Keep it Cleaner (KIC), a fitness company co-founded by millennial influencers Laura Henshaw and Stephanie Miller, is entering a new phase in its development by preparing for an offshore expansion and testing the market for its first capital raise. The company has appointed Adelaide Equity Partners as advisors, who are introducing the entrepreneurs to a selection of family offices, high net worth individuals and institutional investors.
KIC was started in 2015 by Henshaw and Miller when they published an e-book of healthy recipes. Since then, KIC has transformed into a website, an app and now a multi-product business. Its health and wellness app offers a range of workout programs from multiple trainers spanning from running to yoga, as well as recipes. Additionally, the company has its own range of foods and protein powders on sale at Coles and Woolworths, and a weekly podcast.
In an interview with The Australian Financial Review, Ms Henshaw said that after more than five years running a bootstrapped business, the entrepreneurs were now ready to embark on a new growth phase. “It’s never felt like the right time [to raise capital] before... but I think we’re at a point where within our core market of Australia, where we’ve done an incredible job getting to this point, but in terms of where we take the tech and market expansion, we’re at a point where bringing on capital... can help us expedite those areas,” she said.
The co-founders have tapped into their own audiences to grow KIC’s community and have been able to keep paid marketing expenses to a minimum and invest in growing their community organically. This, according to Ms Henshaw, has differentiated the business from its growing group of competitors. KIC is now planning to expand to the UK in the next six months and is confident that the Aussie lifestyle around health and wellness is something that is inspirational for the UK.
Attribution:
This summary is based on a story published in the Australian Financial Review
https://www.afr.com/companies/healthcare-and-fitness/insta-famous-aussie-fitness-duo-eyes-uk-expansion-20230117-p5cd5t
