Harbiz, a leading technology platform for fitness professionals, has closed a €5 million funding round to strengthen its international presence, focusing on consolidating its growth in the UK and German markets. The funding will also be used to fuel its go-to-market strategy of product-led growth, in addition to continuing to attract international talent.
This funding round is led by Octopus Ventures, one of the largest and most active venture capital investors in the UK and Europe. JME Ventures, Athos Capital, and Enzo Ventures are also participating.
This fresh capital will also allow Harbiz to further strengthen its innovation, research, and product offering to fitness professionals ─including personal trainers, nutritionists, physiotherapists, and yoga instructors─ to allow 100% online management of their clients. A key part of this innovation will be to integrate AI tools focused on improving the user experience.
Currently operating in more than 35 countries, Harbiz is helping more than 6,000 fitness professionals to advise and improve the lives of over 120,000 clients. The startup, founded in 2020 by Mario Morante and Javier Ortega, has demonstrated exponential growth by doubling its turnover compared to last year.
Mario Morante, CEO and co-founder of Harbiz, said: “We are very happy to have reached this milestone for the company and to have a new partner in Octopus Ventures, one of the most experienced VCs in Europe. We are convinced that with the great team that makes up Harbiz and the support of our partners, we will be able to meet our goals and become the global leader in our sector”.
Javier Ortega, co-founder of Harbiz, added: “This round allows us to continue to grow, improving the product, and learning from the market to meet our goal of making Harbiz the greatest ally of all fitness and health professionals in the world”.
Founded in 2020, Harbiz offers wellness professionals the possibility of managing their entire business through a single platform: exercise routines, planning, communications, bookings, client progress, and more. This enables them to provide a much more professional service in line with current market demands.
Its mission is to simplify the work of these professionals, allowing them to scale their businesses and reach global audiences, regardless of their location on the planet. All of this is based on cutting-edge, user-friendly technology.
Uthish Ranjan, Partner at Octopus Ventures, commented: “We are delighted to support Harbiz with increasing their UK and German presence. Customer engagement is central to the success of any wellness business, and Harbiz’s best-in-class platform is a game-changer for fitness professionals seeking to improve their client acquisition and retention strategies.”
The company previously closed a €2.5m financing round in May 2022, with participation from funds including JME Ventures, Athos Capital, and Enzo Ventures and business angels such as Hugo Arévalo, Íñigo Juantegui and Andreas Mihalovits, among others.
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/01/madrid-based-harbiz-lands-e5-million-to-help-fitness-professionals-manage-their-business-digitally/
