ClassPass has unveiled its latest innovation: the integration of food and beverage options into its bookable experiences. With tens of thousands of studios, gyms and spas already on the platform, ClassPass is now introducing ways for its members to refuel after workouts or wellness visits. 

“After we expanded into beauty and wellness offerings in 2018, we were eager to continue to find ways to bring more experiences to our members. Food and beverage always felt like the natural next step,” said Fritz Lanman, CEO of Mindbody and ClassPass. “Our members have come to realize wellness is so much more than fitness – and it means something different to everyone. We are excited to continue to expand our offerings to fit our members’ wellness lifestyles.”

Since its founding in 2013, ClassPass has evolved from a pure fitness booking platform to a more holistic system. With the new launch, ClassPass users in New York and Miami can now redeem their credits for snacks and meals at participating locations. Additional restaurants and eateries in new cities will be rolling out in the next few months, the platform said.

ClassPass was acquired by Mindbody in 2021, after a tumultuous couple of years during the pandemic. Now that in-person experiences are back and bigger than ever, the platform has been capitalizing on consumers’ desire for holistic, community-driven in-person experiences.

Entering the food and beverage brings ClassPass a step closer to being a one-stop shop for health and wellness-focused consumers. By entering the wellness-focused food and beverage category, the platform and its parent brand Mindbody are looking to disrupt the a that’s been dominated by established players like UberEats DoorDash, and even local smoothie shops. 

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ClassPass was founded in 2013 by Payal Kadakia and Mary Biggins and has since shaken up the fitness and wellness industry. Acquired by Mindbody in 2021, the subscription service allows users to book classes and experiences at thousands of studios, gyms, salons, and spas using credits. 

Classes are available in more than 2,500 cities worldwide, and the service also comes with over 4,000 on-demand workouts. 

Now that in-person workouts are back and seemingly bigger than ever, Athletech News decided to give ClassPass a try.

Pros 

For those who appreciate variety, ClassPass certainly delivers. It not only offers mainstream, nationwide studio brands like Barry’s, Solidcore, and SoulCycle, but local establishments as well. The service is best for those who want to step outside their usual routine to try out more health and wellness businesses in their area. One of the best parts of using the app was getting to try all the studios in my area that I had long overlooked.  

Each class or service is a listed number of credits, which depends on the time of day, user demand, and the number of times a user has visited.  Membership costs range from as little as 6 credits to as many as 100 credits per month, which ranges from around $20-$200. Users can browse classes by credits, and many studios have a “first-timers” deal, so trying out different workouts and services is encouraged. 

I found the process of hunting for deals enjoyable. If you have flexibility around timing, ClassPass could be a great fit, as credits go a lot further during “off-hour” workouts. There were also limited-time deals that provided great value. For example, some studios or services had a limited-time discount. ClassPass is also great for travelers, as it works in most major cities, so users can maintain their workout routine on the road. 

The service also limits the number of workouts you can do at certain studios, which forces variety. Class reviews were moderately helpful for finding new spots, but most of the reviews were very positive: I was hard-pressed to find an overall studio rating under 4.7/5. There were also no written reviews, which could be a good value-add for the platform. Adding friends on the service also allows users to see where their connections are going for inspiration, which I also found to be a fun way to align workout schedules. 

ClassPass also offers beauty and wellness services, which are easy to book. It requires a user request to book a service for a specific time, which the business then approves. My approvals were quick, generally just several hours, and I liked that I could make a reservation digitally even at small businesses. 

Cons

Many of the downsides of ClassPass are area- and preference-dependent. For example, class credit costs unsurprisingly vary a lot by area. A class in New York will likely be more expensive than one in Washington D.C. or Boston. Convenience also obviously varies by location; for example, in certain parts of New York City, there are very few businesses available on ClassPass, but in others, there is one on every block. 

Most of the “hidden gem” classes are around 3-4 credits in bigger cities, larger studios are 5-10 credits, and popular workouts like Solidcore, SoulCycle, and CorePower Yoga are 10-14+ credits. The popular studios also book up quickly in some areas.

One downside of the service is that the number of credits a user can roll over month to month is dependent on membership tier. For example, if you buy 18 credits per month, you can only roll over 18 credits. For those hoping to save up credits for a larger service like a massage, that might not be possible if you have a lower-credit membership. Adding credits is possible but might not make sense financially depending on the desired service.

Lastly, although this is typical in the world of workout studios, cancellation fees are high. This provides built-in accountability, but also might not be best for those who have variable schedules. 

Final Thoughts 

Overall, ClassPass is a great service that will add variety to your workout and wellness routines. For those with flexible schedules, credits will likely go further, but it can drive value for all users who have enough participating businesses in their area. 

Read more ATN Product Reviews here.

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Spending time outdoors could be just what the doctor ordered. The Mindbody 2024 Wellness Index and ClassPass 2023 Look Back Report have highlighted the data-supported benefits of focusing on nature.

According to the Mindbody Wellness Index, 39% of consumers recognize the critical role of spending time outdoors in maintaining mental well-being, citing its contribution to a more balanced life. 

Wellness retreats have cropped up, tailored to combat the loneliness epidemic, particularly for men. Companies like Evryman and Junto host men’s retreats in locations like Joshua Tree and Costa Rica, filled with meditations, hikes and group activities. Around 13% of consumers are venturing into camps or retreats that prioritize activities connecting them with nature. Just a weekend-long escape can ground consumers and reduce stress levels. 

Even a simple walk can have a big impact. Over half of the population (52%) considers outdoor walking an indispensable part of their general fitness regimen.

Research supports that just 20 minutes a day spent in nature can markedly reduce stress levels. Companies like Apple have leaned into the walking trend, building out its “Time to Walk” offering on Apple Fitness+, where consumers can hear prerecorded stories from celebrities during a walk.   

Parallel to the pursuit of nature, 2024 is also marked by adults rediscovering the joy of play. ClassPass’s Look Back Report demonstrates a 92% increase in sports and recreation bookings from the previous year.

Golf is the fastest-growing activity, followed by football, soccer, and tennis. Pickleball has also had an impressive year, with participants of all ages hitting the courts. In 2023, the sport grew to 8.9 million players in the United States, according to a 2023 Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) report.

Nearly half (43%) of all consumers say that community is an important part of wellness experiences, a data point that was likely influenced by the pandemic. Thirty-three percent of consumers prioritize fun and play to support their well-being.  

Consumers are also exploring nature’s offerings for health benefits. Seventeen percent of consumers are curious about incorporating adaptogenic mushrooms into their diets, likely drawn to claims that they have the potential to relieve stress, reduce anxiety and enhance cognitive functions. 

Nature, wellness and the rediscovery of play could be defining trends of 2024. As consumers increasingly grow frustrated with increasing screen time and tech fatigue, they’re becoming more drawn to spending time outside with others. Mindbody and ClassPass’ reports have made one thing clear: a little more time outside can go a long way. 

View the full Mindbody Wellness Index and ClassPass Look Back Report.

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The burgeoning global virtual and online fitness market is anticipated to reach a staggering $256.97 billion by 2032, a substantial increase from its 2022 valuation of $15.82 billion, according to recent findings by The Brainy Insights, a market research firm. Even better — the market is fertile ground for fitness companies and personal training experts. 

Fueling the rapid growth is the demand for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) fitness, perhaps accelerated by the pandemic, when consumers leaned even more on technology as a means of connection and to maintain fitness and wellness. The active aging demographic is also contributing significantly to the market’s predicted upward trajectory, as older fitness enthusiasts show interest in online fitness.

