemic problem. But, most experts think that even with the vaccine it will take years for gyms to bounce back. And even then they may never return to normal. According to research, after a year of social distancing many people have already settled on new fitness solutions. And, Peloton and some of the larger at-home fitness players have locked people in for years with their expensive hardware. Most plans have people paying off the device for almost 4 years!!! Not all gym goers have the finances to turn to Peloton and the likes when gyms close down. People hit financially by the pandemic won’t be able afford $2,000 bikes like that.
It’s exciting to see the world’s largest gym chain lead the way in taking the first step at adapting to the digital age. Will more gyms follow suit?
*collaborative post
