Cancel interest

GymBeam is the leading sports and lifestyle e-commerce platform in Central Europe. The company develops and sells sports nutrition supplements, foods with high nutritional value, complete training equipment and sportswear, including its own premium brand STRIX. 

GymBeam directly serves already millions of customers in 14 European countries via a sophisticated e-commerce platform (Direct-to-Consumer). The loyal customer community has access to digital content from the world of fitness through the GymBeam platform, in addition to quality and affordable products. Over the last 2 years, GymBeam has achieved growth of over 170% and high profitability.  It has become the fastest growing fitness brand in Central and Eastern Europe.

In 2019, the company raised EUR 6 million in growth capital from Crowdberry investors and the investment fund Slovak Investment Holding. The brand was able to achieve a number of significant milestones and was thus able to continue its expansion. The company has entered 6 new markets, acquired nearly a million new customers and launched hundreds of new products, including its own premium apparel brand STRIX, automated its central warehouse, professionalized management in Košice and Prague, and opened two fitness hubs in Hungary and the Czech Republic.

This exceptional investment opportunity in GymBeam is based on the purchase of a business share from a co-investor.

Gymbeam.sk l Dobrá energia pre každý šport

Due to the high investor interest during the entry of Slovak Investment Holding, the investment documentation allowed for an investor buyout option at the conversion market value. This allowed original and new investors to enter an extremely successful and profitable company prior to its entry into the Western European markets. The €4.38 million investment in the form of a buyout of shares from the minority co-owners - Oliver Juhász and institutional co-investor Slovak Investment Holding, who provided a €2 million growth investment to the company in 2019 alongside Crowdberry's investors.

Revenues for January-September 2022: €62,6 million (+61% Y/Y) with an EBITDA margin 6%.

Revenues in Q3 2022: €21,7 million (+69% Y/Y) with an EBITDA margin 6%.

Expected growth of +48% in 2022 (based on budget).

Revenues in 2021: €52,9 million (+65% annual growth) with an EBITDA margin of 7%.

A broad portfolio of more than 6,000 sports nutrition, food, apparel and supplement products.

Robust e-commerce infrastructure with direct sales to more than 6 million customers in 14 countries in local currency and language.

Delivery to major markets (SK, CZ, HU and RO) within 24 hours. ~6 ths. packages dispatched daily. 

Growing loyal customer base – approx. 40% of customers make at least 2 purchases within 6 months.

Rising average shopping basket value (+13% y/y in 2021).

Opening our own showroom in the centre of Prague to build a fitness community and gain new loyal customers.

Company prepares to enter Western European markets with a vision to go public after 2025.


GymBeam's value lies mainly in the strong sales of own-brand products directly to its customers –  with whom it maintains a long-term relationship. This ensures relatively high sales margins in contrast to the classic wholesale sales of other manufacturers. Sales of own products account for the majority of total sales (~86% of gross margin) and is supported by rapid new product launches, regular interaction with customers through multilingual online as well as offline marketing.

At the core of GymBeam's successful business model is the ability to flexibly and profitably meet the demand for sports nutrition and supplements based on a large amount of analytical data from customers and the growing GymBeam fitness community.

Opportunity

GymBeam operates in the market as an integrated fitness and lifestyle e-commerce platform consisting of quality and affordable products, digital content and a community of active customers. It offers customers – active athletes as well as regular people with a healthy lifestyle –  nutritional supplements to improve sports performance and recovery, food with high nutritional value, complete training equipment as well as a wide selection of sportswear.

The company's portfolio consists of more than 6,000 own-brand products, such as GymBeam, VanaVita, BeastPink, STRIX, and more than 100 foreign brands. Sales of own products generate up to 86% of the total gross margin.

Product

STRIX 🖤 | GYMBEAM

Regular interaction with the customer when selling and sharing digital content feeds the GymBeam platform with a rich volume of data. The company further uses it to actively adapt marketing campaigns and develop new products to meet customer needs as much as possible. GymBeam is therefore an integrated and technology-driven e-commerce platform with a profitable business model and high customer retention rates. 

The company's location in Košice is a great strategic advantage with regard to target markets. GymBeam is able to deliver as early as the next day from Prague to Sofia or Bucharest. This customer experience is one of the key points of the company's success, which it is further improving to "same day delivery" (same day delivery) for selected agglomerations with large customer populations. GymBeam also builds its local teams on this principle – without costly country offices, but with local leaders in the local language who build a country team around them. In this way, the company gradually improves its position in the market - not only through marketing activities, but above all in terms of customer care.

In order to continue building a wide fitness community and attracting new loyal customers, GymBeam is opening its first fitness showroom in the centre of Prague. In addition to presenting and selling GymBeam products, the showroom will serve as a community space where all fitness and healthy lifestyle fans can come together.

