Fitness Membership Platform ClassPass Muscles In On $1.1 Trillion Beauty Market

NEW YORK, United States — Following a successful trial in the US, ClassPass will start widening its wellness net to offer members massages, facials, cryotherapy, float spas, infrared saunas, acupuncture, and more.

Having ventured into the booming wellness tourism sector last August and recently acquiring Asia competitor GuavaPass, the wildly popular class booking platform is now taking aim at the wellness industry’s biggest moneymaker: the $1.1 trillion-valued personal care, beauty and anti-aging market.

Read more: ClassPass Acquires Asia Competitor GuavaPass To Extend Foothold In The Region

A spokesperson for ClassPass told Welltodo: “We began testing the wellness inventory in New York last year and due to the positive reaction from consumers and partners we have decided to continue to slowly roll out these offerings in other cities in the US and are now starting to partner with providers of services beyond fitness in the UK.”

“For now, we have a few locations bookable in Brighton, such as Harbour Hotel Spa,” they added. “Expansion is certainly on the radar but we can’t confirm timing at the moment.”

FIVE YEAR VISION
“Expanding into wellness has been on our radar for some time,” CEO Fritz Lanman, said last year. “Our users are a health-conscious group looking to discover high-quality experiences at the best possible value.”

He added: “They crave more than just physical fitness and as trailblazers in the space, it’s our role to create an inclusive business model that encompasses wellness while continuing to introduce users to new experiences.”

Speaking to the Evening Standard last month, Lanman gave an update on these ambitious plans.

“The next frontier [for ClassPass] is to start adding gyms to the platform so you can book an hour of gym time through it,” he said. “We’ve also started a pilot in wellness, so massage, acupuncture, hair and nails. We only have a few cities that are trialling this pilot but it’s working well.

“The five-year vision is to add other types of experiences and help you to manage your free time. Whether that’s going to comedy shows or sporting events or things with your friends or even volunteering.”

BEYOND FITNESS
“Our mission at ClassPass has always been to motivate people to lead inspired lives by connecting them to soul-nurturing experiences,” Payal Kadakia, Founder and Chair of ClassPass, said in last year’s release.

“It has always been our goal to expand beyond fitness classes because fitness is only part of the equation that contributes to health and happiness.”

Operating in the UK, US, Australia and six other countries, ClassPass is estimated to be worth $500 million. In the past year, it has been laser-focused on growing its total addressable market geographically, and after successfully launching 10 new domestic cities in the US last year, the brand has now shifted its focus to launching more than 20 new countries internationally by the end of 2019. At the same time, it seems as though the brand is doubling-down on new product offerings.