Liteboxer enters at-home workout space

A new at-home boxing platform, Liteboxer, launched today. Liteboxer co-founder Todd Dagres joins Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi and Alexis Christoforous to discuss the platform and the at-home workout space.

Video transcript

BRIAN SOZZI: All right, watch out Peloton and Mirror. A new player with big name backers just entered the at-home workout game, boxing platform Liteboxer just launched today. And we're bringing it to you first here on Yahoo Finance. Liteboxer is amplifying the boxing bag experience, combining tech, fitness, music, and competition into one platform.

Joining us now is one of those big backers, Liteboxer co-founder Todd Dagres. Todd, good to see you here this morning. I was looking at the promotional video for this. As a workout enthusiast, I get it. It's cool. But why boxing?

TODD DAGRES: Boxing has been shown to be the most efficient way to get a workout. I mean, it's number one in terms of cardio and fat burn and caloric burn per minute of use.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOUROS: I want to talk about sort of the payment structure, if you will. So the platform's the same prices as Mirror, $1,495. But the $29 per month subscription is not required. So what's the incentive there? Why should users buy into the subscription?

TODD DAGRES: Well, if you buy into the subscription, you get trained by very elite boxing trainers. So you can still get value out of the platform without getting the premium service. But we think most people are going to want to keep the premium service. It comes with, as I said, expert training from world-renowned boxing trainers as well as premium music. So it's definitely a premium experience.

BRIAN SOZZI: Todd, what has attracted you to this market? Certainly a creative product like this. But also you are a backer in Mirror which just got sold to Lululemon. Why is this market so hot?

TODD DAGRES: Well, it started because I was boxing. I was boxing training. And I loved the workout. But then I tried to emulate it at home. And it just was a terrible experience. Punching that heavy bag was boring and tedious. So I said, how do I fix this.

I went looking for a product. It didn't exist. Up until today it didn't exist. And I decided I had to build a product that would provide the same kind of sparring and training experience that I had in the gym. So that's the epiphany that I had. And then in doing the research and iterating on the development determined that it was a big market opportunity.

This is well before COVID. It's even early in the years of Peloton. I just felt that there were millions of people that could use this product, high intensity training. It's enjoyable. You get sucked in. In addition to working out your body, it works out your mind. And I needed that challenge to get me to go and workout on a regular basis.

BRIAN SOZZI: Todd, you're no stranger to investing in new businesses. What do you think about, as you take a step back for a second, what you think about the valuations in some of these at-home workout companies? Peloton has just gone through the roof. Mirror sold at a premium valuation. Do you think it has become too frothy?

TODD DAGRES: Well, I think there's a huge opportunity. I mean, people aren't going to be flocking back to gyms anytime soon. There's billions of dollars at play out there in the market. The availability of these new products and the fact that people are now having to exercise in their homes is going to create a massive shift of spending to the home from what was gyms before.

So I think the opportunity is significant. As to the valuations, I like them. But you know, it's hard to tell if they can be sustained. I don't know. I just think that if you have a product with a sustainable competitive advantage in the fitness market, you have a massive opportunity.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOUROS: And you like to seize the moment and seize that opportunity because you've backed some big name tech companies that are doing quite well, Slack, Oculus, PostMates. Which tech company, if any, inspired you with Liteboxer?

TODD DAGRES: We were kind of inspired by Tesla. I mean, I wish I had invested in Tesla. We didn't. Actually, I did. I have a car. But anyway, we're inspired by the merger of technology and design of Tesla. So we took some inspiration from that.

We also took some inspiration from Peloton. They convinced people to put a hunk of metal in their living room next to their picture window. So that was also inspirational.

BRIAN SOZZI: Todd, is one of the end games here that there will be consolidation in this space? Mirror going to Lululemon, that acquisition makes sense. But do you think there'll be just one dominant company. Like, listen, does the Peloton come out here and make you an offer for Liteboxer in a year?

TODD DAGRES: I don't know about that. I don't think there's going to be one dominant company in the space. For example, most of the action right now is in moving your legs in a repetitious manner for 45 minutes. There's a lot there's a lot of other opportunity.

We get you to move your arms for 15 to 45. Minutes it's a different part of the body. We activate the entire body. That's what boxing training does. It's a full body workout. So we try to treat the whole body.

And by the way, don't forget about the mind. If you can occupy the mind, the body will follow. And people who exercise longer and harder get more out of it. That's what this is all. What's the benefit you get for a moment of time and for a dollar?

BRIAN SOZZI: Let's leave it there. Liteboxer co-founder Todd Dagres, good luck on this venture. I definitely have to give it a try, workout freak, definitely worth a try for me.

TODD DAGRES: Also a great stress reliever in this environment, trust me.

BRIAN SOZZI: Yeah, I can use that. I know where you're coming from. All right, thanks so much. We'll talk to you soon.

TODD DAGRES: Great, thank you.