4Aces GC captain Dustin Johnson takes a shot from the second tee during the semifinals of the LIV…(+) Golf Team Championship Dallas on Saturday, September 21, 2024 at Marydo Golf Club in Carrollton, Texas. strike. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/LIV Golf via AP)
Associated Press
OxeFit, a company that makes high-end fitness training systems, has secured $17.5 million in its latest funding round.
Entrepreneurs Dave Asprey and Anne Mahlam were among the first equity investors in the round, which brings the company’s total funding since its founding in 2020 by Love Chanabre and Peter Neuhaus. totaled more than $70 million. Chanabre did not disclose the company’s current valuation, but he said Oxfit has “never had a down round” and that its valuation has increased with each funding round.
Mahlum is the founder of Solid Core, a fitness company with studios in 25 states and Washington, D.C. She sold her stake in the company to private equity firm Kohlberg & Company for $88 million last year. Meanwhile, Asprey owns Upgrade Lab fitness centers in Idaho, Texas, Utah, Washington state and Canada. He plans to install an OxeFit gym at the Upgrade Lab facility.
Several professional athletes have invested in OxFit in the past, including golfer Dustin Johnson, soccer player Harry Kane, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, and former hockey player Wayne Gretzky. While other startups often pay celebrities and athletes to endorse their products by offering them stock in the company, Chanabre said OxFit is not following that model and is not willing to invest. They claim that they have not given priority conditions to anyone.
“We have never written a dime to any celebrity,” Chanabre said. “Everyone is invested in the company because they can validate the technology instantly. They really believe in it. They believe in the mission. They know what it is.”
OxeFit plans to use the additional funding primarily to enhance its software. The software is used in the company’s two fitness equipment products (XP1 and XS1) and incorporates artificial intelligence and other technologies to track people’s data and progress towards achieving their goals.
The XP1 is aimed at fitness centers, rehabilitation facilities, sports training facilities, apartments, hotels, and other commercial facilities, while the XS1 is smaller and intended for home use. People using this system have access to over 280 strength training exercises, 6 cardiovascular exercises and Pilates. They pay thousands of dollars for equipment and additional monthly fees to access software, including apps and gaming systems. Approximately 35% of OxeFit users are business customers, and the remaining 65% are individual customers.
“Right now, it’s all about hardening the software, and that’s what this increase is about,” Chanabre said. “I think people are tired of buying treadmills instead of treadmills, or cable machines instead of cable machines, or strength machines instead of strength machines. It’s like a race to zero. Instead, why not go further down the chain and work on software to enhance what you have? And that’s been our mission since day one. We spend all our time making sure our hardware is future-proof, and most of our (research and development) spending now goes toward enriching our software.”
Chanabre declined to say how much revenue OxeFit makes, but said sales have doubled in the past year. He expects revenue to increase by 50% to 100% over the next few years as more people learn about the XS1 and XP1, which are sold exclusively online through the company’s website rather than in stores.
OxFit plans to raise another $20 million in the coming months, Chanabre said, adding that the company has previously raised funding from individuals and family offices. But Chanabre said this is the first time OxeFit has received funding from a traditional venture capital firm.
“We’ll look into it,” he said. “This is not gym equipment. Yes, it can be gym stuff, but if you’re into sports, healthcare, data, and AI, that’s OxeFit. So the right partner in the VC community who wants to make that happen. We need to find…Ultimately, we want to find the right people to support the company’s mission because there are quite a few ways to advance the investment on the (research and development) side.”