Fitness Brands Embrace VR

Several industry leaders are noted in the report for their contributions to the growing virtual/online fitness market, such as Mindbody/ClassPass, Fitbit, Les Mills and Wexer.

Les Mills recently launched Les Mills XR dance as a virtual fitness game that transports holographic professional dancers right into the personal space of Meta Quest 3 users.

Virtual fitness platform FitXR is also banking on the mixed reality (MR) and VR sector, with CEO and founder Sam Cole predicting the technology will soon be found in gyms and fitness facilities. The virtual fitness platform just unveiled Slam, an immersive and gamified MR experience with passthrough capabilities. 

“The gamification aspect of Slam has allowed us to reach an entirely new group of users who are anxious about exercise, and young people who are addicted to sedentary gaming,” Cole told Athletech News. 

Even activewear brand Puma is highlighting the entertaining experience of virtual and mixed-reality fitness, collaborating with Meta Quest at store locations in Germany to promote “the world’s smallest gym.” The pop-up events prompt guests to explore the workouts offered by Meta Quest 3 within a 2m x 2m pod.

Demand for Online Fitness is High

The advantages of virtual fitness are numerous for consumers, benefiting from the convenience and flexibility of a workout on their own schedule and current location. Plus, as the report acknowledges, virtual fitness platforms are often less expensive when compared to conventional gym or studio memberships, with many needing little or no equipment.

With just a few clicks, fitness enthusiasts can access a seemingly unlimited range of workout modalities, including boxing, yoga, dance cardio, Pilates, HIIT, ballet and more. Many fitness providers also offer the option to tailor a workout based on skill level and health goal, further personalizing the online fitness experience.

Can Virtual Fitness Become the New Rx? 

As the report demonstrates, virtual fitness can break down barriers that in-person brands may experience, such as meeting the needs of consumers in geographically remote areas. There are also vast opportunities for fitness platforms to target content and classes based on regional preferences and cultural differences, expanding market penetration. 

Corporate wellness programs and health care providers can consider partnering with virtual fitness companies to promote better health of employees and patients, even prescribing virtual fitness as part of a care plan. While still in the early stages of study, preliminary research suggests that VR exercise can positively impact physiological, psychological and rehabilitative outcomes compared with traditional exercise. 

In alignment with the report, demand for virtual trainers and well-being coaches has also increased 44% year-over-year, according to corporate wellness company Gympass, which published its own findings after analyzing over 250 million check-ins on its platform over the past 24 months.

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Mindbody CEO Fritz Lanman has a compelling answer when asked why the software provider is trusted by so many health and wellness companies, including some of the biggest names in boutique fitness. 

“You make more money from Mindbody than you make from any other platform,” Lanman says. “The average business grows 36% after they join Mindbody in their first six months.”

A key reason for that growth is that Mindbody’s customers get access to the 1.9 million active shoppers who use the software company’s consumer-facing app to book services like boutique fitness classes. According to Lanman, it’s the largest concentrated pool of active wellness shoppers on Android or iPhone. 

“If you want to get your business in front of that many people, the alternative would be to pay Facebook, Instagram or Google for ads,” the Mindbody CEO notes. “For that spend, the ROI isn’t guaranteed. In our system, we have tools that drive discoveries for you. If we can prove through a consumer survey that we discovered a person for you, we’ll take a fee on that purchase. But it’s guaranteed ROI, since you’re only paying if you get discovered.”

In 2021, Mindbody acquired ClassPass, a monthly subscription service that allows users to book last-minute seats in gyms, studios and spas. The deal gave Mindbody’s customers access to even more potential members. To alleviate any concerns studios may have about selling seats for less than full cost, Mindbody offers its customers a 90-day ClassPass guarantee: if using the subscription service doesn’t make them money, Mindbody promises to pay them back twice what they lost. 

Since the acquisition, “a lot more of the Mindbody customer base is taking advantage of ClassPass to grow their businesses,” Lanman says.

When It Comes to AI, Data Is King

Looking ahead, Minbody has its sights set on a new way to help its customers grow their businesses: artificial intelligence and machine learning. 

“We’re starting to layer in a ton of features that help you grow your business even more, including machine learning and AI-powered tools that help business owners do things like convert more prospects, retain their audiences better, drive more purchases and get more bookings,” Lanman says.

Minbdody’s size makes it uniquely positioned among fitness and wellness software platforms to leverage the powers of AI, Lanman believes. 

“With these large language models, businesses that have huge datasets don’t have to invent new math, we all can use the same techniques and open-source models,” he explains. “The key is, which players have enough data to make the AI good? Mindbody has the biggest platform. Because of our scale, we have the data to do things with AI that our competition can’t.”

Mindbody’s AI Plans

Lanmnan shared some of Mindbody’s current and upcoming initiatives around AI and machine learning. 

Already up and running is a feature called Messenger[ai], Mindbody’s AI-powered front-desk assistant, which automatically responds to missed calls, fields questions and helps clients book and buy services.

“At its core, it’s a chatbot,” Lanman explains. “It’s a widget that you put into your site. So on your business webpage, when a prospect comes in, it can ask them questions like, ‘What availability do you have for an appointment?’ A client can actually go all the way through the booking process just by interacting with the chatbot.”

The Messenger[ai] feature should prove popular with Millenials and GenZers, who typically prefer a human-free purchasing experience online. 

“Younger consumers want to be able to just chat, they don’t want to have to pick up a phone to book an appointment or a class,” Lanman notes. “It also means you don’t need to have somebody manning the front desk to get a booking.”

Another feature Mindbody has started rolling out to some customers is called Clients At Risk, which essentially uses AI to identify which members are likely to stop coming into class. 

“The AI shows customers the folks it thinks are losing their motivation before you’ve actually lost them,” Lanman explains. “That gives you time to act. Go have an intervention with that person, give them a phone call, send them an encouraging text or give them an offer for a discounted personal training session or appointment to hook them back in.”

“It’s essentially retention AI,” he adds. “In the fitness industry, especially in wellness, retention is as big a priority as customer acquisition, because people lose their motivation for wellness and fall out of their routine.”

For Mindbody’s customers using the Clients At Risk tool, the early results have been “spectacular,” Lanman says. 

“The businesses using the feature are seeing 30% of those clients be more engaged after just exposing the feature to them,” he notes.

Mindbody is also using AI and machine learning in its consumer-facing app to drive more people into studios.  

“We’re using machine learning on search and navigation,” Lanman says. “How can we better match wellness shoppers to wellness businesses and drive as many purchases as we can?” 

Another AI feature Mindbody is working on is called “big spender analysis,” although it hasn’t yet been released. 

“When a prospect walks into your door, how do you know if they’re going to be one of the big spenders, one of the people who really buy into your business and stays active?” Lanman explains.

Mindbody also plans to use AI to help studios evaluate which of their instructors are likely to become successful in attracting clients.

Beyond AI, Lanman says he’s encouraged by the progress Mindbody is making in improving the speed and reliability of its software in general. 

“Mindbody is a little old. It was built a long time ago,” he admits. “So most of our engineering calories are actually going into just making Mindbody incredibly performant, reliable, fast and responsive, and modernizing the UI.”

Those updates, combined with the company’s push into AI, have Lanman excited about what the future holds.

“We already grow businesses more than any other platform, we already have more features than any other. We also have AI that no one else can do because they don’t have our data scale,” he says. “And then you add to that, software that’s getting faster, more reliable and more usable.”

