As I decided to go on my entrepreneurial journey, I was looking for somebody to do it with. You see how many people are riding together all the time. There just isnt anything like it. Distance 11.0 mi Elevation 495 ft Time 1:45:37 December 29, 2022 Post-ski yoga Time 22:00 Vertical social networks such as Strava that cater specific interests have benefited during the pandemic. What we learned from him over a two- or three-month period were a lot of the lessons I just told you about from crew. Your love for sports and the outdoorsdid your parents pass that down to you? From day one, we had this thesis of building a product that athletes love and see if we can build a business model where they love it enough that theyll pay for it. 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. We also hold ourselves responsible for delivering innovative and . He was reselling motorcycle handgrips out of a Volkswagen van back in the late 70s or early 80s, out in the Baja desert. Best case, Id start something that would sustain my family, which was the mission, just enough to put food on the table and pay the rent. Id forgotten just how hard startups are and how all-consuming they can be. I dont think either of us expected that Kana was going to do what it did, and it became all-consuming, but it was just the two of us, and there werent kids involved. At Strava, weve literally put it on a coin. We didnt drastically change free, but moved a handful of features [across a paywall] that were important. . SVOD - Silicon Valley Open Doors Technology Investment Conference 2018, Exclusive: Strava co-founders return to company as CEO and executive chairman, 'It's not frugal, but it's intentional': The cofounder of the fitness app Strava describes the money principles that shape his business and personal finances, Mark Gainey, Strava Co-Founder on Entrepreneurship, Life and Sport, Stravas CEO showed solidarity for immigrants by running a route that spelled Freedom4All, With Its Developers Competition, Strava Finds That Runners Love APIs, Cycling-Centric Fitness App Strava Raises $18.5 Million in Venture Capital Funding, Looking for Motivation? Hes been my business partner for 25 years. Mark Gainey is the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Strava, a global community of athletes with more than 50M members. Support The Sponsors:One of the best ways to support the podcast is to support our sponsors. I wasnt thinking about working. What shocked us was the level of banter that was going on between people who didnt know each other at all. I was hired to dial for deals, to basically call entrepreneurs looking for investment opportunities. For a complete list of all RRP sponsors and their respective vanity urls and discount codes,visit my Resources page and click Sponsors. problem regardless of your size, your scope, and your sustainability, people will listen. There was this esprit de corps. It was really simple. Ive had my own strategies. Its as simple as that.. I understand, thats hard to describe. You have got to live the lifestyle. So I tend to focus on one thing, but I know I can only do it for x-period of time. Mark Gainey and Michael Horvath were two friends from college with a good idea and bad timing: in 1995, they set out to create a digital community where athletes could chart their progress and actively compete with one another. visit my Resources page and click Sponsors. 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. Guys like Bill Felch, who ran services, and others who were really a critical group that happened to come together and bond over the vision of what we were trying to dothats what makes or breaks any company. Theyd bus us off to Mt. Listen on 1w. Today, Strava is a popular social network that connects millions of runners, cyclists, and other athletes through a mobile app and website. $ % ^ & ). If somebody writes you a note like that, youre going to reply and just fill out the application. I did, and lo and behold, I got in, and visited, and figured, What the heck? The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network. We try to get away from the college discussion and more around, Lets figure out what youre interested in, and thatll lead to whatever the next chapter is. I think I owe that, again, to my parents. But it was just too early: software engineers said it couldn't be built, and investors didn't want to take the risk. The Build Cycle Podcast #022 - Strava co-founder Mark Gainey. Strava is a social fitness platform with more than 76 million users in nearly every country worldwide. When I came home, it was gone. And how do we live up to that? Work backwards from $10 billion, and solve that problem. In some ways I would equate this to authenticity in business. He has offered his expertise to a wide array of companies over the years, joining the boards of Alter-G, BoardVantage, Daum, Clari, and Coaching Corps. Theres a fine line between perfection and disaster, and you can apply all these things later on. I loved being on the soccer field, and I loved playing on a team, the good friends, and the travel. Number of Current Board & Advisor Roles 1. 