Company founder Dalibor Cicman created his first e-shop back in 2004, when he was programming websites for customers alongside school. In 2014, he gradually exited nine e-shops and focused on the one with the most potential - GymBeam, to which he allocated a team of collaborators with whom he has been working for a long time. Even before GymBeam was founded, he worked with his wife, GymBeam co-founder and marketing director Maria Cicman. From their own resources, they have built the most ambitious fitness platform in the region, attracting the best talent in the Eastern Slovakia region. 

Over time, the team in Kosice has grown with several new people. Sales department has been led by Richard Parev for 6 years, 6 years ago Robert Čižmár also joined. Peter Urban has been in charge of IT for the last three years. Last year, Štefan Maťovka joined the team and is in charge of the finance department. The Prague team has been strengthened in recent years by Peter Topor, former COO of Footshop, Anežka Svobodová, who headed business development at Sens, and Tomaš Bzirsky, former marketing director of Rohlik.cz.   

Team

The conclusion of the user data analysis was that the sports nutrition market is changing. Trends are not set by manufacturers, but by retailers who are right next to the customer – in a way they "own" the customer. Based on trends and customer preferences, GymBeam started to build its own brands, which today account for the majority of turnover. It creates products within these ranges very flexibly depending on customer requirements and global trends. In certain cases, the company is able to launch a product within seven days of deciding to create it because it is not burdened by cumbersome production management and hierarchical structures.

GymBeam is introducing digitalisation into an industry that for decades has been dominated by large offline players or small brick-and-mortar outlets near fitness centres and housing estates. By reacting quickly to trends from market and customer data analysis, the company manages to hold a high percentage of repeat sales and new customer acquisitions. It uses the strong community nature of its audience to do this, which spreads the brand's reputation well.

Healthy eating and functional food are becoming more and more widely known and new consumer groups are entering the market. Fitness nutrition is no longer only sought after by a narrow group of "bodybuilders" – but by other circles of active athletes and consumers focused on a healthy lifestyle. The European fitness nutrition market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approx. +8.4% until 2027 [3]. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has paradoxically had a positive impact on the global sports nutrition market – people have generally become more health conscious – buying more nutritional supplements.

GymBeam is expanding into markets with low digital penetration rates and high growth potential. The target region of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) is currently the youngest but also the fastest growing e-commerce market in Europe. The ratio of e-commerce to total GDP is significantly smaller compared to Western Europe (3% vs. 5.2%), while volume growth is higher (28% vs. 4%) [1]. Meanwhile, GymBeam also operates in the digitally underserved fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) market, which has seen unprecedented growth globally during the pandemic [2]:

Online grocery shopping in 2020: +54% (remaining e-commerce +12%).

By 2025, online purchases of global FMCG will account for up to 10%.

Advances in technology and the development of virtual space, combined with the advent of the pandemic, have significantly amplified the rise of DTC sales.

Market and competition

GymBeam's success has been driven by the arrival of the fitness and fitness boom in the CEE/Balkan region, which represents a limited target group. Until the arrival of the pandemic (COVID-19), there was a lingering risk that this market was more saturated than expected and the planned expansion of the functional foods segment would not be accepted by the broader masses. GymBeam's strategic orientation geographically will increasingly be towards the west, the DACH region (especially Germany) also using marketplaces ("marketpalces" e.g. Amazon or Otto) as a very popular sales channel in Western Europe.

GymBeam is actively focused on brand and business development activities in the wider functional food and health food market, with a loyal and dedicated base of existing customers within which it uses its brand to market new products. In doing so, it is also expanding into other international markets in Central, Eastern and Western Europe, which represent significant growth potential both in terms of competitive superiority (brand, integrated platform, efficient cost base) and market potential. Clear size and market leadership allow for more flexible price competition and thus the ability to withstand longer-term market expansion and consolidation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a positive impact on the global sports nutrition market – people are buying more nutritional supplements.

Purchasing power risk lies in the possibility of reduced demand for GymBeam's higher value-added products, such as the premium apparel brand STRIX.

The risk is closely linked to the potential stagnation or decline in real incomes of the population in the countries of operation as a result of negative economic developments (macro factors: higher inflation and weak economic growth).

GymBeam's customer base is highly dedicated and shows demand for desirable products with high retention rates. In addition, GymBeam has a diversified product portfolio. The offering includes multiple more affordable and premium variations of similar products in order to maximize the potential customer base. The company's average shopping basket (AOV) continues to grow over time. The purchasing power of customers from Germany and other Western EU countries, where GymBeam will target its expansion, is relatively high.

There is a possibility of lower penetration of the GymBeam brand in new markets – especially in the context of expansion in Western Europe. Customers will prefer "Western" brands sold through distributors or products from another fitness platform.