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Virtuagym, a health and fitness software provider, has partnered with Hidden Profits Marketing to launch a new lead management platform for fitness studios and clubs.

The collaboration includes a seamless product integration combining club management software from Virtuagym with Hidden Profits Marketing’s lead generation formula, allowing fitness clubs and studios to optimize customer lead management and growth.

As a result of the partnership, club owners and entrepreneurs can access vital lead information on Virtuagym’s platform while decreasing time-consuming administrative work by eliminating the need to manually upload leads between systems.

Customer leads generated by Hidden Profits include information and statuses, which are automatically displayed in a customer lead overview in the Virtuagym platform, allowing for ease of use. In addition, the customer data is synced between the two platforms, offering club owners the ability to monitor customer conversion rates as they grow their fitness business.

It’s a partnership that Virtuagym co-founder and CEO Hugo Braam says is crucial for businesses in the ever-competitive fitness industry.

“Digitization has transformed how health and fitness businesses engage with and manage potential new customers,” Braam said. “And in an increasingly competitive industry, it has never been more important to use systems that enable businesses to efficiently acquire, analyze and understand them.”

Braam spoke with Athletech News in April, highlighting his excitement about Virtuagym’s future and the potential technology has to enhance the fitness experience.

The partnership with Hidden Profits represents Virtuagym’s new growth phase, in which the company is concentrating on further developing its all-in-one solution, including partner integrations. The company’s platform is currently integrated with other fitness industry leaders such as Matrix Fitness, Life Fitness, ClassPass, FitnessKPI, PS-Tec and InBody.

The integration between Virtuagym and Hidden Profits is initially available to customers in the Benelux and DACH regions.

A Virtuagym spokesperson told Athletech News that the company plans to roll out the new lead management solution globally, although they couldn’t provide a timeline for future markets at this time.

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ClassPass announced its 2022 list of top U.S. studios and instructors last week. The winners are determined through a variety of methods, including using reservation data and social media nominations. The winning categories include the Innovator Award (introduced for the first time), Best Fitness Studio Award, Best Instructor Award, and Best Wellness Business Award.

The Innovator Award went to HAUM Yoga in San Francisco, CA, and Blueberry Moon Salon Spa in Chicago, IL. HAUM honors the rich history of yoga with a modern twist in San Francisco, offering Hatha, Vinyasa, Restore, and Flow + Restore. Every three months, HAUM has the “Art of Yoga” event that honors queer or bipoc artists. Blueberry Moon is a boutique and spa in Lincoln Park, Chicago, with a passion for cruelty-free beauty and a dedication to style and wellness. Most of their products are vegan, and they are dedicated to selling brands that are transparent about sourcing.

The ClassPass Best Fitness Studio Award 2022 had a variety of winners: MOXI3 in Costa Mesa, CA, High Ride Cycle in Orange County, CA, City Cycle in Seattle, WA, and SESSION Pilates in Dallas, TX. From strength classes to beat-based cycling, to a modern twist on Pilates, each studio offers something different to its clients. All the studios, however, are focused on creating a community, which keep their members coming back for more.

Best Instructor went to Allisa Benson at High Ride Cycle, Joe Stacy at Motion Fitness Studio, Kassem Osheroff at Burn 60, Ilana Brizel Maider at Prime Cycle and Body, and Tiffany Daenecke at Form50. All of the instructors have different areas of focus in the fitness and wellness space. However, they all try to be genuine, relatable, and inclusive as instructors, which has given them a dedicated following.

Lastly, Best Wellness Business went to Dop Dop Salon in New York, NY, THE WELL in New York, NY, Glow Sauna Studios in Dallas, TX, Blu Life Wellness in Escondido, CA, and WAX Melrose in Los Angeles, CA. From Dop Dop, which focuses on innovating hair care, to THE WELL, which is a complete ecosystem for wellness, to the saunas of Glow and Blu Life, to skin services at WAX, each studio offers something different. However, all the studios focus on getting personal with their clients and personalizing offerings.

ClassPass’s Best of Awards represent the studios and instructors invigorating and innovating the industry. Although all different, the awards represent the power of community and personalization in the world of health and wellness.

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Another year is coming to a close, and with it, too, comes a look back at the health, fitness, and wellness trends we loved and discovered throughout the year. ClassPass and Mindbody’s Look Back Report for 2022 reveals fitness and wellness trends, fastest growing fitness workouts, popular workouts, most popular wellness reservations, and more as we head into a new year. 

To start, the fastest growing fitness class of 2022 was Sculpt, with a reported 471 percent jump in class bookings from January to October. Body sculpting classes are known for their muscle toning benefits and focus on core strength. In the Fitness & Wellness Trends of 2022 list, the most popular time to workout clocked in at 5:30 pm. The most popular day and month were also revealed as Tuesday and August. The most popular “first” class was Cycle. Also, more people also became interested in acro yoga, with class reservations being at a 200 percent increase in 2022.

Moving on to the Top 10 Workouts of 2022, according to ClassPass and Mindbody, the number one workout was strength training, followed by yoga at number two, and pilates at number three. Recognized studios such as SoulCycle and Physique 57 would love to know that cycling has the fourth place and barre is at number five. Interestingly enough, just some standard gym time was good enough for many people in 2022, as it landed a spot at number 7, and rounding out the list at number 10 is the more relaxing, yet just as beneficial, practice of stretching.

Strength training’s placement at the top of this list may look familiar, and that’s because the well-liked form of exercise was also number one on this list for 2021. ClassPass and Mindbody also disclose it appears more people attended strength training classes this year than in the previous year, with a 94 percent growth from 2021 to 2022.

While crowds flock to gyms and fitness boutiques usually at the start of year to get a head start on their New Year’s fitness resolutions, the ClassPass & Mindbody 2022 Look Back Report shows more people worked out in the fall months. August and September were the “most popular months to workout.” 

Of course, wellness includes taking time away from weights, Bosu balls, and exercise mats to more relaxing methods of self-care. In the top ten spa and & salon services list for this year, we see that the art of massage is at the top spot, followed by nails at number two. Meditation (number 5), sports recovery (number 8), and cryotherapy (number 9) are also found in the list. Just in case you’re wondering what the fastest growing wellness service of 2022 was, that distinction goes to the lash lift.

As you’re looking over these lists and checking them twice this holiday season to see where your health, fitness, and wellness interests fit in, keep watch of the trends sure to make a splash in 2023.

Featured image credit: ClassPass

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ClassPass, one of the leading fitness and wellness memberships, announced its multi-year partnership with SoulCycle, the full-body cycling experience, which is now bookable on the ClassPass app.

“We have heard our members’ rally cries to add SoulCycle to our network,” said Fritz Lanman, CEO of Mindbody and ClassPass. “ClassPass brings members the world’s best fitness and wellness experiences, and we are thrilled to partner with SoulCycle to include this iconic lifestyle brand into our portfolio.”

As cycling is one of the most popular in-person fitness reservations booked on ClassPass, SoulCycle’s presence on ClassPass will likely bring more riders to the platform. In 2022, ClassPass saw a 95% increase in in-person fitness reservations from 2021. With more than 60 studios across the U.S. and London, SoulCycle has a dedicated following, who love its pulse-pounding playlists and dance choreography within candlelit studios.

