INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
ClassPass, the studio fitness platform that gives users access to thousands of boutique fitness classes, has said it plans to expand
internationally into nine new countries by the end of 2018
The company top priorities are consolidating its position in the UK and launching in three countries in Asia, according to chief executive
Lanman declined to disclose which countries the fitness subscription service was targeting.
ClassPass further international expansion isn&t
The company already serves parts of Canada, the UK and Australia alongside its 50 cities within the US
ClassPass also raised a whopping $70 million Series C last year which Lanman tells me was purposefully large to fuel this type of expansion
without being dependent on another round of financing.
As part of the expansion initiative, ClassPass has hired Chloe Ross as VP of
Ross has worked on international strategy at Microsoft and has helped in developing policy in the UK Prime Minister Strategy Unit.
In 2014,
ClassPass found its footing with a brand new model for the fitness world
The company aggregated fitness classes and studio partners while offering a subscription model for users, letting them pick and play as they
choose across a wide variety of classes
In essence, the company brought a media model, not unlike Netflix, to the real world industry of fitness.
Lanman says that this kind of
business model innovation has spurred a large number of clones, both domestically and internationally, and that international expansion is
integral to cementing ClassPass spot at the top of the heap.
As it stands now, ClassPass currently has 9,000 studio partners, but Lanman and
founder Payal Kadakia see the opportunity to grow that to 90,000 as the company ventures outside of the U.S.
Moreover, ClassPass has played
with the idea of expanding into new verticals for quite some time, with wellness being first in line
But before ClassPass can dive deep into a wellness vertical, it must first solidify its place as a global aggregator of studio fitness.
The
company recently unveiled a new at-home workout program called ClassPass Live, letting users stream classes from the comfort of their own
No word yet on when ClassPass Live will debut in new international markets, Lanman said.
ClassPass has raised a total of $154 million since