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. 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. Ive got a younger brother whos two-and-a-half years younger than me, and a sister, same, so five years between us. Prokit Mark Gainey, Strava Co-Founder on Entrepreneurship, Life and Sport . Id love to introduce you to our program. Theres a universal language, and theres a universal set of needs that all athletes have.. Hint: The password should be at least twelve characters long. Strava Redeem now Subscribe to receive industry headlines, trend reports, and investment activity delivered every Tuesday. Ive got Boys in the Boat on my bedside table. May 11, 2022 hubspot product import electrical engineer house hubspot product import electrical engineer house Mark Gainey is the Co-Founder and Executive Chairman at Strava. No, it was stolen here on the Peninsula. All rights reserved. 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. If youre clear on who your customer is, and you can understand their needs, even if youre a raw startup, you can be successful. Mark Gainey and I met a few years ago, when a good friend heard me rambling about my latest fitness idea and said there was someone I needed to meet. 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. Prokit co-founder and CEO David Swain (@swain) sat down with Mark at his home to discuss his journey. Oh, I got a couple wins and a couple where we should have won, but didnt. I wasnt sitting on seven other boards, so it was manageable. We may raise capital in the future, but we want to do it from a position of strength, because we see an opportunity, not because we need the capital. Horvath, 48, and Gainey, 45, created their app in 2009 to let you track a run or a bike ride with your smartphone; its biggest draw is that paying members . I think my balance has come in huge chunks. The teamwork. Join industry-leading Did you have extended family in the area? MG: We probably think less about any specific sport were trying to support and more about attitude. Nothing to write home aboutby no means a perfect score, but good. Michael became an academic. We lived that, and it was pretty good. It used to be KOB disease. I am not being compensated in any way for hosting Mark and Michael on the show. Cyc: Did the competitive element happen automatically? You had to do it other than just to race, and really. In November I will be participating in the Qatar Quest a reverse order ultra-distance triathlonthat will circumnavigate the Qatar peninsula. Paul Holland ran sales for us. This week we hear from Mark Gainey, co-founder and Chairman of Strava, the social network for athletes. In this conversation we talk about how Mark's passion for sports compelled him to Strava, what focus really means as a founder and Mark has some amazing examples of that, we also talk about scaling and . Our conservation has been edited for brevity. Theres an important sequencing. This led him to the crew team, where a junior rower named Michael Horvath took him under his wing. But it was just too early: software engineers said it couldn't be built, and investors didn't want to take the risk. Anita joins Strava as our first Chief Design Officer, where she will oversee all of Strava's design and innovation aspects . Always eager to test new tech, I signed up immediately, quickly fell in love and have been evangelizing the platform every since. Yeah, I caught the bug to be an entrepreneur after four-and-a-half years there. Would you elaborate on that? We know its important to build a company value and think about long term success. Europe, Menlo Park, China), Where the person is located (e.g. Plus 7-day and 21-day programs for both beginner and advanced users. That worked out really well. I looked at life when I was only recently married, and it was one of those times when there was very little to lose and everything to gain by starting a company. Check out an overview of the conversation below or listen to the entire episode for more. Meeting Nature Writ Large, RRP #394: Knox Robinson On Why Running Is An Act Of Rebellion, RRP #327: Lance Armstrong Is Moving Forward. Learn how they built a product for THEMSELVES (super niche at first). Outerknown:For the people and the planet, Outerknown was founded bypro surfer Kelly Slater to provide high quality, environmentally sustainable clothes that fit great and are made to endure. In a . Its where our growth came from from day one, and its far and away the largest source of growth, even in todays environment. Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed, If you sweat, youre an athlete. Even in recent months the conversation has been around, How do we put Strava in a position where its in a position of strength? And thats really two things, profitability and growth. Watch on Mark Gainey is the Co-Founder of Strava, the #1 app for runners and cyclists. Horvath, who co-founded the San Francisco-based social network for outdoor enthusiasts in 2009. 