The news comes after Mindbody and ClassPass announced layoffs this fall, citing increased economic uncertainty and inflationary pressures, which have slowed progress and created new challenges for the fitness industry. The partnership with SoulCycle represents the platform expanding to consumer groups like SoulCycle riders who have previously remained loyal to the brand, in the hopes that they will branch out to the ClassPass platform’s other offerings. 

“We are delighted to partner with ClassPass to share the magic of Soul with their members. SoulCycle is an extraordinary workout, one that exercises the mind, soul and body,” said Evelyn Webster, CEO of SoulCycle. “It’s an incredible opportunity to bring our legendary instructors, welcoming community and the thrill of the original cardio dance party to a wider audience.”

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Mindbody has reduced its workforce, laying off an unknown number of employees. 

The SaaS company is citing economic uncertainty for its decision.

This is the second time in recent years that Mindbody has conducted layoffs. In April 2020, during the height of the pandemic, the fitness tech company reduced its staff by roughly 700 employees. 

According to the health and wellness tech company, it intends to build “a more resilient platform,” reports The Tribune. The SaaS company is one of the largest employers in San Luis Obispo, California.

Just last month, the wellness tech platform announced a partnership with Brivo, a cloud-based security solution through which Mindbody studios and owners can better protect their businesses.

Impacted employees took to LinkedIn to share the news and search for new job opportunities. While it is unclear which Mindbody departments or offices were affected by the layoffs, posts on LinkedIn included a customer success manager, an account executive, a project manager, an employee in partner development, and others in sales and marketing. 

“While the wellness industry continues to recover from the impact of the pandemic, increased economic uncertainty and inflationary pressures have slowed progress and created new challenges for our industry to navigate,” Tracy Richmond, Mindbody media representative, told The Tribune. “While these changes are incredibly difficult, and will be deeply felt across our entire organization, they will ultimately help us build a more resilient platform capable of meeting evolving market dynamics while better positioning our company for long-term growth.”

Last fall, Mindbody acquired ClassPass, a monthly wellness subscription service. The technology firm recently inked a multi-year agreement with Corporate Sports Unlimited and Kinélite, which operates 17 wellness clinics across Canada.

The post Mindbody Conducts Layoffs as it Cites Economic Uncertainty appeared first on Athletech News.

Wellness technology platform Mindbody has announced a strategic alliance with Corporate Sports Unlimited, Inc., a fitness center management, consulting, and wellness solutions company. Corporate Sports Unlimited will now serve its customers’ fitness and wellness facilities using Mindbody’s technology. 

According to Corporate Sports Unlimited, the partnership will streamline and improve its member management and retention processes, payment processing, scheduling, and reporting.

“Corporate wellness programs are becoming increasingly important, if not essential, as wellness continues to be more important than ever. Mindbody data shows that when looking at potential new employers, 42% say that wellness perks/benefits are an important part of making their final decision,” said Fritz Lanman, CEO of Mindbody and ClassPass. “With that in mind, we are grateful to partner with Corporate Sports Unlimited to bring their customers’ employees a seamless experience that allows them to break down barriers to prioritizing their health.” 

Lanman was recently appointed as MindBody’s new CEO, succeeding Josh McCarter, who has moved to the MindBody Board of Directors.

Corporate wellness is on the rise, with Research and Markets projecting a $90.4 billion global corporate wellness market by 2026. Employees who work for companies that provide wellness programs are happier and report experiencing less illness. Such wellness programs can even reduce healthcare costs and absenteeism. And, as Lanman pointed out in an interview with Athletech News last month, most consumers say that wellness is more important than ever coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Georgia-based Corporate Sports Unlimited was founded in 1980 as a corporate event planning company but has since expanded to include Corporate Health Unlimited, a division that caters to the needs of the health and wellness industry. The company offers programs and services to major corporations, global headquarters, Class A office developments, hospitals, resorts, and hotels.

“Our team manages a vast assortment of facilities that thousands rely on to take care of their personal wellness. With Mindbody’s flexible and easy-to-use platform, we can achieve our goal and commitment to ensure members receive a stress-free and reliable experience across all facilities,” said Donald Whitney, Founder, President, and CEO at Corporate Sports Unlimited.

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As one of the leading booking platforms for wellness businesses around the world, Mindbody has unrivaled data on the state of the industry. At the midpoint of 2022 and the close of August’s National Wellness Month, the fitness industry continues to reflect on the various meanings of “wellness.” Mindbody and ClassPass’s Wellness Index, an annual report that releases data on trends, reported areas such as intellectual, immune, and sexual wellness on the rise. But how are Mindbody’s 2022 wellness trends manifesting in their studios nationwide?

One in five Americans has tried new services or treatments that support immune health, with another 46% interested in trying these services moving forward, according to the Wellness Index. Harvard Medical Center cited exercise, consumption of fruit and vegetables, and stress minimization as major ways to improve one’s immune system. Studios like the Well, with locations in NYC, Westhampton, Connecticut, and Costa Rica, have been capitalizing on consumers’ desire for integrated wellness offerings. The Well has the offerings of a traditional spa—sauna, steam room, and refreshments lounge—but also offers fitness classes like yoga and Pilates. On the Mindbody app, the Well also offers infrared sauna, foot rubs, lunar gong baths and qigong (a meditation and healing practice to lower stress and anxiety, as well as improve balance and flexibility). 

Other studios have increasingly been focusing on offerings like cryotherapy, compression boots, and ajna light therapy (a meditation therapy that helps one experience a deep state of meditation using pulsing white lights). According to Mindbody’s proprietary data through the ClassPass platform, cryotherapy bookings have increased 26% since the beginning of 2022. IV therapy has also grown in popularity, with consumers seeking vitamin supplements through infusions. Some studios offer drips that tout benefits such as “rapid repair,” “peak performance,” and “ache absolver,” combining vitamins according to consumer needs. 

With 36% of Americans choosing mental health as the most important area of wellness, Mindbody has seen that manifest in its studios in a variety of ways. First, consumers seem to be increasingly prioritizing freedom of expression and fun in their workouts. For the first time, dance broke the top 10 fitness classes booked. Sexual wellness is also on the rise, with 29% of Americans reporting that they are very likely to try activities in this area. Consumers are exploring pole dancing classes, with benefits of improved cardio, strength, and creative expression. Since the beginning of 2022, pole dancing bookings have increased 48% on the ClassPass platform. Other dance cardio studios, such as SassClass in NYC, promote female empowerment through learning a dance routine in signature styles such as “Sexy Stilettos,” “Fierce Feminine Hip Hop,” and “Chairography.” With the fitness community seeking ways to gain confidence, have fun, and improve their mental health, such classes fit the bill. 

Mindbody’s 2022 trends demonstrate an evolution towards holistic wellness, with a focus on stress reduction, recovery, and fun. As the post-pandemic fitness world continues to rebuild, following the platform’s trends will be rich in consumer insights for the industry.

The post How Mindbody’s Top 2022 Wellness Trends are Manifesting in Studios appeared first on Athletech News.

Effective September 3, 2022, Fritz Lanman has been appointed the new Chief Executive Officer of Mindbody, the leading technology platform for the wellness industry. Athletech News spoke to Lanman about his strategic vision for the company, and the greater state of the fitness and technology industry.

Athletech News (ATN): What brought you into this space, and what are you most excited about with the future of fitness and technology?

