Table of Contents
Do not index
CTA Headline
CTA Description
CTA Button Link
How was CultFit founded?
Cult Fit, India’s first fitness unicorn, generated a staggering ₹700 crore in revenue in FY23 — but its journey started much smaller.
In 2015, Deepak Poduval and Rishabh Telang, passionate fitness enthusiasts, launched Cult in Bangalore, focused on “Machine-Free Fitness.”
Their gym stood out by using unconventional equipment like rings and boxing bags instead of treadmills.
They started out with only nine trainers. But in just six months, they attracted 200 customers through word-of-mouth, signalling the potential of their unique model. 🤯
In 2016, Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori—leaders from Myntra and Flipkart— who were looking to build a holistic preventive healthcare platform under the brand Cure Fit, acquired Cult for ₹20 Crores ($3M), marking the beginning of Cult Fit’s rapid ascent.
Mukesh had already been a customer of Cult and saw its potential firsthand. This acquisition married Cure Fit’s tech and visionary leadership with Cult’s proven operational expertise, creating the powerhouse now known as Cult Fit.
If you are interested in uncovering business models of internet-first companies, you can check out Spotify Business Model, MakeMyTrip Business Model & other blogs here.
Journey
Cult Fit’s journey exemplifies a strategic playbook driven by acquisitions, vertical integration, and market expansion.
In 2015, the Indian fitness space was already flooded with over 120 fitness startups, but none could break past the ₹10-20 crore revenue barrier.
Cult Fit didn’t just aspire to be another fitness chain — it envisioned building a comprehensive fitness platform that catered to physical fitness, mental health, D2C fitness products, and preventive healthcare.
Cult Fit’s rapid ascent was built on smart acquisitions and expansion. A pivotal moment in their growth came in 2021, acquiring Gold’s Gym’s franchise rights opened the doors to 140+ centers in 90+ cities, expanding their reach into Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets without needing rebranding.
This wasn’t a one-off. Over the years, Cult Fit acquired 20 companies, including Urban Terrain, Fitkit, and RPM Fitness, covering every facet of fitness and wellness — from equipment to tech. Their focus on horizontal acquisitions ensured they could offer everything from physical fitness to mental health solutions.
Today, Cult Fit
- Operates 600+ centers, of which 200+ are company-run.
- Has over 1 lakh active members
- Has over 5 million active app users
- Reported 300% YoY sales growth in FY23
- Made ₹694 crore in revenue (FY23)
- Raised $687 million
- And is valued at $1.5 billion
CultFit’s MOAT
1. A "One-Stop-Shop" for Fitness 🏋️♂️
Cult.fit’s competitive edge comes from its integrated ecosystem.
Think of it like this: You sign up for a workout class, but Cult.fit knows you’re also likely interested in diet plans, workout gear, mental wellness, and healthcare services. They’ve built a platform where all of this is in one place, so you don't need 5 different apps.
This “fitness super app” is what keeps customers loyal.
Competitors like HealthifyMe usually only offer one piece of the puzzle—just fitness, just health advice, or just healthcare services.
It’s like trying to assemble a car with parts from different shops—possible, but a headache.
Cult.fit’s cohesive ecosystem saves you that hassle, drawing more users into its comprehensive health and wellness umbrella.
2. Unrivalled Brand Partnerships & Tech Integration 🤝💻
Cult.fit has mastered the art of partnerships and tech integration. By teaming up with brands like HRX (Hrithik Roshan's fitness brand), they offer exclusive, celebrity-backed workout programs that have mass appeal.
This collaboration isn’t just about slapping a famous name onto a product—it’s about creating content tailored to fitness enthusiasts.
Moreover, their seamless integration with smart devices like Apple Health and Google Fit ensures users can track every movement and calorie, keeping them engaged in a larger health ecosystem.
Competitors? They’re still stuck trying to figure out how to get basic engagement metrics right.
On top of this, Cult.fit has nailed its brand positioning. The brand represents a lifestyle, a cool and aspirational one. Fitness is trendy, wellness is cool, and Cult.fit makes you want to belong.
3. Phygital Strategy 🏋️♂️🤳
Here’s where Cult.fit really flexes its muscles—combining the best of both worlds: physical gyms and digital fitness classes.
See traditional chains like CureFit (before its gym closures) relied on physical studios, but Cult.fit smartly blends online and offline experiences.
Whether you’re sweating it out in a Cult.fit studio or attending a virtual session from your living room, it feels like a part of the same system. It's the kind of hybrid model that doesn’t force users to choose.
With the pandemic pushing fitness online, Cult.fit was quick to scale its digital content, but they didn’t stop there—they continued to develop their physical gyms too.
This omnichannel approach makes them more resilient to market changes compared to fitness chains like Gold’s Gym, which struggled to transition digitally.
4. Diversified Revenue Streams 💸
Cult.fit has mastered the art of building revenue streams across fitness, food, and healthcare.
This trifecta not only increases the average revenue per user (ARPU) but also stabilises the business through seasons when people typically drop fitness habits (like holidays or winter).
While many competitors are stuck relying on subscription revenue for fitness classes, Cult.fit has expanded into the food delivery business (Eat.fit), mental wellness services (Mind.fit), and even diagnostic and healthcare services.
This is strategic: if someone is slacking on workouts, they’re still engaging with other parts of the ecosystem, keeping them tethered to the brand.
This ecosystem approach ensures Cult.fit has multiple touchpoints with its users, making it difficult for a competitor offering just workouts or healthcare to poach customers.
5. Community Engagement & Loyalty Program 🏆
Fitness is often about motivation, and Cult.fit has mastered the art of building a strong community
The app thrives on group fitness, where people feel like they’re part of something bigger—a “cult” of fitness, if you will. This community-driven approach makes working out feel social, motivating people to stick around longer.