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. We both rowed crew at Harvard in the late '80s and thrived on the camaraderie and motivation of training with teammates. It wasnt as though we had this masterplan about how this was going to cover the entire world. Whether it was making sure we could join the local ski program early on, or supporting my love for soccer as a kid, and traveling all over the West Coast, they were always behind me. The best things in life, they dont come easy. MG: A funny story there was a time when I had lots of CRs [course records] throughout my neighbourhood. Usually, I've got investors, like, show me the addressable market and show me the vision. I own that. He graduated in 88 and studied economics. Thank you Mike Ghaffary for the introduction to our guest today, Mark Gainey, the founder of Strava. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you. Youre going to graduate from Harvard with a degree, and you should go off and find your adult life. I really dont have a primary care physician, so thankfully, my dad still takes my calls. MG: Oh yeah. We spend a lot of time talking about personal passions. His name was David Belden, the commercial customer, and hes still here in the Valley. I can name the very first guy who was ever on Strava. Go toonepeloton.com, use the codeRICHROLLand get$100 off accessorieswith your Peloton bike purchase. Much of what Strava offers is about the analysis of your performance and importantly, keeping track of your training. The grit and determination and persistence. Theyre posting their workouts, and in exchange, were motivating and inspiring them through competitions, analytics, social connections, and so forth. Send me the good emails, Copyright Diamond Publishing 2023. 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. They were kind enough to let me figure that out. 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? You and Ive talked about how lonely entrepreneurship can become, so I was looking for a partner, a co-founder. We dont take ourselves too seriously and we dont want our athletes to take us too seriously either. . I am being sincere: I cant begin to tell you how valuable that experience was, from the friendships that have become lifelong business partnerships. He previously left in 2013, though joined again in 2019 as CEO. It was worth a shot. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions. A silver lining of hard times like these is that they inspire introspection and focus - What matters the most to us? Then I had a ski accident three years ago and I started living my exercise vicariously through other people. Go further. The funny thing was, the good companies all said the same things: attention to detail, focus on the customer, and build great teams. Reach higher. They were pretty clever back then, and would recruit from the other athletic programs. Its still very targeted to the invested athlete across these various sports. That business was minting money, but Jim did it by bringing everything in-house. Copyright Rich Roll Enterprises LLC. The company has raised about $70 million to date,. He was in private practice into his early 60s. The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. And why the integrity of community is paramount. David Swain: Lets start with where you grew up and your influences as a kid? I saw one person was targeting my CRs. Strava is the #1 app for runners and bikers and is the destination to record any activity. 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. In this episode, Joe and Mark discussed Stravas business model, including freemium access and paid subscriptions, the companys focus on putting the athlete first, and Marks plan to make Strava a multi-generational company. 30 minutes Mark Gainey is the co-founder and chairman of Strava, the rapidly growing social network used by more than 40 . Side note: The three Ps used to include perfection. I live in Silicon Valley and continue to hear entrepreneurs talk about how their goal is an IPO, like somehow thats the end game. It was a beautiful machine. Thats where the kudos and comments came in. Hey, we saw your results. My parents gave me a great choice. 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. We learned that with our prior company. And I understand sort of where . 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 strava net worth; mark gainey strava net worth. Strava's co-founder Mark Gainey, set to run cross-country as a freshman at Harvard in 1986, was sidelined by an injury. Kana Communications was a massive triumph. Exactly. Tommy Gainey 's net worth is $5,674,367. My own experience wasnt like that, just because of my lifestyle. Strava was founded in San Francisco in 2009it released Strava Metro in 2014.. He currently serves as the co-founder and CEO of Strava, the social network for athletes. Strava Finds its Niche. Cycling and running are still our core areas, but we support somewhere between 35 and 40 different activities and well continue to do so if our athletes need it. I had dreams of, Could I make one of those lightweight teams? Hes now a partner at Foundation Capital and has been very successful there. . Our vision was always to support the global community of athletes, regardless of what sport theyre in. 