Why Alistair Brownlee has invested into Leeds-founded fitness firm GoJoe

Founded by Leeds University graduates Will Turner and Phil Steele, GoJoe now intends to embark on expansion plans to delve into the multi-billion pound fitness market globally.

GoJoe combines modern incentives for participants through things like NFT rewards and the ability for people to participate in virtual fitness alongside celebrities and sportspeople they follow.

Mr Turner and Mr Steele met at Leeds University in 2003.

Self-described average sportspeople who like most people struggle to stay fit, they used their love for competition and sport to create an annual team-based sporting event between friends involving an athletics stadium and a fair amount of friendly social rivalry. The results were documented, winners were rewarded, and ultimately, an idea was born.

Will and Phil took the essence behind this physical event and created a digital product to help ‘ordinary Joes’ like them to get motivated and help exercise become enjoyable.

Through GoJoe, the co-founders are bringing their vision to life. While combining modern incentives for participants through things like NFT rewards and the unique ability for people to participate in virtual fitness alongside celebrities and sportspeople they follow, the app encourages everyday virtual fitness through both individual and corporates challenges.

The app has grown rapidly, with global users joining the GoJoe community including ambassador and investor Mr Brownlee, as they look to change the way that people view exercise, bringing a fun, yet competitive edge to everyday fitness. People can even join a team captained by Alistair himself in a special event to mark his backing of GoJoe.

Mr Brownlee said: “I invested in GoJoe because I am absolutely passionate about the role technology can play in inspiring and motivating us all to be healthier and fitter and live more active lifestyles.

“I think that GoJoe is a novel way of encouraging people to live a healthier life.

"The social aspect of motivation is important for everyone. It’s crucial for elite athletes, but I would say it’s even more important to help keep everyday people motivated, and GoJoe’s app has been created in a way to engage people on a daily basis, and ultimately help them become fitter, healthier, and happier.

Mr Turner added: “We’re ‘ordinary joes’ ourselves, and like many others, we have always struggled to get and stay motivated to exercise. To combat that we’re building GoJoe and a community of likeminded ‘joes’. It’s all about transforming boring solo exercise into social virtual experiences with people you know in order to supercharge motivation levels.

“Our focus on personalisation and innovation has enabled us to grow much faster than expected, and is why we’re now looking to open another investment round this quarter. Very early on we secured global clients such as Diageo, PwC, Capita and others, who have used GoJoe to connect, engage and incentivise their workforces, many of whom have been dispersed because of COVID-19.

“To have the backing of a sporting legend like Alistair Brownlee is fantastic for us. Even though he’s an elite, double gold Olympic medalist, he’s super passionate about motivation and participation at all levels of sport and is really interested in technology and innovation. He also knows a thing or two about what it takes to get people moving, regardless of fitness level.”