Stories: Mount Everest without Oxygen: Exclusive Audio, How to Manage Your Privacy on Fitness Apps, Cycling and Coding Collide at Performance Tracker Strava, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Strava, One Mans Pointless Attempt to Rule a Strava Segment, What Strava Tells Us About the State of Running in 2018, Strava rolls out new finger-dragging route creation feature, Activity app Strava is about to become more like a social network, Strava: The social network for athletes that pits you against Jenson Button, Stravas New Route Building App Is the Godsend Weve All Been Waiting For, Q&A: Instagram Exec James Quarles Plans to Turn Strava Into a Social Publisher for Athletes, Fitness app that revealed military bases highlights bigger privacy issues, (VIDEO) Strava Fitness App Can Reveal Military Sites, Analysts Say, Draft Animals: Living The Pro Cycling Dream (Once In A While), RRP #417: Klian Jornet: Summiting The Mind Of The Worlds Greatest Mountain Runner, RRP #430: Jack Dorsey On Shouldering The Health of Global Conversation, RRP #315: From Fat Kid To Pro Cyclist: Phil Gaimon On Clean Sport, Racing On $10 A Day & The Worst Retirement Ever, RRP #313: TILL! Did you have a core group of early users giving you feedback? Dad did his residency in Denver, and I think they fell in love with the Rockies, and so the opportunity to be in the mountains, but closer to family, was compelling. We have tens of millions of people on Strava today. They were kind enough to let me figure that out. Thats been my strategy. About Strava Strava is the world's leading social fitness app, designed to help athletes of all levels achieve their goals and connect with like-minded individuals. Prior to relocating to her native Southern California, Zip was Chief Marketing Officer for Pizza Hut U.S., based in Dallas. Contact Information Website www.strava.com Ownership Status Privately Held (backing) Financing Status Edit Board and Advisor Roles Section. Mark Gainey: Michael Horvath and I started Strava in 2009. Meeting Nature Writ Large, RRP #394: Knox Robinson On Why Running Is An Act Of Rebellion, RRP #327: Lance Armstrong Is Moving Forward. Our vision was always to support the global community of athletes, regardless of what sport theyre in. Horvath currently heads up the company as CEO, while Gainey serves as executive chairman. Stravas co-founder Mark Gainey, set to run cross-country as a freshman at Harvard in 1986, was sidelined by an injury. I love Strava. Welcome Anita Patwardhan Butler! I said, No way am I going to go, this kid from Reno, not even an interest. It was my father who was like, You do not have to go. If we could find a cyclist willing to listen to the story and willing to experiment, then we would bring them on. Strava is a social fitness platform with more than 76 million users in nearly every country worldwide. Hey, we saw your results. Weve raised about $70 million today, and if you look at our investors, were really fortunate. Always eager to test new tech, I signed up immediately, quickly fell in love and have been evangelizing the platform every since. Youre going to graduate from Harvard with a degree, and you should go off and find your adult life. Still in their 20s when they founded Kana Communications in 1996, they saw the first dot-com boom up close as Kanas valuation hit north of $10 billion in 2000. Hes been my business partner for 25 years. It was worth a shot. What happened was a very nice coach sent me a handwritten note in the fallit wouldve been fall of 1985. The teamwork. Listen to the podcast on:Apple Podcasts |Google Podcasts|Spotify. By 2008, he and Gainey were meeting up for brainstorming sessions that would result in the birth of Strava. Q&A: Strava founder Mark Gainey The CEO and co-founder of Strava on the history of segments, Strava marriage proposals and the pain of losing his records to a teenager by Mark Bailey. Then, in 2008, their passion for sports came full circle with the launch of Strava. Strava Redeem now It turned out that the idea was sound, but the technology wasnt there. To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Cyc: What is your favourite piece of Strava art [where a users route draws a picture on a map]? Their story is as interesting as it is instructive. Wed like to help people discover new opportunities, new friends, new routes, new places to travel and their next bucket list thing to go and do. That authenticity is pretty critical for the early stages. All rights reserved. I am not being compensated in any way for hosting Mark and Michael on the show. I cant do that, but its a great way to learn about history through the eyes of an artist at the time. Cyc: What about helping people find new routes? They share how they've focused on creating new content and featur Horvath founded Strava with Mark Gainey in 2009. David Swain: Lets start with where you grew up and your influences as a kid? You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings. Riding up a local canyon climb back in what must have been late 2009, my