Fritz Lanman: I spent close to a decade at Microsoft out of undergrad as a Product Manager and then running the Corporate Strategy group there. Then I switched and became an entrepreneur and an angel investor. I actually got involved in the space originally by investing in ClassPass. I led the seed round when the company was actually called Classtivity. I met Payal [Kadakia], the Founder, and just fell in love with the opportunity. I led its Series A six-to-twelve months later. I was just spending a ton of time with Payal on business advising and she wanted me to be an Executive Chairman. In December 2015, Payal asked me to step in and take the operating reins of ClassPass.

I was just super passionate about the technical problems in the space, the ability to help wellness merchants be better businesses, and the ability to inspire people to live healthier, happier lives. Here I am, close to seven years later. We obviously then were acquired by Mindbody about ten months ago. When Josh [McCarter] and the Board presented me with the opportunity, it was a pretty easy decision to say, ‘I’d like to double down on pursuing this mission of bringing great technology into this category. Helping merchants build better businesses, inspire more lives. And helping end users live happier, healthier, longer lives.’

ATN: What will be your first priority for Mindbody in this new role?

Fritz Lanman: I think what’s interesting about Mindbody is that it’s a category leader, who essentially invented the SaaS wellness business. It’s a profitable business, and it’s extremely well-capitalized. So, I’d say the first priority is to not break anything. And then the second priority is to finish this three-year product transformation that Mindbody has been undergoing. ClassPass, the category leader, was first built around 20 years ago, and the executive team has done a great job not only bringing the company through the pandemic, building video products that Mindbody customers could launch livestream classes during the pandemic, etc., and have migrated Mindbody to the cloud. So, cloud migration, a total UI/UX overhaul, and increasingly, launching new AI/ML-enabled features. We have a product called Messenger AI that allows a user to go to a salon’s website or a fitness website and make a booking without having to talk to a human.

I’m first fired up about just making sure we finished the job on that product transformation. We’re approaching the full completion of that three-year journey, but we have to run through the finish line. And then I’m really fired up to start leveraging some of my expertise building large-scale distributed systems, and especially ML systems, to figure out how we use it to help these customers build better businesses. And I see a tremendous amount of opportunity there.

ATN: How will Mindbody and ClassPass shift as consumer needs change, and where is the industry now?

Fritz Lanman: The industry itself is largely achieving recovery, kind of surpassing pre-pandemic reservation volumes. We were worried about whether there would be this massive transition or permanent transition to digital. Luckily, Mindbody’s position is to sell digital products to studios if they want to add digital classes. What we learned is that there’s a consumer who wants to pay for digital experiences, and then there’s a consumer who will do digital, but really only wants to pay for in person. Once somebody goes back after a period of absence during the pandemic, they’re actually going back 10% more than they were before the pandemic. What we hear from the Mindbody and ClassPass consumer is predominantly that they prefer these in person experiences, or that they’re willing to pay for them because they want specialized equipment. They want that community experience. The Mindbody consumer app and ClassPass are both up and to the right in terms of growth, engagement, the number of bookings that we’re seeing. The industry, I think, is going to emerge from the pandemic stronger than it was before.

ATN: Is there anything you’re concerned about in the current fitness technology world?

Fritz Lanman: I would have said digital maybe two years ago, right after we were in the pandemic, both for Mindbody and ClassPass. But about two-thirds of people believe in-studio classes make it easier to work out regularly and maintain a routine. So, we think an in-person experience, maybe even a variety of experiences, is the best way to stay motivated to work out. And the vast majority of consumers, I think 75%, according to our last study, are saying that wellness is more important than ever coming out of the pandemic. So, a weird tailwind or benefit of the pandemic, is this consumer mindset and commitment to wellness and well-being. A lot of our consumers, both for the Mindbody app and for ClassPass, want to supplement with digital.

So, I would say the biggest risk to our industry isn’t people stopping working out in person, but it’s what the next pandemic will be—for example, monkeypox. And I’d say the recession, or the risk of an inflationary-driven recession is just necessitating that things will need to be a little more expensive for Mindbody customers, but that isn’t specific to the fitness industry. If you zoom in, you see these near-term disruptions from COVID, or potentially the next pandemic, or inflation. But if you zoom out, you see a super strong exponential growth curve in this industry. And the benefit of ClassPass being in 30 countries is that it’s not a U.S. phenomenon—it’s something that we’ve seen throughout Southeast Asia, Europe, and Latin America.

ATN: What is your long-term vision for Mindbody?

Fritz Lanman: Our near-term vision is the product overhaul of the core Mindbody experience. The biggest risk to the industry is our businesses not having the tools they need to grow their businesses. The second is finishing the job on Mindbody and ClassPass. We’re going to guarantee to businesses that Class Pass will be accretive. If you’re a studio joining ClassPass, Mindbody will pay you double what you’ve lost. Third, we’ve launched a product called Mindbody Capital. It’s made it easier using Mindbody and ClassPass’s best data for lenders to underwrite loans in real time to these small businesses. We’ve so far advanced over $9 million in financing, and that’s again been critical for these small businesses struggling, coming out of the pandemic, or trying to launch.

Then, in the medium-to-long term, I see the incorporation of ML and AI into the space. We have a suite of 50 ideas for ways that we can continue to enhance and automate things like customer acquisition and retention and just bring to bear great tech to these studios to make their businesses better. Then, I see geographic expansion on horizon for Mindbody. It’s predominantly an American business with a large presence in Australia and the UK and a few other markets, English-serving markets. But ClassPass went from four countries to 30 in two years. We’ll have earned the right at Mindbody to kind of get our presence established across many more languages, much more of the globe, since wellness is a global phenomenon. Last, I think, is adjacency expansion. Mindbody originally was really designed for yoga and then all of studio fitness. Then, we built spa and salon experiences and we acquired Booker. There are a lot of physical and wellness activities out there that would benefit from really great software. So that’s the kind of longer-term vision: expanding on those geographic and vertical-adjacent areas.

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Software-as-a-service company Mindbody has found its new Chief People Officer in Meisha Sherman. The former vice president of Global Human Resources for Envista Corporation will be in charge of multiple verticals such as professional development and talent acquisition. In addition, Sherman will lead business efforts in regards to Mindbody’s “Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity and Belonging” initiative, involving a multitude of subgroups (mindbody pride, mindbody veterans, mindbody parents, for example) under the umbrella. 

In regards to the news, Sherman expressed the following in a press release, “As I join Mindbody, I am taking my experience at the intersection of technology and wellness and using it to make a difference in an industry that I am truly passionate about. In addition to guiding traditional HR initiatives, I aim to work with Mindbody leadership to further the company’s DEIB focus and continue their efforts in establishing a workplace where everyone feels seen and represented.” 

Mindbody CEO Josh McCarter also stated, “As Mindbody and ClassPass team members have joined forces to bring more wellness experiences to more people, I can’t think of a better time to welcome Meisha to Mindbody. With a proven ability to mobilize purpose-driven teams, I look forward to working closely with Meisha to grow and inspire our team members across the globe.”

In addition to her former VP role with Envista, Meisha Sherman was also the global vice president of Human Resources for the Danaher Corporation, global senior director of Human Resources for Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and director of Human Resources for Randstad, among other impressive leadership positions. She received an MBA degree from Pepperdine University’s esteemed Graziadio Business School and was a founding member of the Pepperdine University Black Alumni Council.

Mindbody has made several other significant business moves within the year. In 2021, the company acquired monthly subscription service ClassPass in a deal which further expanded its fitness and wellness network. Designed as a “technology platform for the fitness, wellness and beauty industries,” Mindbody has been certified as a “Great Place to Work,” thanks to 81% of its employees having made this claim.

