Early stage investment company Antler Australia recently backed a new cohort of startups as part of its ongoing program to build great local tech companies.
Startup Daily is sharing the details of each venture in the “Antler Investor Memos” series, which is designed to give you a quick, sharp understanding of the startups and people involved, with many seeking follow up capital following Antler’s initial pre-seed investment.
Company: FitFlo
Founded: May 2023
Stage: Pre-seed
Founders: Abdul Yacin (CEO) and Dharann Moganaraju (COO)
Current investors: Antler
Currently raising: Yes
The Business
Globally, over 180 million people are embarking on their health and fitness journeys in more than 210,000 gym and fitness clubs.
However, the gym industry is plagued by a pernicious challenge: high member churn rates and disengagement. This results in substantial revenue losses for gym operators of up to $125,000 annually per gym due to members cancelling their memberships.
Comparatively, Aussie gym-goers lose $1.9 billion a year to unused gym memberships. This persistent churn, driven by a lack of member visibility, insights personalised engagement and a disconnect between gym operators and members, leaves individuals feeling unsupported and unmotivated, leading them to abandon their fitness journey.
In turn, this impacts the financial stability of fitness businesses and hinders their ability to foster long-term loyalty and create a thriving community.
FitFlo addresses this problem by offering an AI-powered SportsTech platform that enhances member engagement, personalises the member’s experience, and enables operators to provide custom support, increasing member retention and lifetime value.
The platform provides gym operators and trainers with advanced tools to deliver personalised experiences, fostering a supportive and motivating environment for members. This helps gyms reduce churn and positions them to thrive in a competitive market.
The team behind the platform bring a wealth of experience and complementary skills. Abdul Yacin, CEO, is an experienced product and marketing leader with over a decade of experience across B2C, B2B, and B2B2C markets while Dharann Moganaraju, COO, brings a diverse background in finance and operations.
Utilising NFC technology, FitFlo digitises gym equipment, creating an interactive, connected, personalised, and dynamic gym experience for all. The SaaS web app for operators and trainers features a streamlined onboarding process, AI-powered workout creation, analytics, and communication tools to help operators and trainers track progress and upsell services based on data-driven insights.
This is combined with an intuitive mobile app for members that features instructional videos, AI-powered guided workouts, rewards, and personalised tips, all within the context of their gym and equipment.
Antler investment thesis
“FitFlo has strategically targeted key segments of the fitness industry, including gym management software, fitness apps, and online personal training,” says Mike Abbott, Partner at Antler in Australia.
“They’ve entered at an ideal time, with predictions that this growing market, which encompasses the global gym management software, trainer platform and fitness app markets is estimated to be valued at over $100 billion according to Statista, driven by wellness trends and digital adoption.
“FitFlo stands out from other fitness platforms due to its connectivity and unique retention-led business model. This is a compelling investment opportunity and positions them to capture significant market share, becoming the central platform for gym engagement and experiences.”
Traction/milestones
FitFlo conducted crowdsourced feedback through personalised trials, research and interviews with gym-goers, trainers, and operators, discovering that the environment was the biggest factor in eroding motivation.
With this insight and product-market fit clearly outlined, FitFlo was created to reimagine a more personalised and empowering experience for members while driving a retention-led business model for operators.
FitFlo has already piqued industry interest, placing as a top finalist in the Burning Heroes Australia Startup Awards and securing early-stage investment commitments from angel syndicates.
The platform is currently live across 57 gyms and AusActive and ASTN industry partners in Melbourne and Singapore, with plans for further expansion in the near future.
One of their beta partner gyms in Melbourne reported a 36% improvement in member retention YoY, serving as early validation of their ability to positively impact retention rates with FitFlo’s data-driven approach and engagement model.
Latest funding
Pre-Seed from Antler
Use of Funds
Antler’s pre-seed funding will support product and platform development, enhancing FitFlo’s AI capabilities, new features, and user experiences. It will also be utilised in their GTM strategy, helping expand market reach through sales and marketing, partnerships, and brand awareness initiatives.
The founders say:
“Antler has been a great support to us in numerous ways,” says Abdul. “Their General Partners, who are experienced operators themselves, have provided us with valuable advisory guidance. Furthermore, Antler’s local and global networks have allowed us to access a wealth of knowledge, resources and support. These benefits have all been instrumental in empowering our ability to succeed.
“Our ambition is to create a platform that acts as the operating system connecting every aspect of the fitness value chain. And it’s not just about technology; it’s about transforming the gym experience into a supportive and engaging journey for all.
“We aim to build a global network of connected gyms, trainers, and members who can all benefit from our AI-powered insights and engagement approach. Firstly strengthening our market presence in Australia and New Zealand and then entering larger markets like the US and SEA.”
What’s next?
Antler, a global early-stage VC, is revealing its latest investments in ambitious Australian founders and startups. With over 100 investments in early-stage companies, FitFlo is one of its most recent portfolio companies.
- StartupDaily is the official media partner of Antler in Australia.
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