When Jan Höppner and his co-founder founded Gym Cook in 2015, the idea was clear: healthy nutrition for fitness enthusiasts. Their origins even lay in the tech sector – but the founders quickly and consciously decided against that. Instead, they wanted to create a brand that could be experienced: physical, tangible, and practical for everyday life.
Pitch & People Episodes
PITCH & PEOPLE Episode 26: Gym Cook
Started naively and crashed hard
What followed was a cold start without a safety net or backup plan, as Jan Höppner in the Pitch & People Videocast reported:
"Looking back now, it was an absolute nightmare. We had no experience whatsoever, we didn't even really know what our product was. And then the first guests arrived and waited 45 minutes for their food. That's when you realize: nothing works."
Reality hit the team quickly and hard. Processes didn't work, workflows broke down, and the actual target group was completely different than expected. Instead of gym-goers, they primarily attracted office workers who wanted to eat consciously.
Despite a business plan and financing, the path to opening their first restaurant was anything but easy. For over a year, the founders searched for a suitable location, without experience, without a track record, but with a long-term lease hanging over them.
Getting started in the restaurant industry proved to be significantly more complex than expected: from technical requirements to a lack of contacts for everyday problems such as defective ventilation systems.
Corona as a turbocharger and a deceptive flight to the top
A decisive turning point came with the Pandemie. Gym Cook had already focused on delivery and profited massively from it.
"That was our lifeline. During that time, we made so much revenue that we didn't know which way was up. It was like a small gold rush – we thought things could only get better from here."
At its peak, a single branch generated around €2 million in revenue – a figure exceptional even for the restaurant industry. The team grew rapidly, processes were streamlined, new vehicles were purchased, and everything was geared towards growth.
But the meteoric rise was deceptive. The heavy reliance on a single delivery platform became a risk and ultimately a problem.
"This platform dependency killed me. You know, no matter what they do, it can all be over in a day. And you can't build a business on that."
During this time, Lieferando changed its strategy. Suddenly, rankings became very expensive. Reviews were now only of secondary importance. Gym Cook practically disappeared from view, and with it, a large portion of its revenue.
Co-founder split: When visions diverge
Alongside the operational challenges, another significant change occurred: the separation from the co-founder. After years of close collaboration, marked by shared highs and lows, it became clear that the two founders' paths had diverged.
Höppner himself describes the dynamic as comparable to a long-term relationship: intense, demanding, and not always conflict-free. Over time, differences became increasingly apparent, both on a personal level and in their working methods.
While his co-founder was a strong perfectionist, Höppner focused on speed and iteration: he preferred to launch a concept that was 80 percent complete and learn from it, rather than waiting for perfection. These differing approaches worked well for a while, complementing each other. But eventually, they lacked common ground. The separation was therefore not an easy step. Besides the personal aspect, the jointly built company, including its brand, structures, and future vision, was at stake.
Jan Höppner is a serial entrepreneur from Munich and the founder of Gym Cook, a concept at the intersection of fitness and gastronomy. He launched his first company at the age of 23, immediately after completing his business studies, and secured €250,000 in funding early on. In addition to building Gym Cook, he is an entrepreneurship lecturer at Macromedia University and a coach and co-founder of 101Founders, a hub for aspiring entrepreneurs. He is also active in other ventures, including in the field of digital transformation, and supports companies in developing scalable business models. (Photo: 101Founders)
The hard cut: Back to the beginning
The consequence of the crises: a radical restart.
Höppner radically streamlined the structures, deliberately kept the company smaller, and made it more efficient. Employees had to leave, and processes were rethought – with the clear goal of becoming more independent and resilient.
Today, Gym Cook is pursuing a different approach.Instead of maximum growth, the focus is on profitability. The key insight: even millions in revenue are worthless if they are not sustainable. Höppner is therefore relying on an asset-light model with smaller, profitable units. The focus is on so-called store-in-store concepts: collaborations with existing restaurants where infrastructure and fixed costs are shared.
What founders can learn from this
For Höppner, one thing is clear: entrepreneurship is not a linear path, but a series of learning processes, setbacks, and adjustments. Many of the greatest insights didn't come during the highs, but precisely when things hurt.
For him, one of the most important foundations is a grand, long-term vision. Not as a buzzword, but as a genuine inner picture of where the journey should lead. Because it is precisely this vision that carries him through the difficult phases. When sales plummet, decisions have to be made, or his own business model suddenly stops working.
At the same time, he emphasizes the importance of not underestimating reality. In his view, starting a business is almost always harder than one initially imagines – operationally, mentally, and financially. Anyone who embarks on this journey must be prepared to endure setbacks and persevere nonetheless.
Another key point: speed and the ability to learn. Instead of spending too much time refining concepts, Höppner now consciously focuses on rapid iteration. Ideas must reach the market early, and feedback must be processed quickly. Perfection isn't achieved in isolation, but in real-world operations.
"You need to have a huge vision that carries you. At the same time, you have to assume that it will be even harder than you think. And in the end, you also need that healthy naivety, because otherwise you probably wouldn't even start."
