The pandemic has forced many gyms to close and emptied others, catapulting the at-home fitness industry.
Zwift, a social fitness application that lets users virtually train together on their treadmills and bikes, is taking advantage of the shift.
The Long Beach-based company announced Wednesday it raised $450 million to build out Zwift-branded "hardware' for fitness buffs that uses the company's 3-D generated worlds to ride or run alongside others. It's also looking to expand into esports as it builds out the 10 virtual worlds it offers in the platform. In the summer, Zwift hosted a virtual Tour de France in July.
<p>But its growth has been hampered. Right now, users pay $14.99 a month for Zwift's software but must pair it with a third-party stationary bike or treadmill such as Bkool, Elite, Cylotronics. The company hasn't specified what hardware it aims to create, but offering a treadmill or cycle could help it go head-to-head with companies like Peloton, which last week reported its first quarterly profit after sales surged 172% as homebound customers stocked up.</p>
<p>Peloton recently dropped the cost of its basic bikes, which <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/9/8/21427003/peloton-new-treadmill-bike-plus-exercise-equipment-features-price" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sell for $1,895</a>. Their accompanying app costs $39 a month, although a $12.99 membership is available for those without the equipment. </p>
<p>"With this investment, Zwift is primed to operate in a broader fitness market and deliver on our ambition to provide gamified fitness through integrated software and hardware, to anyone who wants to have fun while getting fit at home," said Zwift CEO Eric Min in a statement. </p>
<p>The competition is heating up. This week, Apple announced that it will release <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-fitness-plus-app-take-on-peloton-2020-9" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Fitness Plus for $9.99 a month</a> or $79.99 a year. The service offers workouts from the "world's best trainers" in yoga, cycling, dance and more with Apple Music integrated. </p>
<p>Since it launched in 2015, Zwift has registered more than 2.5 million accounts, according to the company. </p>
<p>The round was led KKR, accompanied by other investors including Permira, Specialized Bicycle Components' venture capital fund, Zone 5 Ventures and the Amazon Alexa Fund and existing investors including True, Highland Europe, Novator and Causeway Media.</p>
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The makers of baby food intended to prevent food allergies got a boost this week with a $3 million raise led by Danone Manifesto Ventures.
The Los Angeles-based Ready, Set, Food has raised $5.75 million in total and is also backed by high-profile Shark Tank star Mark Cuban and AF Ventures.
The idea of a formula designed to prevent food allergies first came to CEO and co-founder Daniel Zakowski and his brother-in-law three years ago when his nephew suffered an allergic reaction to peanut butter.
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://dot.la/media-library/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMzQ4ODA2NS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNjQ4MTgwN30.RZL_NTStt88EuKj-DA48-y5BGNVuW2ovACzFw10lUZ8/image.jpg?width=980" id="87a07" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="77f9b56436fd31f9d8803950b520f441" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />
Ready, Set, Food!'s co-founder and CEO Daniel Zakowski
<p>"My brother-in-law's a doctor, and was doing a lot of research on what he needed to know about his food allergies and it seemed like recently there have been a number of clinical trials released that show you could prevent up to 80% of food allergies before they start," said Zakowski.</p><p>His prevention efforts included giving young children small amounts of peanuts, eggs or milk. Most children don't begin eating those foods until they grow older. The formula is intended to introduce babies as young as four months old to these foods, and prevent them from developing food allergies.</p><p>"The opportunity is to prevent 200,000 babies every year from getting severe food allergies, but also it's quite hard for parents to do this from home," said Zakowski.</p><p>If a baby begins taking the formula at fourth months, two to three times a week for three to six months, it can significantly help food allergies from developing, he said.<br></p>
<p><span style="background-color: initial;">Ready, Set, Food!'s formula costs $29 per month when committing to a 6 month plan. You can also buy a one-month supply of formula for $60 on Amazon.</span><br/></p><p>Zakowski said Cuban's investment helps bring visibility to the issue of food allergies. Cuban says he constantly worries for his daughter who has to always carry an EpiPen because she suffers reactions to severe food allergies. </p><p>"Food allergies are a growing problem across the world. I'm excited to partner with Ready, Set, Food! to start to reverse this growing epidemic and make families' lives better," said Cuban in a press release.</p><p>Although most of the research used to create the formula won't do much to help adults with their allergies, Ready, Set, Food! But the company says it hopes to continue developing products to help prevent all types of food allergies.</p><p><em>An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the amount raised and referred to an earlier round. </em></p>
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