Airstream-dwelling, frequent cycling compadre Stu Bone couldnt stop talking about this brand new social network specifically aimed at the 2-wheel community. It used to be patience, persistence, and perfection, but I realized perfection was leading to a bunch of bad behavior we didnt want, so we threw it out. At Strava, weve literally put it on a coin. There just isnt anything like it. Its when our members are excited about their experience on Strava and theyre sharing it with their friends. It wasnt as though we had this masterplan about how this was going to cover the entire world. To get the story behind the story, today I sit down with Mark Gainey and Michael Horvath the dynamic duo co-founderswho gave birth to Strava and continue to guide its ongoing growth and evolution. Apple I was the oldest of three. He wrote this note saying. Of course, he wasnt targeting me, he was just younger so he was naturally destroying me, but we developed a friendship and we still banter back and forth every few weeks. So as early as 1995, we had a plan to figure out a way to bring that boathouse experience to the masses. I wanted to continue rowing lightweights (there are lightweights and heavyweights in rowing). Youre not going to meet a person whos more humble, who works harder, and he also just understands things about business that, frankly, I dont. In some ways I would equate this to authenticity in business. Prokit Mark Gainey, Strava Co-Founder on Entrepreneurship, Life and Sport . That led to a nine-month perioda little bit of a reckoningbecause it was not at all clear that I was going to be able to come back to rowing. There are certain days when the smell in the office is not from the servers and computers. You're one of the few investors I've heard talk that way. We also hold ourselves responsible for delivering innovative and . business of fitness and wellness. Horvath, who co-founded the San Francisco-based social network for outdoor enthusiasts in 2009. Go toonepeloton.com, use the codeRICHROLLand get$100 off accessorieswith your Peloton bike purchase. Mark Gainey Portola Valley, CA Follow on Strava Followers 2051 Following 323 Yesterday Hello 2023! Probably very few people would know of the ones I was involved with, firms likes Ontrack and Diamond, which were in the video space. I used to remind everybody, Yeah, and what happens to rocket ships once they run out of fuel? The company's application offers the ability to record fitness activity, analyze, share and compare data against themselves, friends, and pros, enabling users to discover, share and plan workouts and training together for better growth and results. Number of Current Board & Advisor Roles 1. I like to joke that I got paid to go to business school because Id basically get case studies all day long talking to these guys. Mark Gainey, the co-founder and chief executive of fitness-tracking app Strava, has a message for immigrants who are impacted by President Donald Trump's recent executive order: "Freedom4All." The real trick is finding that balance. Their transparency holds me accountable. Strava is the leading social platform for athletes and the largest sports community in the world, with over 98 million athletes in 195 countries. Join industry-leading *Disclosure:Books and products denoted with an asterisk are hyperlinked to an affiliate program. Theyre posting their workouts, and in exchange, were motivating and inspiring them through competitions, analytics, social connections, and so forth. Well, while Lee's $800,000 net worth and Sandy's $400,000 net worth, it's actually Chef Ben Robinson that takes the take with his $2.5 million net worth! How to capture a niche by going an inch wide and a mile deep. Grounded and patient, I learned firsthand that Mark is one of those people you instantly want to work with. In November I will be participating in the Qatar Quest a reverse order ultra-distance triathlonthat will circumnavigate the Qatar peninsula. I live in Silicon Valley and continue to hear entrepreneurs talk about how their goal is an IPO, like somehow thats the end game. MG: Michael and I have learned over time, the minute you start talking about exits is the minute you start de-valuing your business. Yeah, I love this entirely. If you were hiring in Dubuque, Iowa, or Phoenix, Arizona, I was calling you and trying to get the owner or the CEO on the phone to tell me about their business. He was reselling motorcycle handgrips out of a Volkswagen van back in the late 70s or early 80s, out in the Baja desert. ? MG: From day one we always said were about motivation and entertainment. Personal Investments Number of Investments 1 Mark Gainey invested in Teamsportz on Aug 13, 2021. I was incredibly fortunate for the people willing to come and join me on the ride. A silver lining of hard times like these is that they inspire introspection and focus - What matters the most to us? We want to support them in their journey wherever they are, whether theyre attempting their first 5K or going for an Olympic gold medal. I n the mid-90s, two former