Netpulse, San Francisco, has secured $13 million in capital to support expansion for its mobile applications and technology solutions for the fitness industry, the company announced on Monday. The investment was led by August Capital with participation from Javelin Venture Partners, Nokia Growth Partners and DFJ Frontier.
"The first quarter of this year was an exceptional realization of many of the growth initiatives we’ve executed," John Gengarella, CEO, Netpulse, said in a statement. "We successfully introduced our first suite of mobile acquisition products, expanded into new regions around the globe and strategically accelerated a robust partner ecosystem. With Netpulse experiencing significant demand for the mobile technology to engage club members, the timing was right to raise growth capital and accelerate the deployment of these advanced products."
Axiom Fitness, Planet Fitness, Goodlife Health Clubs, Orangetheory Fitness, UFC Gym and Gold's Gym are among the companies that use Netpulse's platform to power mobile apps. Netpulse's customers increased 450 percent in the last year, according to the release.
"They [Netpulse] were the leader in bringing entertainment, workout tracking and virtual scenery to nearly all of the brands of cardio equipment, and now they are the clear leader in bringing a sophisticated mobile app to fitness clubs throughout the world," Dave Marquardt, founding partner, August Capital, said in a statement.
Netpulse acquired Atlanta-based Club Apps in late 2014 after it secured $18.6 million in funding from a group led by Nokia Growth Partners.
Gengarella was named Netpulse's CEO in June 2015, the same month the company announced its partnership with Planet Fitness.