Retrofit In The News

Weight Loss Platform Retrofit Gears Up for New Year’s Resolutions with $5 Million in Series B 1/6/14 - Retrofit's holiday meant more work, as close to 60 percent of Americans resolve to improve their health or lose weight for the New Year, according to CEO Jeff Hyman. Now a $5 million investment in the company helps cater to America's race to lose weight, bringing Retrofit's total funding up to $15.7 million. Retrofit taps into a $50 billion weight loss market in the US. … "What we’re finding is that the cost of healthcare going up and being overweight drives so many conditions and issues," Hyman said. "If you solve the weight issue for a company, you largely solve the health issue for the company." … Read The Story

The Day in Deals: Venture Capital Deals 1/2/14 - Retrofit, a Chicago-based provider of weight loss programs, has raised $5 million in Series B funding.Cambia Health Solutions led the round, and was joined by return backer DFJ. The company previously raised more than $8 million. www.retrofitme.com. … Read The Story

Cambia leads $5M Funding Round in Virtual Personal Trainer Startup 1/2/14 - It’s Jan. 2 and many people have surely resolved to lose weight and work out more in 2014. Sadly and predictably for many of us, in just a matter of weeks, those resolutions will be forgotten. Portland-based Cambia Health Solutions Inc. has invested in a personalized fitness tool to help you keep those resolutions. Cambia led a $5 million venture capital round in Retrofit. … Read The Story

Chicago Startup Retrofit Raises A Series B To Make Us Healthier 12/23/13 - Chicago-based Retrofit aims to take weight loss to the corporate level, offering employees of large companies like Google and Salesforce.com discounted rates to try the program...There are plenty of weight loss programs that focus on corporate clients. Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig both have corporate arms and years of brand recognition. So, what makes Retrofit any different? According to the Retrofit team: results. In their first 12 month “cohort,” more than 90% of participants lost significant weight. The average weight loss was almost 20 pounds, which equals a 9% of overall body weight. … Read The Story

Retrofit Featured on Venture Capital Dispatch: The Daily Startup 12/20/13 - Retrofit Inc. raised $5 million in new venture funding to take on Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and other corporate wellness programs in the U.S. that focus on weight loss. … Read The Story

Cambia Health Solutions and DFJ lead $5 Mlllion Round for Retrofit 12/20/13 - Retrofit said Friday that it has closed an additional $5 million in financing. Cambia Health Solutions and existing investor Draper Fisher Jurveston led the round. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Retrofit is a weight loss program for busy professionals. Its other backers include Correlation Ventures, Hyde Park Angels, Pritzker Group Venture Capital, Chicago Ventures and Firestarter Fund. … Read The Story

Expert Series: Retrofit 10/31/13 - Chicago-based Retrofit is a weight management program targeted at business professionals who tend to be too busy for exercise in their day-to-day lives. It offers a personalized regimen for each client, focusing on three core principals: diet, exercise and behavior change. Emphasizing the importance of weight loss and healthy lifestyles as a marathon rather than a sprint, Retrofit was founded in 2011 and continues to grow rapidly today. The following interview is with founder and CEO, Jeff Hyman. … Read The Story

How to Walk 10,000 Steps Without Leaving Your Desk 10/11/13 - Practicing what you preach can be a challenge, especially when it comes to finding the elusive work/life balance. As the Vice President of Talent Development for Retrofit Weight Loss, a Chicago-based company focused on workplace wellness, my goal in creating our office space was to provide an open space for open minds. I wanted Retrofit employees to work in a comfortable space that encouraged productivity and movement to counteract the sitting that is typical working for a web-based business. … Since Retrofit encourages its clients to find continuous movement throughout the day, I wanted to make sure that our employees can easily “walk the talk”. … Read The Story

Dieting in the Digital Age 10/4/13 - In the face of technological innovations like activity monitors, wireless scales and cutting-edge video conferencing software, an increasing number of dieters are opting for mobile apps and other online plans that offer convenient, customized ways to count calories and stick to an exercise plan. … Old-guard diet companies - including Weight Watchers, which relies heavily on a model of face-to-face support meetings, and Jenny Craig, which sells company-branded meals — are struggling. "What we’re seeing here is classic disruptive innovation," says John R. Kimberly, professor of management at Wharton. … Read The Story

Chicago Startup Creates the Smartest Way to Lose Weight, Period. With Jeff Hyman, CEO of Retrofit 10/2/13 - This week's featured interview is with Chicago's very own, Jeff Hyman, CEO of Retrofit. Retrofit is a web-based weight loss program that combines wearables (think Fitbit), wireless scales and regular Skype calls with your personal registered dietitian, exercise physiologist and behavior coach. Jeff himself, has been around the block, worth $51 million dollars before the bubble - and $51 after it burst. Jeff didn't fall easily and went on to build 2 more successful businesses (selling 2 of them) until he landed on a passion project - Retrofit. … Let's just say people liked it … and Weight Watchers is scared. … Read The Story