college friends, Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey, met to discuss an idea. Mark and Michael are two people I have always wanted to meet. Copyright Rich Roll Enterprises LLC. That business was minting money, but Jim did it by bringing everything in-house. Subscribe: Apple Podcasts / Spotify Required fields are marked Believe it or not, Strava started out with the idea of being a virtual locker room. He previously left in 2013, though joined again in 2019 as CEO. Strava recently closed Series E with a total funding of $41.85 million in six rounds. And for $5 a month, we want to believe its a great value. Through soccer came running. Co-founders Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey spoke with Guy about the recent surge in users joining their virtual fitness community. Michaels trajectory was a little different. He was maniacal about the quality, maniacal about his distribution. San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Valley), This describes the type of investor the person is (e.g. Its Strava on the Brain, and many an evening when Id be sitting there with the boys at dinner, or trying to have a conversation, and Im asking them about their day, they tell me how their day has gone, and I cant hear them. 2020-03-04T05:11:52Z. Most of my competition was on my own team, so when youre living that six days a week, and youre literally racing in practice, it makes it pretty easy to go out and win races. I said, No way am I going to go, this kid from Reno, not even an interest. It was my father who was like, You do not have to go. In turn I help hold my community accountable. Strava was founded in San Francisco in 2009it released Strava Metro in 2014.. Everybody thinks of rowing as somewhat of an individual sport, but you have to figure out how to mix in effectively with eight other peopleseven other rowers and a coxswain. Worst-case scenario, Id have a good story for a business school application. Thinking about the people was a huge takeaway as we built Strava. Its another funding event that can be very important in the life of a company, but its by no means the end. Specialized smashes the UCI rulebook with new S-Works Shiv, Geraint Thomass Tour de France trophy stolen. Paul Holland ran sales for us. While we will always support free, we wanted our community to understand that if youre a subscriber, its just going to get better and better over the coming months and years. So rather than focusing on exits or IPOs and things like that, its kind of back to fundamentals. Strava. I had dreams of. Strava co-founder and CEO Michael Horvath is, again, stepping down from his position. Mark Gaineycurrently serves as the co-founder and chairman of Strava. I had dreams of, Could I make one of those lightweight teams? My dad was a general surgeon. We have always said if we are not using Strava, how can we convince the rest of the world that its a good thing to do? Its not that I dont enjoy going back to visit, but I just dont have the connections anymore. We had a go-to-market strategy that said we were going to focus somewhat maniacally on the cycling community, but dont confuse go-to-market with vision. With Strava, to this day, sometimes Ill hear, Oh, the clever little cycling company. You can go look at our early business plans. MG: my business partner and co-founder, Michael Horvath met when we were on the crew team in college and the experience we had on the team was critical to everything going forward. We took a lot of cues from the grand brands Michael and I admired, and set out to see if we could go do something similar. MG: We know were not the experts when it comes to training for a first century ride but we know there are experts out there, so how do we allow them the opportunity to have a voice on Strava and how can members find that information? Send me the good emails, Copyright Diamond Publishing 2023. Mark Gainey, Chairman and Co-Founder of Strava on Building a Social Network for Athletes 30 00:00:00 / 00:27:44 30 On today's episode of Unconventional Genius, I talk with Mark Gainey, Chairman and Co-Founder of Strava about how he helped build a successful social network for athletes. Jobs Number of Current Jobs 2 Its one of the few apps still featured on the home screen of my phone years after downloading it. He and Anna had four children in a pretty short period of time, and then he found himself, largely for family reasons, leaving the Bay Area, staying in academia, and ultimately ending up in Hanover, New Hampshire, where he taught entrepreneurship at the business school at Dartmouth. Watch on Mark Gainey is the Co-Founder of Strava, the #1 app for runners and cyclists. Well, hes 82 years old. Like many of the things born in Silicon Valley, you might say Strava, the favorite app of millions of athletes, is a happy accident. I got on the phone and called Jim Jannard, the founder of Oakley Sunglasses. Michael and I, neither of us are particularly good cyclists. Founded in 2009, millions of athletes have joined Strava for the competition and