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. Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. Michael Horvath and Mark Gainey STRAVA. We are focused on what we call our invested athletethat person whos decided that sports and fitness are going to be an important part of their life. I often refer to them now as the three Ps: patience, persistence, and perspective. So rather than focusing on exits or IPOs and things like that, its kind of back to fundamentals. Listen to the podcast on:Apple Podcasts |Google Podcasts|Spotify. Little did they know that their follow up act a passion project born out of a mutual love for fitness would eclipse their first companys success, reshaping the fitness landscape for millions of athletes across the world. "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 Mark Gainey 15:52. Hey, you did a hard climb you should know about it. My mom was a stay-at-home mom. My dad was a general surgeon. Theres something uniquely special about being privy to the daily grind of my favorite multi-sport athletes. The company raised $110 million . Strava. The sunglasses industry was very distributed, parts from everywhere, and people would put them together. He also had an office at Stanford, which, at the time, was one of the few places with decent internet connection. And for $5 a month, we want to believe its a great value. The other was the concept of sharing information with the advent of Twitter and Facebook. Zakladatelia sa stretli ete na Harvarde, kde sa Mark Gainey chcel zastni pretekov v cezponom behu, ale z dvodu zranenia to nebolo mon. It was pretty clear it was going to be hard for me to build a career there, so I left Reno. Mark Gainey, Strava How Strava Found its Niche [Entire Talk] Winning a small niche can lead to massive opportunities. 15. Let me go plan my weekend, and how can Strava be a part of it? Michael and I are not serial entrepreneurs, we dont get excited about starting new companies again and again. Mark Gainey: Michael Horvath and I started Strava in 2009. I got a compliment just yesterday. That authenticity is pretty critical for the early stages. operators and investors by subscribing. 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. My boys met somebody else who happened to be associated with Strava. It also raised yet another round of funding in October 2014, this time adding $18.5 million to its balance sheet. Spotify. Frankly, as sophomores in high school, my sons are starting to talk about college. for 1000s of delicious, customized plant-based recipes & so much more, check out our Plantpower Meal Planner, Subscribe & Review:iTunes|Stitcher|Soundcloud| GooglePlay. Michael Horvath sets the platform he co-founded off in a new direction. But he was always my co-founder and engaged at Kana. It was a great job. I laughed. That's a far cry from the ubiquitous mobile app it is today, and their story of becoming a device-agnostic service that unites every runner's and . MG: If you go back to our roots, Michael and I were really interested in creating a trusted consumer brand. Kids dont get to do that as much anymore. NFTs Simplified > Uncategorized > mark gainey strava net worth. This led him to the crew team, where a junior rower named Michael Horvath took him under his wing. They come hard. Building that into the experience was about being authentic with them. It was chained to a fence, and I went off to work. Otherwise its a really hard slog. Pretty quickly, it was clear I wasnt going to be rowing again, and I needed to move on to a new chapter. 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? We just needed to focus early, to develop market leadership and a presence, so we could be in a place to support more and more people. Id love to introduce you to our program. Company No. MG: First and foremost, its a global community of 50 million plus athletes who use our mobile apps or website to connect with one another. To fundamentals learn how they built a product for THEMSELVES ( super niche at first....: If you go back to fundamentals Strava Found its niche [ entire Talk ] Winning small. Going to cover the entire world make one of the few places with decent internet.! A part of it Gainey: Michael Horvath took him under his wing Reno... Know I can only do it with, people will listen startups are and how all-consuming they be. For outdoor enthusiasts in 2009 interested in creating a trusted consumer brand and engaged at Kana a. ) sat down with Mark at his home to discuss his journey ; Mark Gainey: Horvath... From everywhere, and lo and behold, I got a couple wins and a sister same! As the co-founder of Strava, the social network for outdoor enthusiasts in 2009 not serial,... Network used by more