By offering an integrated platform, attractive branding and affordable prices, GymBeam has already succeeded in international expansion (e.g. Bulgaria) and also has a strong competitive background in existing markets. As GymBeam has an extensive corporate infrastructure (economies of scale), it already acts as a strong player when entering a new market. It can quickly secure supply contracts with large volumes and, through a mature marketing infrastructure, can reach a wide customer base much faster than local competitors. When expanding into Western Europe, GymBeam will be putting significant effort into customer service in order to build a reputation for credibility in that market.

Scalability and internationalisation risk [MEDIUM] GymBeam's business plan foresees rapid expansion into foreign markets, including non-EU countries (e.g. Ukraine – where GymBeam continues to sell despite the ongoing hot military conflict). Political, legal, logistical and other risks may slow business expansion in these countries.

By investing heavily in human resources and localised marketing (300+ employees, 14 nationalities in total), the company ensures the smoothest possible entry into new markets. By entering several foreign markets, it diversifies its geographical portfolio. By maintaining a strong and profitable home sales base (mainly SK, CZ, HU and RO), the company is able to support expanding, initially loss-making foreign operations. In order to deepen the relationship with customers beyond the online space towards a more physical presence, a GymBeam fitness showroom will be opened during 2022 in Prague, CZ, where fitness community events will be organized in addition to 

Risks

Purchase of a 6.6% business share from co-investor Slovak Investment Holding and minority shareholder Oliver Juhász for a total value of € 4.38 million.

Investment purpose

czechcrunch.cz: Slovenský e-shop GymBeam rychle roste a poprvé utržil přes miliardu. Do 5 let vstoupíme na burzu, říká Dalibor Cicman

podnikatelskecentrum.sk: E-shop GymBeam extrémne rástol aj počas korona krízy. V roku 2020 presiahol tržby 43 miliónov eur

forbes.sk: Slovenský fitness eshop GymBeam rastie a expanduje. Ich výrobky si ľudia kupujú aj v Nemecku

trend.sk: Spievajúci kulturista v trenkách. GymBeam pobúril ľudí, no má o 10 percent viac zákazníkov

trend.sk: Proteínový kráľ z Košíc ovládol kus Európy. Vitamín D mali svojho času jediní na trhu

forbes.sk: Tržby mu v čase korony rastú dvojnásobne. GymBeam získal najväčšiu investíciu v e-commerce

dennikn.sk: Košičan vládne stredoeurópskym e-shopom s fitnes potrebami, cez koronu vystrelil na 40-miliónové tržby

strategie.hnonline.sk: GymBeam sa prvýkrát predstavuje v televíznom spote

trend.sk: GymBeam vysoko rástol aj počas koronakrízy. V roku 2020 jeho tržby presiahli 43 miliónov eur

mediahub.sk: GymBeam sa prvýkrát predstaví v televíznom spote. V novej kampani prináša dobrú energiu pre každý šport

hnonline.sk: Vyspelá e-commerce je v čase pandémie benefitom

Media

GymBeam 2022

I agree that Crowdberry a.s. may process my personal information (inserted email) for sending newsletters containing updates and news on investment opportunities, and I confirm that I have read the information concerning the processing of personal information and that I have understood it. I also acknowledge that I may revoke my consent at any time by clicking on the link in any newsletter that is marked “unsubscribe” or in the personal profile on the Crowdberry platform.

You must register to sign up for the event.

You must verify your account to sign up for the event

To view this section, please verify your account

You must register before you can access the recording

You must verify your account before you can access the recording

We have just sent you a confirmation email with details about the event. If you wish to cancel your registration, please follow the instructions within the email.

Thank you for signing up!

Sign up for the event

You have already signed up for this event. We are looking forward to seeing you

Kamil Lovas

GymBeam

Investment Opportunity GymBeam | Crowdberry

Central European e-commerce champion with sports nutrition is heading to Western Europe.

Crowdberry investors have already invested over €65 million in over 40 companies.

Successfully funded companies

In order to ask a question, you need to sign up first

To ask a question, please verify your account first

You can listen to the details of this investment opportunity. The text was read by a neural voice.

Do you have a question about this opportunity? Leave your number and we will get back to you.

Request a call

Content

This documentation will be available after confirmation of the investment

Indication of interest is non-binding. More information

You need to complete the investor questionnaire before investing.

Your identity must be verified before investing.

You need to verify your account in order to invest

It is necessary to show interest in displaying investment documents

Expressing your non-binding interest to invest has unlocked the investment documentation for you to study. Please note that, in the meantime, the opportunity could reach the goal amount and close. Please confirm your interest to secure your opportunity to be a co-owner of the project.

Investment Milestones

Sign up to access public investment documents as well as events

Non-binding, to access investment documentation

Confirm the amount of your investment, upload the documents and fill out your data

We prepare the contracts and send them to you by email for signing.

Transfer the money and become investor in the company

Investment manager

This opportunity has no documents of this type

To view this section, please verify your account.

To view this section, please first indicate your interest.

You must register to view public documents

You must verify your account to view public documents