Unlike traditional gyms or apps where you might pay a fee and forget about it, Cult.fit pulls you back in with constant incentives and a sense of belonging.
Think of it like FOMO applied to fitness—you don’t want to be the one who misses your class or gets left behind. Cult.fit taps into this need for connection, something that many other platforms don’t offer in the same way.
To add to this, competitors often run on individual engagement, but Cult.fit’s community and sense of belonging keep users coming back, increasing retention rates.
By the way, the depth you see here is just a feeler of the depth we teach at GrowthX 💫
GrowthX is an invite-only club of over 3000 members who are product, marketing, and business leaders, and founders from top internet-first companies like Google, Canva, CRED, Stripe, Netflix, and more 💎
We teach our members how to scale revenues via frameworks that can be applied starting next Monday morning. The GrowthX Membership is built on 3 core pillars:
1. Learning experience: Where you learn the science of revenue-led growth with frameworks actionable the next Monday morning.
2. Curated community: Where you access a safe space for you to soundboard anything that is stressing you at work.
3. Career outcomes: Over 35% of members are founders & are able to hire growth teams to scale revenue for their companies while operators are able to get into breakout leadership roles.
Explore GrowthX Membership 🏆
Market Overview
How Fit is India Getting? 🏋️♂️
The Indian fitness market is growing, but it’s got a long way to go before we reach that six-pack status.
In 2022, the total revenue in the Health & Fitness market hit $24.39 million and is flexing its muscles, expected to hit a solid $36.92M by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 6.05%.
It might seem like a small number, but the potential here is enormous. For comparison, the US generated a whopping $1,993 million in fitness revenue in 2022—so India’s still in its warm-up phase.
Digital Fitness is Picking Up Steam 📱
Our smartphones are becoming as essential to our workouts as a good pair of sneakers.
The Digital Fitness & Well-Being market is projected to rake in a massive $3.50 billion in 2024, with an expected surge to $6.70 billion by 2029 (CAGR of 13.87%).
User penetration is growing from 9.21% in 2024 to an anticipated 12.28% by 2029, proving that the convenience of at-home workouts isn’t going anywhere.
And here's the kicker: the average revenue per user is about $26.38—that’s your yoga pants subscription right there!
Sports & Fitness Goods Market
The Indian sports and fitness goods market hit $2.23 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach a hefty $3.78 billion by 2032 (CAGR of 5.8%).
This means more dumbbells, resistance bands, and cricket bats than ever before!
When it comes to exercise equipment alone, the market is set to hit $29.19 million by 2024 and then leap to $44.28 million by 2029. And it’s not just the pros buying in—by 2029, around 27.2 million users will be getting in on the action.
The Reality Check on Gym Culture 🏋️♀️
Despite the buzz around fitness, only 0.2% of India’s population has a gym membership.
Yep, you read that right.
Compare that to Norway at 22%, the US at 21.2%, and the UK at 15.6%.
The drop-off rate is even more sobering—while 12.5% of all new gym subscriptions happen in January, about 80% quit within five months.
New Year’s resolutions, anyone?
Fitness Tech & Trends
Thanks to wearable tech like smartwatches, India’s urban areas are seeing an 18% penetration in fitness technology by 2024.
Virtual fitness classes and mobile apps are also riding this wave, with app downloads skyrocketing by 65% year-on-year.
Clearly, India's not just sweating it out in gyms but embracing the digital evolution of fitness too.
But what is driving this growth in the fitness market? 🤔
- Health and Wellness Awareness: Post-COVID, fitness awareness has gone mainstream. Over 72% of urban Indians now recognise the benefits of regular exercise. Influencers flexing their #FitnessGoals on Instagram have certainly helped!
- Rising Disposable Income: Indians aren’t just making more money; they’re spending it on fitness. The per capita net national income jumped to ₹1,72,000 in 2024—that’s more disposable income to splurge on gym memberships and home gym setups.
- Urbanization & Lifestyle Shifts: Urban areas are projected to house 40% of India’s population by 2025, with a 15% rise in households engaged in physical activities. Health is the new wealth, especially in bustling cities where fitness studios are popping up like never before.
Competitive Landscape
1. Substitute Product Offering Competitors
👉🏻 Overview of Cult.fit & Competitors
2. Feature-level competitors
Click on these to find out the detailed comparison analysis for Cult fit’s feature-level competitors 👇
Group Classes 🧑🧑🧒🧒
Gym Access 💪🏻
Sports Centres 🏸
Workout at Home 🧘🏻♀️
Weight Loss Coaching 🏋🏻
The depth you see here is just a feeler of the depth we teach at GrowthX 💫
GrowthX is an invite-only club of over 3000 members who are product, marketing, and business leaders, and founders from top internet-first companies like Google, Canva, CRED, Stripe, Netflix, and more 💎
We teach our members how to scale revenues via frameworks that can be applied starting next Monday morning. The GrowthX Membership is built on 3 core pillars:
How does Cultfit make money?
1. Fitness Centers 🏋️♂️
The core of Cult.fit's empire lies in its fitness centres, which contributed 64% to the total operating revenue, jumping 3.1X from Rs 141 crore in FY22 to Rs 445 crore in FY23.
Under this umbrella, several offerings boost their income:
- Cult Memberships & Passes 🏃♀️
- Cult Sport Arenas ⚽
- Cult Transform 🧘♂️
2. Cultsport 👟
3. Digital Fitness 📱
4. Cult Care - Lab Tests & Healthcare Services 🩺
5. Cult Pass Corporate 🏢
