PPB November 2019

NEW MEMBER SPOTLIGHT How did your company get its start? As sisters with a passion for fitness and overall wellness, we wanted to create a product that helped others get fit and healthy. We combined Amie’s background of 20 years in the fitness and wellness industry and Beth’s corporate sales and operations experience to develop a company with a mission to create a line of wellness products that were simple and accessible. Our first product, the Classic FitKit was immediately successful and featured on the Today Show and other news outlets. We were selling direct- to-consumer and loved helping people change behaviors and create healthy habits. As we grew and expanded our FitKit offerings, volume orders in the corporate wellness space became a major focus. Beyond The Biggest Loser and walking challenges, companies were at a loss as to how to get their workforce to develop healthier habits. Today, we support their internal wellness efforts with a line of FitKits for fitness, nutrition and stress reduction. All our kits include access to our online Resource Hub that provides easy-to-follow exercises, motivational tips and support. We believed from the very beginning that wellness is too important to be complicated and set out to simplify it for everyone. What led your company to enter the promotional products market? We never thought of our products as promotional items until a company placing an order for 10,000 units asked if they could have the kits branded with their logo. We knew we were onto something when 80 percent of our revenue was coming from volume sales in the corporate wellness market with many of the orders customized to meet branding requirements. We started getting contacted by distributors. Their clients were finding us through various outlets and asking their reps to source our products. At the time, we didn’t have a pricing structure to include the necessary margins, but as we began developing relationships with distributors, we realized what a valuable sales channel the promotional products industry could be for us. We began researching the industry and have spent months developing an infrastructure and pricing model that will support a distributor channel relationship. What’s your favorite thing about being in the promotional products industry? The wellness industry is booming, and more and more people are looking for products that promote health and their brand. We are thrilled to partner with distributors to extend our reach in helping simplify wellness as well as gain access to a new sales channel that can provide mutual benefit. We are also learning that not many wellness products on the market are developed by wellness professionals or provide the resources to truly affect healthy behavior change, so we are excited to provide unique offerings that make a difference. Why did you join PPAI? The distributors that we have worked with so far believe in our products, love the concept and encouraged us to enter the promotional products market. We are grateful they took us under their wing, guided us through the process and gave us great feedback to ensure our success. All of them mentioned the importance of joining PPAI and SAGE, both for the level of product exposure and the support and guidance from the community. We are excited to be a part of the promotional products industry and look forward to meeting with distributors at The PPAI Expo in January— we’ll be in the New Products Pavilion—and sharing our unique wellness products with their clients. Beth Wieczorek and Amie Hoff Co-Founders, FitKit | NOVEMBER 2019 | 121 CONNECT