Well ... they are making news
http://www.forbes.com/sites/darrenheitner/2014/03/19/instagram-marketing-helped-make-this-multi-million-dollar-nutritional-supplement-company/What is the definition of “fitness model?” It was a hotly discussed topic after FORBES published an article on the popular Paige Hathaway, including the Internet sensation as part of a rapidly expanding fitness model classification. The article also raised general awareness for a brand that Paige promotes – SHREDZ – a direct marketing nutritional supplement company. After some investigating it seems that the company Hathaway has partnered with may have an even more interesting story than the fitness model with over 700,000 Instagram followers.
Start with the fact that SHREDZ, founded by current CEO Arvin Lal, earned $90,000 in 2012 (the first year of its operation), $5 million gross revenue in 2013 and already topped $2.7 million through the middle of March in 2014. What makes those numbers more impressive is that Lal and his team have achieved such remarkable revenues without any outside invested capital, only 21 employees (most of them living in-house within the SHREDZ office, which is a converted apartment complex) and purely digital promotion.
Lal has captured the rapidly growing fitness space by going against the grain. He also has a message to those who question whether his endorser, Paige Hathaway is really a fitness model: stop being upset. ”Fitness used to be bodybuilding, but today fitness is impacting more people than ever,” said Lal to FORBES. ”Right now the word ‘fitness’ has peeked on Google. It’s about being healthy and in shape. Who’s to say the person on stage has better fitness or body than a person with a million Instagram follows? Paige is probably the largest female fitness model across the world. Marketing and being able to touch people off the stage is more important than being able to touch people on the stage.”
SHREDZ started in Lal’s parents’ basement and is now working with the likes of Paige Hathaway, Ainsley Rodriguez, Jay Sean and is in talks with a major athlete to begin endorsing the brand. Lal wants somebody else besides himself selling and representing his products, but is clear in pointing out that SHREDZ does not “sponsor” people. ”We create a partnership where we not only just saying ‘you’re sponsored’; we facilitate photo shoots, video shoots, publicity, etc.,” explained Lal. ”Paige [Hathaway] had 8,000 followers when she came on with us. We came together and created a bigger picture. I’m humbled by thousands of emails we get for sponsorship. If a person makes the right impression, we just know. You don’t need the highest follower count. We can make them a fitness celebrity.”