Featured image is of Mindbody headquarters in San Luis Obispo, CA, by Mindbody staff. License: CC BY 2.5

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Athletech News (ATN): What differentiates Mindbody Capital from competitive offerings?  

Shari Castelli: Traditional loan applications are a great option for those who qualify – but the process can be lengthy, and lenders often require strong personal credit and/or a personal guarantee in exchange for financing. Additionally, the application process for online advances requires significant documentation and little wiggle room on the terms.

Mindbody Capital differs from other financing options due to its speed, seamlessness, and flexibility. Customers who qualify can accept offers from Mindbody Capital in just a few seconds – and they will receive their funds within 2 business days of acceptance. There is a simple, one-time fee, and repayment is done automatically by withholding a flat percentage of daily sales. This means that owners pay more when their sales are strong, less when sales decrease, and nothing when the business is closed. This level of flexibility is especially valuable when operating in an industry that is both heavily seasonal and quickly evolving! 

ATN: How will Mindbody Capital fit into the post-pandemic health and wellness industry growth trends?

Shari Castelli: Customers can use Mindbody Capital funds to invest in their business however they see fit. Because of this, participating customers say that Mindbody Capital has helped them not only maintain their businesses as we exit the pandemic – but also invest in the resources needed to rebound and grow post-pandemic. 

Many owners are reporting that they’re investing funds from Mindbody Capital into staff and hiring. This is no surprise: we have heard from numerous owners that it has been difficult to retain and rebuild their staff post-pandemic – from instructors to managers and more. Other popular uses for the funds include fueling new marketing campaigns to win back former clients and acquire new ones. Our customers are also investing heavily in new equipment to ensure that they provide a top-tier experience that simply cannot be replicated at home!  

We expect to see these trends evolve over time, which is why this program is so beneficial: it provides the funds needed to meet the basic needs of a business (like working capital) while also enabling them to keep up with new trends. Owners’ ability to make empowered, real-time decisions will be essential as demand rebounds and new growth opportunities emerge. 

ATN: Do you see long-term synergies between Mindbody Capital and the larger Mindbody-ClassPass ecosystem? If so, how? 

Shari Castelli: Mindbody customers appreciate that the offer amounts they can access through our Capital program are based on their business performance. If a business works with both Mindbody and ClassPass, any offer that they qualify for will be based on both their ClassPass revenue and Mindbody sales – unlocking a larger opportunity for those businesses. Beyond that, Mindbody and ClassPass will look to leverage their combined resources – including the most comprehensive fitness and wellness demand database in the world – to help business owners identify growth opportunities in our industry. Capital is one of many areas where Mindbody and ClassPass together can add more value to our shared clients than either could offer alone.  

ATN: Will Mindbody Capital use the larger company’s data and technology to grow the offering?  

Shari Castelli: One of the reasons that the Mindbody Capital experience is so seamless for our customers is because we are leveraging our data and technology to generate and update offers in real time based on each business’s performance. That said, the current iteration of Mindbody Capital is just the beginning: our goal is to build out a suite of products that offer our customers even more optionality in order to make the best financial decision for their business – based on their unique needs, challenges, and goals. We know that these things are ever-changing, and we are excited to combine customer feedback with our data, technology and other resources to support them as they evolve. 

ATN: How will you define success for Mindbody Capital? 

Shari Castelli: The goal of Mindbody Capital is to increase our customers’ access to funding, which will enable them to more easily run and grow their businesses – and help to reignite the industry overall. That said, to do this we must first recognize the existing inequality in who has access to the capital required to open and maintain businesses today. This is one of many reasons why offers received through Mindbody Capital are based solely on business performance (not personal credit history or a personal guarantee), which can help eliminate some of the bias inherent in traditional financing options. Over time, we will continue to focus on increasing access to capital as a means to reimagine the fitness and wellness industry – both from the perspectives of the business owners and the communities that they serve.

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ClassPass, the key to unlocking an extensive offering of fitness and wellness experiences, like gyms, spas, studios, and salons, wrapped up another whirlwind year. The female-founded monthly subscription service was acquired by MindBody earlier this fall, offering a dynamic partnership that helps consumers and business owners have a seamless experience. As people were eager to head back to in-person classes and wellness treatments, ClassPass embarked on a journey to identify consumer behavior and give us a peek at what’s in store for 2022.

Using data from the reservations that consumers booked (or didn’t book) this year, ClassPass released a comprehensive report on the trends we can expect in 2022 as consumers continue to return to studios, salons, spas, and even the office. And, most importantly, ClassPass is reporting encouraging news for the fitness and beauty industries. 

With businesses reopening and consumers excited to return to normalcy, in-person reservations increased. By June 2021, ClassPass reports that 9 of the 10 top reservations were for in-person classes & appointments such as massages and yoga classes, and ClassPass members were booking at 10% over their pre-pandemic usage. Fitness reservations, ClassPass says, have grown by 329%, and spa and beauty reservations are up by 428%. 

But that’s not all. ClassPass dived into hyper-specifics – like who works out harder: left-handed or right-handed gym-goers? What day of the week are consumers working out? And what’s the most popular fitness activity these days? ClassPass even revealed what major city needs to step up its fitness game and crowned the city that is hitting its fitness goals.

Read on to find out more.

Here’s how ClassPassers worked out in 2021

Strength training topped the ClassPass list, and dance made it to the top ten of most booked activities for the first time. “After a year spent on Zoom calls, we’re ready to get our bodies moving and find positive ways of expressing ourselves,” ClassPass reports. The most common time to book a dance class is 7 PM on a Wednesday, and the top 5 dance classes are Cardio, Pole, Hip Hop, Zuma, and Ballet.

ClassPass even revealed what cities are dancing the most. The company says that Sacramento, CA, Honolulu, HI, Orlando, FL, and Portland, OR are all leading the nation in dance bookings. 

Top workouts of 2021:

1. Strength Training
2. Yoga
3. Cycling 
4. Pilates
5. Barre
6. Boxing
7. Gym Time
8. Running
9. Livestream Yoga
10. Dance

Top dance styles by reservation volume: 

1. Cardio Dance
2. Pole Dance
3. Hip Hop 
4. Zumba
5. Ballet
6. Latin
7. Salsa
8. Jazz
9. Contemporary
10. Modern
11. Bollywood 
12. Ballroom
13. Swing
14. Tap

Fun fact: Left-handed? According to new research from ClassPass, you’re twice as likely to work out seven days a week.

Famous left-handed athletes include Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds, tennis player Petra Kvitová, football player Tim Tebow, and professional wrestler Ronda Rousey, says ClassPass. 

Here’s when we are working out & for how long

Many might assume that Monday is the most popular day to work out, but ClassPass reports that Tuesday is the most popular day of the week to work out. 

The most popular rest day is Sunday, which ClassPass says indicates that consumers are getting back to pre-pandemic routines of a more social weekend and leaving fitness intentions to the start of the week.

The most popular time to work out on office days is 5:30 PM and the most popular time to exercise on work-from-home days is 12:00 PM. The majority of people are working out for 60 minutes, making fitness enthusiasts maximize their time efficiently – especially those working out during their lunch hour.

Overall, the 5:30 PM workout is back, says a new ClassPass report released in October, and 57% of professionals working out on office days will stop by fitness studios on the way home.