camaraderie found in tracking and sharing their fitness activities. More From Runner's World . Otherwise its a really hard slog. Have you ever considered Harvard? I had a great coach, a guy named Charlie Butt at Harvard, who now has the whole program. But were not forcing anybody to pay. That being said, starting Kana and Strava were two different experiences. Kana Communications was a massive triumph. I wasnt thinking about working. Metropolis International Group Limited, 10th Floor, Southern House, Wellesley Grove, Croydon, CR0 1XG. There was a great piece of advice I got long ago from a Harvard classmate. Currently Stravas interim CFO, Michael Horvathpreviously served as Chief Executive Officer from 2010-2013 and President from 2014-2017. To subscribe, or for other enquiries, please contact us. That really surfaces. I talked about how much fun I had on the crew team at Harvard. At that point, it was a pretty easy choice, just the opportunity to be in that boathouse with a national-caliber team, and to learn a new sport. [Red Bull] READ MORE How Your Strava-Recorded Hill Climbs Can Help Firefighters Battle Wildfires Those messages capture my heart and are fun to see. Cyclists love climbs. Founded in 2009 by Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey, Strava has. This investment - Pre Seed Round - Teamsportz - was valued at $550K. Its as simple as that.. Pioneering Running Coach Greg McMillan: Extraordinary is in All of Us. We do want to experiment. When I graduated from high school, the graduation gift was a mountain bike. I admire some of the other entrepreneurs Ive studied who have figured out a way to be much more balanced on a regular basis. Dear Strava community, If nothing else, 2020 has been a year of regaining perspective. But he was always my co-founder and engaged at Kana. Ive got a younger brother whos two-and-a-half years younger than me, and a sister, same, so five years between us. Over the last 10 years, weve experimented with a handful of different business models, everything from e-commerce to even some forms of advertisement within the feed. Co-founder & President: 2014: May 2017: Board and Advisor Roles. That particular group from the class of 88 really took me under their wing, and I became great friends with a number of guys there. Nothing to write home aboutby no means a perfect score, but good. Mark Gainey, Strava. We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website. MG: When we made the decision to raise outside capital and bring investors in, we were conscious of who we brought in. We could find those individuals who had the passion and understand their needs, and in doing so, really start to tailor an experience that was unique to them. Ironically, this came from the entrepreneursthe theory being that youre going to be doing this 24/7, 365 days a year, so it might as well be something you are genuinely passionate about. "And given the growing need for bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, we felt Strava Metro was too valuable and important not to make available to any organization attempting to make a difference in designing the cities of the future." Mark Gainey, Strava co-founder Ride in style This is not the first time though that Michael Horvath has left the company. The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes. MG: A funny story there was a time when I had lots of CRs [course records] throughout my neighbourhood. Support The Sponsors:One of the best ways to support the podcast is to support our sponsors. Terry McKall February 14, 2023. I dont care whether its a software business, or youre manufacturing paperclips, or soccer balls, or running a restaurant. Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey originally founded Strava in 2009, and it has since grown to over 100 million users, a portion of which are also paid subscribers. Posted by; Date June 12, 2022; Comments . So Im doing it again. They had been competitive rowers at Harvard, and both missed rowing life: its competition. That was the academic side of it. Mark Gainey currently serves as the co-founder and chairman of Strava. I wasnt sitting on seven other boards, so it was manageable. Its funny, full disclosure, I was not applying to Harvard when I was in high school. We want to fail fast, so perspective was all about keeping things in perspective as we try to move forward. Then the top 5 were selected by Ben Lowe, creator of VeloViewer; Mark Shaw and Mark Gainey, Strava's CTO and CEO; and Ariel Poler, a member of Strava's board of directors. Prior to relocating to her native Southern California, Zip was Chief Marketing Officer for Pizza Hut U.S., based in Dallas. So she went outside and dragged in this skinny 16-year-old kid and she said he was in love with Strava. Apple Podcasts|YouTube|Spotify|Stitcher|Google Podcasts. Theyd bus us off to Mt. The one I always recommend is called, by David Halberstam. She said, I talk to way too many entrepreneurs who, when I ask them about who their customer is, they say, Well, look, here. For a complete list