Peloton is rebranding itself as a high-end health app after seeing a continued drop in subscribers. The company, which sells luxury exercise bikes with an accompanying exercise class subscription, is transitioning to focus on offering inclusive health options.
“With this brand relaunch we’re reflecting the vibrancy and fullness of everything Peloton has to offer to everyone,” Chief Marketing Officer Leslie Berland said in a press release. The company is offering a new tiered membership that starts at $US12.99 ($18) per month and goes up to $US24 ($33) per month and has increased its number of free classes, boasting it is the largest amount to be offered since the company launched in 2018.
Peloton is also offering a new Peloton gym feature that allows subscribers to select the type of class that can be done at their own pace and is geared to their personalised strength class type to meet their needs.
The rebrand comes as Peloton’s sales growth has slowed since the height of its popularity in 2020 during the covid-19 pandemic when its share price soared, multiplying by more than five times since the previous year, ABC News reported. The company’s sales surged 232% in November 2020, bringing in $US63.6 ($88) million, bringing its total sales to $US757.9 ($1,052) million. By the end of that year, Peloton celebrated reaching its first $US1 ($1) billion quarter.
The problem came in 2021 when people began leaving their homes again, lessening the need for at-home workouts, making the company so overstaffed there weren’t enough tasks to go around. The subsequent rise and fall of Peloton meant the company laid off nearly 800 employees in August of last year and announced in October that it was cutting another 500 jobs. It also closed its North American distribution network and shifted its delivery to third-party providers.
A former Peloton engineer told CNBC in February, “I think all of us were drunk on the growth that Covid brought, and no one paused to say like, hey, maybe this is a game of musical chairs, and what happens when the music stops?” They added, “Like, we can’t keep expecting people just to stay inside and not go to the gym.”
Peloton now seems to be thinking along those same lines with its “new brand identity and creative campaign” to focus on people of all ages, fitness levels, and walks of life, saying it is committed to bringing fitness to people everywhere. “We’re shifting perceptions from in-home to everywhere,” Berland said in the release, adding, “fitness enthusiasts to people at all levels, exclusivity to inclusivity across all Peloton members present and future.”
Editor’s Note: Release dates within this article are based in the U.S., but will be updated with local Australian dates as soon as we know more.