The Munich-based startup eGym has already brought its specially designed strength training equipment, which is connected via an app, to approximately 650 fitness studios in Germany and Europe. The eGym Trainer app, which allows users to track their training progress and success, can be found in over 750 studios – meaning that a significant portion of the market has already chosen eGym within just a few years. And the company from the Bavarian capital continues to grow! eGym is now expanding increasingly into other European countries. The team now has well over 200 employees. We spoke with founder Philipp Roesch-Schlanderer about eGym's success story.
Almost all of us have experienced the embarrassment of signing up for an expensive gym membership, only to return to the couch after three or four weeks of consistently motivated exercise. After a few bouts of guilt, we completely forget about that membership and never go back to that gym. eGym's vision is to change this situation, true to the motto: "We want the gym to work for everyone!" And what can we say? With technology and a completely redesigned training program, the Munich-based founders are making a real impression in the highly competitive fitness market, in which they have been active since the end of 2012.
The story of eGym begins in a slightly run-down university gym at Columbia University in New York: It is the first studio visit in the life of the founder Philipp Roesch-SchlandererThe facility stretches across three floors underground – there are no windows, the air is stagnant, and the equipment looks as if it's long past its prime. Despite initial skepticism, Philipp, whose sporting activities had previously been limited to soccer, agrees to the experiment. A friend who has taken him along shows him how to train properly, and Philipp quickly realizes that without this help, he would most likely have done almost everything wrong. He also notices that the majority of the people in the gym are actually doing most things wrong.
Recipe for success: Sport Science and the right tools
Back in Germany, the eGym founder heads to the nearest gym and signs up. The motivation from the US is still there. Unfortunately, he finds the advice and variety so lacking here that he quickly throws in the towel in frustration. Until the day he decides to do something about the dusty, run-of-the-mill gym concept and revolutionize the market. To do this, he brings co-founder and CTO Florian Sauter on board. Both are at CDTM at the time, and together they launch the eGym project under the company's own credo: "We want the gym work for everyone!”
To ensure the project is scientifically sound, Florian Eibl joins the team as head of sports science. Together, the founders are fine-tuning the new concept:
"Our primary goal was to make everyone involved in the fitness studio—members, trainers, and operators—more successful. Our goal from the outset was to help members achieve their training goals faster and more reliably, provide trainers with tools to improve the quality of support, and—last but not least—support operators at all levels of their value chain. This means more new members, a lower churn rate, and increased revenue through additional income."
says Philipp.
A vision needs an inspiring environment
The environment that CDTM offers young founders makes them feel completely at home. According to Philipp, one of the most important things is the entrepreneurial mindset, which is also conveyed here by various mentors and colleagues.
With the HTGF to the first financing
First, however, the fitness visionaries need the necessary cash. Initially, the High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) lends them a helping hand. Philipp describes its trust and courage to take risks as crucial to the Munich startup's eventual success. Only after a successful first year on the market (2013) does it become easier to further financing to get:
“But of course there are new challenges, as growth investors have completely different requirements than early-stage investors.”
The company has since grown massively and, in addition to its headquarters in Munich, has a second office in Berlin. The founders want to leverage the advantages of both cities rather than being limited to one location. While Berlin, as Philipp says, has more experience and therefore advantages in consumer internet, Munich has the edge when it comes to skilled personnel thanks to its universities. The eGym fitness app is developed in the capital, while the employees on the Isar River take care of the machine software and focus on B2B.
If you ask the founders about their plans for the future, you quickly realize that eGym's vision is far from complete. Philipp Roesch-Schlanderer:
"We are continuously developing new, innovative products to realize our grand vision of a fully connected training space that works for all members. In addition, we are, of course, continuing to expand our international footprint. At the beginning of this year, we opened an office with an eGym showroom in New York."
