Australian healthtech startup mPort signs $80 million deal with LA Fitness

Australian healthtech startup mPort has today announced the signing of an $80 million deal with American health club chain LA Fitness. As part of the deal, the AFR reports the fitness club has already installed eight mPods, which will, over seven years grow to reach six million of its members across 700 of its gyms.

Launched in 2013, mPort is the world’s first ever 3D body mapping pod, displaying a person’s visual body progress through the tracking of more than 200,000 data points relating to their physical health. mPod generates a 3D avatar to show and track physical changes including a user’s basal metabolism rate, BMI, and muscle and fat percentages.

The founders of mPort, Melody Shiue, Andy Wu, and Dipra Ray, wanted to create a more engaging way for people to track their physical health other than looking at the scales. The mPods are located in 20 Westfield shopping centres around Australia including Parramatta in NSW, Fountain Gate in Queensland, and Doncaster in Victoria. The mobile port enables users to scan their body and through an online application user’s can continue to record their progress from home.

“With around 20 percent of our customers already tracking their health achievements via mPort’s mobile website, we know Australians are searching for a way to know their body differently than by numbers,” said Ray. “With their 3D avatar, customers can track their health and physical progress visually, where and when they want to.”

The deal with LA Fitness comes just over a month after the startup launched its new app. Ray told Startup Daily upon launch that in the coming months mPort will be opening its services to more locations across Australia along with plans to open operations overseas.

This morning the AFR reported that this expansion had taken place in the US, with the Asian market next in mPort’s sights.

“At the moment we’re in the US and Australia, but we’ll be launching in Asia in the next six months, as we expect to sign a deal with one of the largest shopping centres in China,” Ray told the AFR.

To date mPort has raised close to $10 million and has generated more than 100,000 scans. These scans are free for users and if they wish to keep track of their progress they can subscribe to the mPort app for $29.50 a year.

mPort’s deal follows on from Sydney healthtech startup CancerAid, which last week raised a $1.25 million Series B round. The round, led by Clinton Capital Partners, has valued the startup at $4.25 million.

Another Australian healthtech startup moving into the US market is DoseMe, which last month secured $2.6 million in a Series A funding round. Leading the round were the founders of US company Results Physiotherapy, with the funding to help the startup commercialise in both Australia and the US.

Image: Dipra Ray. Source: Supplied.