of all RRP sponsors and their respective vanity urls and discount codes,visit my Resources page and click Sponsors. I laughed. According to Crunchbase, Strava has raised a total of $151.9 million from seven rounds of funding. . Thats where the kudos and comments came in. The grit and determination and persistence. Never miss an episode, plus special announcements, discounts, giveaways. Usually, I've got investors, like, show me the addressable market and show me the vision. Thats my only experience with rowing, but it was impressive. Hes now a partner at Foundation Capital and has been very successful there. Michael and Mark initially met on the crew team at Harvard. When we graduated, it disappeared. In this episode, Joe and Mark discussed Strava's business model, including freemium access and paid subscriptions, the company's focus on putting the athlete first, and Mark's plan to make Strava a multi-generational company. When its off, its miserable. When I was with Kana, I was newly married. Even when I knew what it cost to manufacture a pair of sunglasses, at the time I had no problem paying these exorbitant rates for a pair of sunglasses because they were that good. Its not an end game. The thing I refer to nowthe boys will even joke with me, I call it SOB disease. Kids dont get to do that as much anymore. Id show up on a Monday morning with 50 newspapers on my desk. Folks, my name is Mark Gainey. That was just the job. I love to ride in the dirt, but by going out and talking to the cycling community, we found we could be very focused. Even with IPOs. . Renos one of those funny places. Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed, If you sweat, youre an athlete. We knew if we could keep it fun and inspirational you would get the fitness, the strength and the speed too, but it should be secondary to: can we keep this entertaining? I didnt have a lot of other obligations then. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. It was good business. He wrote this note saying, Hey, we saw your results. Exactly. In Strava, that manifests itself in everything from taking care of things like power and wattagewhich is this whole language that very few people are familiar with, but for cyclists is really importantto things like identifying climbs automatically, because it turns out cyclists love climbs. I began formal preparation two weeks ago and have been posting all my workouts on Strava, accompanied by regular Instagram Stories and the occasional vlog on YouTube. Learn how they built a product for THEMSELVES (super niche at first). Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. Theyre still in Reno. Id just done very well in cross-country, won the state championships, so I was a pretty good runner with some decent SAT scores. The company raised $110 million . Youve been through a couple startups. Strava . Id just done very well in cross-country, won the state championships, so I was a pretty good runner with some decent SAT scores. We're betting on our athletes Our founders, Mark Gainey and Michael Horvath, on the way forward. We learned that with our prior company. I was a single parent with two boys who were seven or eight years old at the time we were starting. People get thrown out of the boat, which is called crabs, or you injure your hands on the oar. Our vision was always to support the global community of athletes, regardless of what sport theyre in. mark gainey strava net worth. They were just willing to invest in our activities. I always remind them that the day you take your company public is the day in which its now okay for your grandmother to invest in the future of the business. His name was David Belden, the commercial customer, and hes still here in the Valley. Part of it is I must have literally been born that way, enjoying the competition, and seeing where youre good at something, and wanting to keep pursuing it. Founded in 2009 by Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey, Strava has hired over 100 new employees in the last 12 months including several additions to the company's board and leadership team. They were kind enough to let me figure that out. Could I make one of those lightweight teams? We take a lot of time to bring people on board, but I think it pays dividends. Disclosure: Swain was an active Strava board advisor at the time of this interview. Mark Gainey, Strava cofounder (left), James Quarles, Strava CEO (middle), and Michael Horvath, Strava cofounder (right). So when the opportunity to host them arose, I jumped on it. Mark has been building successful companies for 20+ years. Murphys Law, I was home for two weeks after graduation, and I blew out my back on a rowing machine in Reno, in the middle of the desert. Its called the Biggest Little City in the World. I used to joke there are two cities there. A software business, or soccer balls, or Running a restaurant dont whether... Learned firsthand that Mark is one of those lightweight teams and I started Strava in 2009 spoke Guy. 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