Retrofit In The News

9 Successful People Who Work From Home 3/5/13 - Marissa Mayer recently demanded all Yahoo employees work in a corporate office. They're no longer allowed to work from home, unless it's with good reason. Yahoo has faced world-wide backlash for this decision. That's because many people have proved to be successful, despite not working in an office environment. … "Retrofit CEO Jeff Hyman and Retrofit CMO Kim Evenson both work approximately 80% from home and 20% in the office," a company spokesperson tells Business Insider. "Jeff chose not to have offices, as he realizes the value of hiring A-players from all over the country. Jeff believes you can work from home and still maintain quality control and consistency." … Read The Story

3 Common Mistakes to Avoid When Naming Your Business 3/4/13 - Picking the right business name is an important first step toward creating a successful company, but not everyone hits the jackpot on the first try. … A few months after Jeff Hyman, 44, launched a virtual weight-loss program for business professionals in 2011, he realized that potential customers were having trouble finding his website. He estimates he spent $25,000 in 2011 to hire A Hundred Monkeys to rebrand his Skokie, Ill.-based company as Retrofit, a reference to retrofitting your body. … The company tested the new name with about 50 consumers and received positive feedback, Hyman says… Read The Story

Why Sitting Increases Your Risk of Dying Sooner 2/9/13 - …Finding a way to reduce sitting time can certainly be challenging, and requires diligence and dedication. Retrofit, a unique data-driven weight management company based in Chicago has developed innovative ways to assist individuals as well as corporate clients lose weight by offering real world solutions to promote healthy workplace behaviors and eating habits. …Jeff Hyman, CEO of Retrofit, believes that “willpower is highly overrated” and that his company offers tangible solutions to “effectively change eating behaviors, while providing necessary emotional support” to its clients. Employees of Vista Staffing Solutions, based in Salt Lake City, a physician staffing company–whose members often spend 10-12 hours a day sitting– recently won an essay contest organized by Retrofit offering complementary onsite weight loss services. … Clarke Shaw, Executive Vice President of Vista, states … that employees have “embraced Retrofit’s technology within the first 4 weeks, and appear highly motivated at work”… Read The Story

The 2012 Chicago Digital Startup Report 2/7/13 - The activity in Chicago attracted more than 50 investors from outside Chicago to invest in the city’s digital startups [including Retrofit] in 2012. "Chicago has developed into a city that every investor must watch,” said Mayor Rahm Emanuel. “Our economy is thriving and the companies we are producing are among the nation’s leaders in many sectors, and this year’s data proves it. The largest growth in funding was in the healthcare technology sector, with 27% of the 2012 startup funding going to digital healthcare companies… Read The Story

The New Diet Aid: Retrofit 1/28/13 - Jeff Hyman's fourth startup crept up on him slowly—a pound at a time. … In addition to incorporating Skype into his program, Mr. Hyman added Fitbit, a gadget that tracks physical activity and calories burned, and a scale with a Wi-Fi connection, both of which allow Internet-connected counselors to track progress between weekly consultations. … Since Mr. Hyman's company began beta-testing the program a year ago, it has … raised $10.7 million from the likes of J.B. Pritzker of New World Ventures and Levy Restaurants Chairman Larry Levy. … Read The Story

Predicting Technology Changes in 2013 1/4/13 - So what's in store for Chicago in the New Year? The Sun-Times asked two technology and social-media experts — Andy Crestodina, co-founder and web strategist at Orbit Media, and Mana Ionescu, founder and president of Lightspan Digital, to weigh in on local trends. * Wearable smart devices — Mobile technology will be closer to us, literally, than ever before. In spring 2013, Chicago's Everpurse will open its doors to sell bags that charge your mobile device seamlessly, no cords required. Another Chicago company, Retrofit, is taking advantage of wearable smart devices such as Fitbit to create data-driven weight-loss programs. … Read The Story

Q&A With Mohanjit Jolly: Startups In India, Fact and Fiction 1/3/13 - In 2005, Mohanjit Jolly set up Draper Fisher Jurvetson's first India office. Since then, he's learned exactly how Western venture investors view the massive, emerging market–from startups there, to the potential for U.S. startups to sell there. … Most recently, Jolly invested in Retrofit, a New York-based provider of high-tech health and wellness programs. Retrofit could do robust business in India, he believes, though not everybody who is successful in the U.S. could appeal to customers there. … Read The Story

Retrofit Counsels Clients, Connects Employees and Finds Talent, All on Skype 1/3/13 - Getting in shape frequently tops the resolution list. That's one reason why business is booming at Retrofit, a Chicago-based weight loss company that offers consultations across the United States over Skype. Retrofit Wellness Experts, from registered dietitians to exercise physiologists and behavior coaches, use Skype video calling for private lessons with clients to help them meet their weight loss and health goals. Given the personal nature of the consultations, Retrofit relies on Skype so counselors can develop close relationships with clients. … Read The Story

Health as a Service: Tackling Obesity with Technology 1/2/13 - The combination of aging population, deteriorating lifestyle and the desire to live longer is leading to a rise in health and wellness startups. Lack of exercise and high caloric intake shows that the US is charting a course for its own demise. With an aging and horizontally-expanding population, the impact of this crisis will be far-reaching than the healthcare crisis the country finds itself in today. … But with this challenge comes a great opportunity. And entrepreneurs are envisioning a trillion-dollar market with the expansion of waistlines. The combination of aging population, deteriorating lifestyle and the desire to live longer is leading to a rise in health and wellness startups. Following in the footsteps of "pick a letter" as a Service (SaaS, PaaS, IaaS etc.), there is emerging a "health as a service" (HaaS) market, coined by yours truly. … This fall, I led DFJ's first investment since returning to the U.S. in Retrofit, which is a company trying to impact lives by combining personalized service from experts with data and predictive analytics. … Read The Story

Healthy Benefits Coming Utah Workers Way 1/2/13 - A Utah company and its employees are about to experience firsthand how employers can trim expenses without reducing their workforces, by helping workers, well, reduce. "Employers incur an average of almost $1,500 a year in additional health care expenses for each overweight employee," said Jeff Hyman, CEO of Retrofit, a provider of company weight-loss programs. "Such high costs drain companies of money that could otherwise be invested in growth, new products and hiring." On Wednesday in a surprise visit, Retrofit Inc., awarded Salt Lake City-based VISTA Staff Solutions $300,000 in services to help revitalize workers by helping them engage in more healthy habits. … Read The Story