Tempo: at home strength training
Move over Peloton, Mirror, and Tonal
Home fitness has taken off as a result of COVID. The question is whether people return to the gym when it’s safe, but I do agree that it will look different given that people have “invested” in a home gym.
Tempo is another player following in Peloton, Mirror, and Tonal’s footsteps by offering a tech enabled device with a subscription service; however, the focus is primarily on strength training and weights are included with the device. What differentiates Tempo is that it analyzes your lifting form and gives feedback and also enables instructors to give corrections too when participating in their classes.
Tempo started shipping in summer 2020 for $2k (+ $250 delivery fee), so still relatively new. I know the price point might sound outrageous, but it’s in line with Mirror ($1.5k), Tonal ($3k), and Peloton’s bike ($1.9k). You NEED to get the $39 month class subscription to access HIIT, mobility, cardio classes in order for it to be compatible with the device and new customers need to sign up for a full first year. (Mirror and Tonal also require the same, so if it works, don’t deviate from the status quo!) After that, you can quit.
One thing to note is that they have distribution at Best Buy. Direct to consumer companies have realized that using existing big box retailers is the best way to get exposure and convince consumers to make the investment.
I see Tempo more for casual users who want the social aspect and are starting off in their fitness journey because of the limitations of not having a full barbell setup. The weights that come with the initial set total to 100 pounds (75 lbs in weights + 25 lb barbell), but you can also buy heavier weights.
The founders are ex Columbia computer science grads and this is their first venture. Recently, Tempo raised their series B of $60 million at a valuation of $250 million. Lululemon bought Mirror at $500 million, so there’s definitely room to grow and fitness tech is definitely on the up and up.