Launch of vario.fitness Brings the Classpass Model to India with a New Approach and a Keen Eye on Markets
(PRWEB) August 05, 2015 -- With its beta launch in Ahmedabad, India, on July 31, vario.fitness is bringing the Classpass model of fitness membership subscription services to India, with a new business model and an eye on a hitherto untapped fitness market.
Many of us are familiar with this innovative model disrupting the traditional way we workout as seen by Classpass, who acquired fitmob this past spring. Members pay a monthly subscription fee to have unlimited access to fitness classes at a variety of different gyms and fitness studios, rather than be tied to one gym membership. Similar funded startups in Asia like Kfit, Fitternity and Orobind all offer this service with some variation.
But Dinesh Hinduja, founder and CEO of vario.fitness, has a different vision: to raise the bar in partner relationships and the quality of workout classes, and to incorporate India’s currently fragmented yet lucrative at-home personal trainer market into the fold.
What Sets v.f. Apart?
vario.fitness is raising the bar in quality through strong relationships with its partnering gyms and studios, providing on-site facilities for continual training, development, and feedback. The company is selective with choosing its partners - and when they do, they build ongoing and lasting relationships with them. Their 60,000 square foot, state of the art office in Ahmedabad, funded during the initial seed round boasts a gym as well as both indoor and outdoor fitness studios for its partners for training, quality management, workshops and development, as well as conferences and seminars. This kind of business model is not surprising, given the founding team’s proven track record in business development.
Hinduja is also seeking to bring together the burgeoning at-home personal trainer market in India into his business model, currently largely unreported and individually fragmented. In the age of a collaborative economy and the proliferation of companies like vario.fitness, personal trainers, not only gyms and fitness studios, will need to be more responsive to the shift to an on-demand model. “There is a tremendous scope,” says Hinduja, “to address that market, and incorporate it into a larger community under the same platform.”
How Does it Work?
Members can seamlessly access their account, browse new classes, sign up, and check in from their mobile device using the vario.fitness app, available for download for Android and iOS. Members will be able to take group exercise classes typically hard to find in such areas, such as Yoga, Zumba, Dance, Gymnastics, Aerobics, and CrossFit. Currently, members will have access to group fitness classes in Ahmedabad, but they can expect the company to expand its market base quickly.
Where is v.f. going?
The company is now looking to raise a $2 million dollar funding round, half of which has already been committed, as the company seeks to expand into more cities in India, as well as the United Arab Emirates, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. With its core operations office in place and the key resources to expand rapidly in numbers, Hinduja and Sudeep Sanyal, the company’s Operations Head, are confident in the company’s plans for expansion, both of whom have extensive experience in growing dedicated teams rapidly for expansion in India and overseas.
With its unique business model, strong partnerships, and keen understanding of the Indian fitness market, the launch of vario.fitness signals the next wave in expanding the quality and scope of fitness membership services throughout India and beyond.
Jitendra Batra, vario.fitness, http://www.vario.fitness, +1 (415) 366-6641, [email protected]
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