Fit Tech recently spoke to Peloton founder John Foley on the brand’s meteoric rise.
Now the company sits at the nexus of fitness, technology and media, but that wasn’t always the case. In the early years, they knew they wanted to be a software company, so they looked at the hardware options already out there and considered adding their software to someone else’s bike. However, there hadn’t been much innovation or capital in the category so they decided to build their own bike.
Fast-forward six years to today, and Peloton has a highly engaged audience of 1.6 million members worldwide, and has grown from a four-person team to over 2,000 employees globally.
The Peloton app launched in 2018: it’s complimentary for all bike and tread owners and provides access to all Peloton content anytime, anywhere. The digital membership can also be purchased as a standalone product.
Innovation is key at Peloton, and the company continues to introduce more features on the app, such as GPS metrics for their outdoor content, Apple Watch integration for members working out with the Peloton app on their iPhone, and an improved home screen on the bike, which brings personalised class recommendations to front and centre. They also just launched on Amazon Fire TV so a customer can take one of their classes – anything from strength to yoga – in front of the largest screen in their home.
At the end of the day, though, many of Peloton’s innovations have been launched based on member feedback.
“Our true north star is ensuring that members have the best experience possible,” says Foley.