Here’s how people are getting fit across America

ClassPass identified exercise trends across the nation, providing interesting behavioral data. New Yorkers are the worst at keeping their fitness commitments, ClassPass says. New Yorkers cancel 1 in 10 classes at the last minute and are the only city to cancel classes at such a high frequency. Those in Dallas, Texas? Lone Star State residents are ClassPass go-getters with the highest average number of 2021 fitness reservations per user.

Night Owls: Miami, Florida
Most likely to book an evening workout

Wildcards: Nashville, Tennessee 
Most likely to book a class at the last minute

Perfect Planners: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Most likely to book a class far in advance

Glow-Up Mavens: Phoenix, Arizona
Most likely to book a beauty appointment

Self-Care Savants: Denver, Colorado 
Most likely to book a wellness appointment

Cycle City: Missoula, Montana
Most likely to book a cycling class

Dancing Kings & Queens: Sacramento, California
Most likely to book a dance class

Vitamin D Enthusiasts: Los Angeles, California
Most likely to book an outdoor workout

Social Butterflies: Salt Lake City, Utah
Most likely to book with a friend

Go-Getters: Dallas, Texas
Highest average number of 2021 fitness reservations per user

Alarm-Clock Snoozers: New York City, New York
Most likely to cancel a workout at the last minute 

Self-care is soaring as people start to socialize more & sports recovery is on the rise

The need for self-care has expanded to include beauty and wellness appointments, says ClassPass. As we continue to leave our homes and see friends and family in person again, 35% of ClassPassers have booked a beauty or spa appointment in the last 90 days. Beauty-related appointments are being booked before weekend events, indicating a return to normalcy. Thursday, Friday and Saturday are the three most popular days to get a “glow up,” says ClassPass. Manicures and pedicures are most likely to be a repeat reservation.

Another growing trend is Sports Recovery, according to ClassPass. Whether it’s recovery boots, light therapy, chiropractic services, salt caves, sound therapy, hyperbaric chambers, or anti-gravity treadmills, fitness enthusiasts are focusing on healing. 

Top Salon & Spa Appointments of 2021:

1. Nail Care
2. Massage
3. Facials
4. Sauna 
5. Haircuts
6. Cryotherapy
7. Sports Recovery
8. Meditation
9. Hair Removal
10. Brow Shaping 

Back to the office means back to the gym (or fitness studio)

We will see more “Commuting Cardio” in the new year, according to ClassPass. According to the October ClassPass survey, 50% of professionals are working from an office at least once a week, and 1 in 4 plan to return to offices full-time in 2022. 

64% of professionals now stop by fitness studios during their office commutes again.

39% prefer a morning workout on the way into the office.

57% are stopping by gyms on their way home.

4% are leaving the office midday for a workout – compared to the 15% of people still using lunchtime for a workout on the days they work from home.

On commuting days, professionals are 2.5x as likely to visit a gym they’ve been to before, according to ClassPass. 

Hybrid work(outs) has led consumers to try new classes 

Working from home has made fitness consumers more likely to explore new classes, ClassPass finds, and it’s a great way for gyms and studios to lure in new clients. Fitness consumers can be bored from working at home all day, and venturing out to a new class may feel adventurous. Over 70% of professionals are stopping by fitness studios on the days they work from home.

ClassPass also reports that people are twice as likely to discover and sample a new fitness class or studio they have never visited on the days they work from home.

And not everyone is eager to return to the office. 30% of surveyed ClassPassers shared that they plan to stay permanently remote, but this doesn’t mean that they want to hibernate. 

56% of people using remote work as an opportunity to travel are visiting gyms and studios in the places where they temporarily relocate, ClassPass says. The company indicates that three ClassPass users visited gyms and spas in 30+ different cities during 2021.

People are twice as likely to workout using on-demand or livestream classes on the days they work from home.

Consumer moods shape workout plans

On a stressful day, 60% of people prefer a high-energy workout such as boxing or HIIT, while 40% of people prefer calming and restorative exercise such as yoga, reports ClassPass.

According to ClassPass, consumers enjoy these high-energy options:

1. Bootcamp
2. HIIT
3. Indoor Cycling
4. Circuit Training
5. Power Yoga
6. Weightlifting
7. Kickboxing

Calming & restorative classes include:

1. Reformer Pilates
2. Hot Yoga
3. Yin Yoga
4. Mat Pilates
5. Restorative Yoga
6. Hatha Yoga
7. Ballet 

Getting fit with friends makes people stick to workouts

ClassPass data shows that people are 45% more likely to continue with a new workout routine if they take a class with a friend during their first month. And those who work out with friends are 63% more likely to keep a routine for 12 months or longer. Joining with friends can even lead to a more intense workout: 81% of people say they push themselves harder in group classes than they do on their own.

TikTok has become a fitness tastemaker

Lastly, TikTok has had a profound impact on fitness. After TikTok made the treadmill “12-3-30” workout go viral this year, Gym Time climbed to the number 7 spot on ClassPass, becoming one of the most popular workouts of 2021, says the company.

Jade Rollers and Gua Sha also became super trendy on TikTok this year, leading facials to become the third most popular self care appointment to book.

Edit: a previous version of this article stated in the last line of the third paragraph that spa and beauty reservations were up 334%, which has now been corrected to 428%.

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If you’ve ever signed up for a yoga or meditation class, chances are you used Mindbody. Well-known wellness tech platform Mindbody announced Wednesday that it would be acquiring female-founded ClassPass, a monthly subscription service that unlocks an extensive network of wellness experiences, including gyms, spas, studios, and salons.

With Mindbody and ClassPass intertwined, consumers and business owners will have a seamless experience, in a time when people are eager to head back to in-person fitness classes.

CEO of Mindbody, Josh McCarter, told Athletech News that the pandemic has pushed wellness to the forefront, and both companies will work together to help people on their journey to fitness as well as support businesses in a post-COVID era.

“COVID has been a stark reminder for everyone about the importance of staying happy and healthy,” said McCarter. “By joining forces, Mindbody and ClassPass will power a new era by making wellness accessible to more people in more places and help businesses around the globe to rebound in the process.” 

Mindbody has also secured a $500 million investment from global investment firm Sixth Street. The firm’s portfolio of investments include AirBNB, Datavant, Legends, MDLive, the San Antonio Spurs, Spotify, and Sprinklr. The Sixth Street funding accompanies Vista Equity Partners, Mindbody’s majority investor. The funding will be used for growth and future innovations. Mindbody’s move to acquire ClassPass has sparked talks of a possible upcoming IPO. 

Fritz Lanman, CEO of ClassPass, said that the joint effort will be a game-changer in terms of revenue.

“Today is an incredibly exciting day for ClassPass, for Mindbody, and for the fitness industry,” Lanman told Athletech News. “With this deal, we will bring our SmartTools technology to more businesses around the world and help them to turbocharge revenue optimization. We will also work with Mindbody to improve the consumer experience, making it even easier to discover and book top-rated spa and fitness experiences everywhere you travel.” 

The acquisition comes at a pivotal time in the fitness industry. Mindbody says that 80% of consumers feel that wellness is more crucial than ever before, and data from the Mindbody and ClassPass platforms shows that bookings are back to pre-Covid times. 

ClassPass was founded by Payal Kadakia, an MIT grad that had the idea to create a search engine where a user could find and book fitness classes back in 2011. By the end of 2017, ClassPass had 45 million reservations.

