Popular US fitness app Strava has snapped up Runna, a London-based coaching startup backed by Olympic athletes.
Strava entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Runna on Thursday with the goal of creating the world’s biggest fitness app – figures from Statista rank Strava second in the world by revenue, behind MyFitnessPal.
Founded in 2020 by Dom Maskell and Ben Parker, Runna has raised around £10m from investors, including a 2022 seed round that saw funding from Team GB Olympic marathon runner Stephanie Davis, Made in Chelsea Star Joshua Patterson and Irish rugby union player Gregory O’Shea.
The app provides custom running programmes depending on user skill sets.
The terms of the acquisition from Strava, which claims to have more than 150 million users, were not disclosed, however, The Times has reported the deal will earn its founders a multimillion-pound payday. Dealroom estimates the value of Runna at upwards of $40m.
Other backers of Runna include JamJar Investments – a venture capital group run by the founders of Innocent Drinks – as well as Venrex, Eka Ventures and Creator Ventures.
“We are delighted to become part of Strava as we continue to focus on bringing the world the most customised and personalised training plans available,” said Maskell.
“We have spent many hours together with Strava senior management and we couldn’t be more excited to be on the same team.”
Parker added: “Our passion is to give every runner a training plan and access to amazing coaching and this investment allows us to make even more improvements to everything we do at Runna, benefiting runners worldwide.”
Strava, which launched back in 2009, as well as operating one of the most popular fitness apps has been focusing on its API developer business.
More than 100 apps connect to Strava’s API and CEO Michael Martin said the company was “thrilled” to “recognise and invest in an API developer like Runna”.
“Coming off Strava’s accelerated innovation and unprecedented growth last year, it was the right time to look for complementary businesses that could create even greater value for our users,” Martin said.
“Running is booming worldwide. Runna’s mission to give every runner a personalised plan to achieve their goal is a perfect fit.”
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