Retrofit In The News

Five Chicago Health Tech Startups Worth Watching 7/16/13 - With major healthcare changes looming nationwide, startups around Chicago are working to help hospitals and normal people adjust. No surprise, then, that healthcare startups raised more money than any other segment in 2012. … Retrofit: This two-year-old company uses data collected from Fitbits and Withings scales to help people lose at least 10 percent of their body weight—and keep it off. Initially, Retrofit targeted individuals, but last summer CEO Jeff Hyman invited corporations to take the challenge as well. With 90 percent of their clients losing weight, plus 90 percent of clients returning year after year, it seems Retrofit is doing something right. … Why healthcare? “We can do well by doing good. I believe that education & healthcare are the two biggest challenges facing our nation long-term,” Hyman says. "When you solve the obesity epidemic, you largely solve the healthcare crisis." … Read The Story

Techweek Chicago 2013: Startup School Features Retrofit CTO Doug Donohoe 7/1/13 - Founders and CEOs who realized early-stage success took time out from Techweek Chicago to share advice on leveraging tech, human capital. Retrofit Doug Donohoe shares tips in with BizTechMagazine.com about starting the weight loss program for busy professionals. … Read The Story

Techweek Chicago 2013: It All Starts In The Cloud 7/1/13 - The cloud is driving innovation, and enabling small businesses and startups to build a new economy. Retrofit CTO Doug Donohoe explains how he used the latest technology to develop the data-driven weight loss program for busy professionals. … Read The Story

ITA Spotlight - Retrofit 6/6/13 - Read all about how these great companies are driving the growth of the Illinois tech industry. Retrofit, whose CEO Jeff Hyman was a finalist for the 2013 ITA CityLIGHTS “CEO of the Year” award, is the expert-led, data-driven weight loss program for busy professionals, designed to deliver lasting results. … Read The Story

The Entrepreneur's Guide to Healthy Eating: Top 10 Tips for 2013 1/2/13 - As we enter into a new year, we can never seem to avoid making resolutions. We know they’ve failed us in the past, but for some reason we feel compelled to keep making them. With the hectic work and travel schedule of an entrepreneur, making your health a priority starts with a well thought-out plan. … Once you choose a realistic goal, here are 10 tips for healthy eating that will help you achieve it. … Read The Story

Startup Lessons Retrofit CEO Jeff Hyman Used to Close an $8 Million in Series A 12/28/12 - What makes this company — and its CEO — so appealing to investors? Part of it is that, so far, the program has produced astonishing results….Retrofit has maintained a low 5% drop-out rate, compared to the industry average drop-out rate of 50%. Another part of it is the industry potential. Obesity is a national epidemic, and at any given point, 53% of the country is actively looking to lose weight…Of course, market potential and initial results aren’t everything. There’s always something more intangible — a factor that is difficult to put a finger on — that often accounts for a lot of a young startup company’s initial success: great people. And you can’t build a team of great people without the guidance of a great founder. … Read The Story

The 10 Greatest Wins For The Chicago Startup Scene In 2012 12/27/12 - 2012 was the year that Chicago took a place at the table next to New York City and Silicon Valley as one of the great innovative centers in America. Techli was lucky enough to witness these greatest wins for the Chicago startup scene in 2012: Retrofit Raises Over $10 Million To Revolutionize Web-Based Weight Loss….Retrofit’s wireless activity tracker helps busy-professionals change their body composition during a year-long program that integrates help from wellness specialists and technology. Retrofit’s fundraising success proves that Chicago companies can stay in their home city and still attract the attention of Silicon Valley heavyweights. … Read The Story

Another Win For Quantified Self And Big Data Startups: Weight Loss Platform Retrofit Gains An $8M Series A Round Led By DFJ 11/13/12 - The weight loss and health industries have collided head-on with the tech world, with even the most mainstream depictions of startup life pitching products to help people stay trim and out of the doctor’s office. In one of the more interesting developments, Retrofit, a Chicago-based weight loss program designed for busy professionals that incorporates peripheral services like Skype, Fitbit and connected, wireless scales, along with live mentorship from "wellness experts," is today announcing that it has picked up $8 million in funding led by Draper Fisher Jurvetson to take its product national and to new areas of service. Read The Story

With $8 M, Retrofit Focuses on Data, not Dieting, to Help People Lose Weight 11/13/12 - More than 90 percent of Americans on a diet fail to lose weight, some experts say. But Chicago-based Retrofit says 94 percent of its clients are successfully slimming down with a program that relies on both data and remote expert advice.

Launched last year, the company offers a 12-month program that it says can help clients lose 10 or 15 percent of their body weight … Read The Story

Big Data is the New Atkins: Retrofit’s Approach to Weight Loss Helps Users Slim Down 11/13/12 - Obesity is a serious epidemic in America and Retrofit is applying the latest trends in technology to combat it. In order to do this on a wide scale (pun intended), the company has packed on $8 million in its first round of funding, with $6 million coming from VC firm Draper Fisher Jurveston. Read The Story