Freemotion Parent Receives $200Mil Investment

“This investment is extraordinary news for the ICON family of brands…”

ICON Health & Fitness (“ICON”), the world leader in innovation, design, and distribution of connected fitness equipment and software, has announced a $200 million growth investment led by L Catterton, the most global consumer-focused private equity firm, paving the way for Freemotion Fitness to become the leading connected fitness brand in the global commercial market.   

As the era of the ‘hybrid gym model’ becomes part of everyday operations for the majority of health clubs and facilities around the world, ICON is perfectly positioned to unite the fitness ecosystem and connect the dots between home and gym, benefiting both operators and members. ICON companies include Freemotion® – the pioneering commercial fitness brand – and established, industry-leading, consumer fitness brands, NordicTrack® and ProForm®. ICON is the only company that creates connected fitness experiences across multiple brands, multiple product categories, and all consumer and commercial fitness segments. These are all powered by iFIT, the immersive live and on-demand streaming fitness and wellness media platform.

The investment will further accelerate ICON’s unique growth strategy of delivering its expansive range of interactive fitness products powered by iFIT, and is perfectly timed for the launch of the Freemotion 22 SERIES – a revolutionary full cardio range that provides the first truly interactive, connected fitness experience for commercial fitness facilities – which releases globally in mid-October. 

Dan Toigo, Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Freemotion, said, “This investment is extraordinary news for the ICON family of brands and a huge boost for Freemotion as we launch the 22 SERIES, powered by iFIT. It means that the unrivaled interactive, connected fitness experience provided by our machines and content will only expand in the months and years ahead, which is great news for our customers and their members.” 

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the demand for coach-led workout content as a must-have feature in people’s fitness routines, a trend being echoed around the globe. A recent report states that 63 percent* of US adults who regularly exercise plan to incorporate a mix of training in a gym and at home in the future.

“It’s clear that people are embracing the hybrid gym model, and with approximately 700,000 paid subscribers and rapidly growing, iFIT can be enjoyed at home, in the gym, and on-the-go across ICON’s diverse range of products and partnerships. This places Freemotion in a unique position to help operators implement this home-gym offer and future-proof their businesses,” said Toigo. “Not to mention that ICON reaches the fitness industry’s largest total addressable market in North America, Europe, and around the world, further demonstrating why there’s never been a more exciting time to partner with Freemotion.” 

This investment is in addition to the December 2019 $200 million capital raise from Pamplona Capital Management. This demonstrates confidence in ICON, its subsidiary brands, and the fit-tech market as a whole, and Freemotion’s position as the leader of interactive, connected fitness within the commercial fitness space. ICON’s mission is to help consumers and members of every demographic and fitness level pursue and achieve their health and fitness goals, while driving engagement, retention, and revenue for operators.

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For more information, please contact Becca at AIM Content Marketing and PR at +44 (0)7342 075843 or via becca@aimcontentmarketing.co.uk.

About ICON

ICON Health & Fitness is a global health and fitness leader and owner of iFIT, NordicTrack, ProForm, Freemotion, and other fitness brands. Based in Logan, Utah, the 43-year old company has a multi-decade heritage of innovation, quality, and profitability. ICON and iFIT currently hold more than 330 technology patents, with 80 pending, and its products are present in 116 countries. iFIT workouts are streamed in English, French, German, Italian, Mandarin Chinese, Russian, Spanish, and Portuguese, with more languages planned for 2021.

About FREEMOTION

For more than 20 years, Freemotion Fitness has been the global pioneer in fitness equipment and technology, introducing the world to cable-based strength training, the Incline Trainer, the first road simulating indoor bike, and is now leading the way in connected fitness. With science and innovation at its core, Freemotion questions how we work out in commercial fitness facilities, and then redefines it – creating products that deliver an unbeatable user experience and ultimately drive revenue for its partners.

About L CATTERTON

With approximately $20 billion of equity capital across seven fund strategies in 17 offices globally, L Catterton is the largest consumer-focused private equity firm in the world. L Catterton’s team of nearly 200 investment and operating professionals partners with management teams around the world to implement strategic plans to foster growth, leveraging deep category insight, operational excellence, and a broad partnership network. Since 1989, the firm has made over 200 investments in leading consumer brands. L Catterton was formed through the partnership of Catterton, LVMH, and Groupe Arnault. For more information about L Catterton, please visit www.lcatterton.com.

*Survey conducted by Wakefield Research between July 24 and July 29, 2020.