“Since the founding of ClassPass, our north star has always been how we can help people discover and seamlessly book soul-nurturing experiences,” said ClassPass founder Payal Kadakia in a press release. “This acquisition will be a massive milestone for a female-founded company, and I am confident in the leadership of Josh McCarter and my long-time business partner Fritz Lanman to propel the business forward and continue to deliver a best-in-class experience for consumers and business owners alike.”

The company will also introduce Mindbody Capital, which will allow small business owners to obtain financing to help them grow.

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ClassPass, the global subscription service that distributes “credits” to access to different gyms, classes and health/beauty services for a monthly fee, conducted a poll of its members to gauge how they were utilizing wellness spaces in the months since COVID-19 vaccinations ushered a return to public spaces in many countries. 

According to ClassPass Comeback Report: Fitness and Beauty Trends 2021, nine out of ten classes booked via ClassPass were in-person, after a year of diminished foot traffic for gyms and fitness studios and increased offerings and awareness of online classes. 

The most common reason for returning, espoused by 81 percent of respondents, is that “they push themselves harder in class than they do on their own,” in the words of the report. Two thirds said they returned to access equipment, which may explain why four of the five most popular activity types — strength training, indoor cycling, Pilates and barre — required specialty equipment. 

The other, and second-most popular activity overall, was in-person yoga. Livestream yoga was the only digital class in ClassPass’s top ten, coming in at number nine, which may speak to the ease of home practice. (The top ten was rounded out by boxing at six, “gym time” at seven, massage at eight and running at ten.)

This report is just a poll of people on ClassPass, who may be more inclined for in-person activities because of its business model of allowing a sampling of wellness services — most of them traditionally done in brick-and-mortar businesses — but the ranks of ClassPass users are growing, according to the company, doubling in the U.S. and tripling in the U.K., from May 1 to June 10 of this year in another signal of growing comfort with in-person workouts.

Since ClassPass’s last survey of members in December, 40,000 businesses in its network reopened. There are not many comparisons to be drawn between the two reports, because the new one, compiled from data gathered between April and June of this year, switched to questions specific to returns to physical fitness spaces. Though there was one interesting contrast: 5:30 p.m. is once again the most common workout time; in the December report, compiled at the height of community transmission, it was lunchtime.

The most popular beauty appointments were pedicures, manicures and facials, in that order, and the survey writers inferred a return to “weekend glow-ups,” in preparation for social occasions, because the most popular day for beauty appointments was Friday. 

Other findings included:
– 87 percent of respondents said they were fully vaccinated and another six said they had received one vaccine dosage.
– 74 percent said they prefer to have an instructor’s direction and encouragement when working out.
– 67 percent said in-studio classes make it easier to work out regularly.
– 60 percent said in-person classes and appointments are better for their mental health than at-home digital routines.
– 69 percent said they would prefer returning to classes that require a vaccination, though only 18 percent said they would only go to studios that require participants to be vaccinated.

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Equinox Group is in Talks to go Public via Chamath Palihapitiya-backed SPAC, Sources Say
Finance | CNBC | May 5, 2021

Athletech’s Take: 
With a valuation of more than $7 billion, Equinox is in talks to go public via a merger with a SPAC backed by Chamath Palihapitiya. The fitness company, which also owns SoulCycle and Blink Fitness, has been hit hard by the pandemic. Equinox has been forced to close numerous locations because of the pandemic. The company reported a loss of $350 million on $650 million in revenue in 2020. Whether the deal goes through is up for speculation but there are definitely eyes on this possible mega deal.

ClassPass and Vista-Backed Mindbody Hold Merger Talks
Finance | Bloomberg | May 4, 2021 

Athletech’s Take: 
In more business news, ClassPass and Mindbody Inc., two large providers of technology to fitness companies across the globe, have held initial conversations about a possible merger. The pandemic hurt fitness companies that both ClassPass and Mindbody count on as customers, with many forced to shutter and some moved into bankruptcy. In response to the pandemic, ClassPass made the strategic move to pivot to digital classes and then added a vaccine center locator to its platform.

Will New York’s Fitness Scene Stay Home?
Fitness | Bloomberg | May 5, 2021 

Athletech’s Take: 
The million dollar question for the fitness industry is on full display in New York. Will fitness devotees return to their pre-pandemic habits of hitting the gyms and fitness studios which were key components of their everyday lives? CycleBar President Trevor Lucas thinks they will return – in a recent Business Insider article he claims that approximately 90% of its pre-pandemic membership base is back. With New York State removing capacity limits for businesses such as stores, restaurants and fitness centers beginning May 19, whether people go back to “lugging their yoga mats around the city” may very much depend on if they will be ‘forced’ back into their offices and/or whether they’ve already shelled out $2,000 for a Peloton…

Are We Seeing a Slowdown in Health and Fitness Products?
Finance | Adweek | May 4, 2021 

Athletech’s Take: 
Sales for health and fitness products hit new levels during the pandemic. It was not uncommon to encounter delivery delays, eagerly waiting for home fitness products from fitness bikes to free weights to arrive. That said, some areas where there was accelerated growth such as online bikes (which doubled year over year from 2019 to 2020) have started to cool off. In addition the search keyword popularity for health and fitness products like weights, yoga mats, resistance bands and other fitness products has tapered. Regardless, with the global demand for health and wellness expected to hit nearly $7 trillion in 2024, it is without a doubt that the industry is still prime for expansion. 

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ClassPass, the leading fitness and wellness network, today announced that vaccine centers are now searchable within the app and website. Members can easily determine the closest vaccine center to their home and obtain information including hours of operation and contact information for nearby clinics and health offices. 

“We are in a global health crisis and every company should be helping to support relief and vaccination efforts however they can. Using the ClassPass platform to connect members with vaccine centers is a natural extension of our technology and a way that we can contribute to curbing the spread of COVID-19,” says Jeff Bladt, VP of Pricing and Inventory. “We have deep knowledge of how to help people find accurate and up-to-date information on local businesses after routing millions of users to fitness and wellness locations across 30 countries.”

At launch, vaccine centers will be searchable in Boston, Chicago and New York City with additional cities soon to follow including Denver, Los Angeles and San Francisco. While members will not be able to book appointments within the app, they will be provided with information on how to schedule appointments at listed clinics. To find available locations nearby or look for a relative in another city, members can search for “COVID Vaccination Center” within the ClassPass app and website. 

“The process of finding a vaccination appointment can be challenging and many people don’t know where to start. I was thrilled to hear that ClassPass, a high touch app that has already trained people how to search for vital health information, is leveraging their platform to make it easier to identify vaccine sites and secure appointments. Anything that can address this information gap is critical in getting more people vaccinated,” says Dr. Vin Gupta, a critical care pulmonologist, health policy expert, and NBC News Medical Analyst.

ClassPass has worked with all currently operating fitness and wellness businesses to put their COVID-specific safety and cleanliness policies front and center for members returning to in-person experiences. All 30,000 fitness partners and over 11,500 wellness and beauty partners have been asked to provide updated details on their COVID policies including mask requirements, contactless check-in and capacity restrictions. ClassPass has also worked with 5,000 top studios around the world to add digital classes as an option for members who are staying at home. 

This is not the first time that ClassPass has employed their technology for social and health-related causes. During the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, ClassPass helped voters to find accurate information on where to register and cast their ballot. In June 2020 following nationwide protests and a call to action on racial justice, ClassPass used their platform to aggregate local events and panels and encouraged their community to join the conversation.

The post ClassPass Launches COVID-19 Vaccine Finder appeared first on Athletech News.