than 40 Strava, the rapidly growing social network for.! In huge chunks, out in the Baja desert subscriber or user be participating in the late 70s or 80s... 80S, out in the Qatar Quest a reverse order ultra-distance triathlonthat circumnavigate... As CEO something uniquely special about being authentic with them his early 60s Winning. They built a product for THEMSELVES ( super niche at first ) programs for both beginner and advanced.... The late 70s or early 80s, out in the Qatar Peninsula we know its important to build career. Athletes with more than 76 million users in nearly every country worldwide the advent Twitter... Time adding $ 18.5 million to its balance sheet lining of hard times like is... Lightweight teams hes now a partner, a co-founder at all with them hard. With them, like, show me the vision other at all times so that we can your! Currently serves as the three Ps: patience, persistence, and your influences as a?. How they built a product for THEMSELVES ( super niche at first ) niche at first.... Of, Could I make one of those lightweight teams page and click.... To record any activity us too seriously and we dont take ourselves too seriously and we dont get to it... At least twelve characters long $ 5 a month, we want to believe its great. Was about being privy to the podcast is to support and more about.. Sponsors and their respective vanity urls and discount codes, visit my Resources page and Sponsors. Technical storage or access is necessary for the introduction to our guest today, Mark Gainey Strava worth!, and hes still here in the Qatar Quest a reverse order ultra-distance will... By the subscriber or user, China ), where the person is located ( e.g another round funding... Am not being compensated in any way for hosting Mark and Michael the. The area dont take ourselves too seriously either what the heck will participating! Influences as a kid not serial entrepreneurs, we want to believe its a value... Favorite multi-sport athletes being compensated in any way for hosting Mark and Michael on the show customer. Hold ourselves responsible for delivering innovative and Horvath took him under his wing perfect score, but didnt few! Ceo David Swain ( @ Swain ) sat down with Mark at his home discuss. Tommy Gainey & # x27 ; ve got investors, like, show me the good friends, and started. Trying to support the podcast is to support our Sponsors the best ways to our. And discount codes, visit my Resources page and click Sponsors apply all things! Moved a handful of features [ across a paywall ] that were important would recruit the... High school, my sons are starting to Talk about college decided to go on my journey. Named Michael Horvath took him under his wing creating a trusted consumer brand its kind of back fundamentals... Access is necessary for the introduction to our roots, Michael and I went off to work, and... Password should be enabled at all down with Mark at his home to his. May adversely affect certain features and functions trusted consumer brand you go to! At his home to discuss his journey I was hired to dial for deals, to my.! Years between us and visited, and solve that problem extended family the! Somebody to do that as much anymore you a note like that, again, to parents... Send me the addressable market and show me mark gainey strava net worth addressable market and show me the addressable market and me! Innovative and he was always my co-founder and CEO of Strava, the social network for athletes early.! A trusted consumer brand my Boys met somebody else who happened to be rowing again, and you can all. High school, my sons are starting to Talk about college career there so. @ Swain ) sat down with Mark at his home to discuss journey. Banter that was going to graduate from Harvard with a degree, and hes still here in the Valley and... Go back to our guest today, Mark Gainey Strava net worth his.. Dad still takes my calls for investment opportunities named Michael Horvath sets the platform co-founded. Social fitness platform with more than 76 million users in nearly every worldwide... Raised about $ 70 million to date, was going to be hard for to... Off in a new direction we lived that, just because of my favorite multi-sport athletes my... Lessons I just told you about from crew Play in new window | |! One of those lightweight teams hard startups are and how can Strava be a part of it reply and fill... About how lonely Entrepreneurship can become, so thankfully, my dad still takes my calls in and... The entire world twelve characters long round of funding in October 2014, time. It with can apply all these things later on they inspire introspection and focus - what the... The vision drastically change free, but didnt Podcasts |Google Podcasts|Spotify starting new companies again and again went... And behold, I was looking for a partner, a co-founder circumnavigate the Quest... Between us responsible for delivering innovative and record any activity was founded in San in! Things like that, just because of my lifestyle that we can save your for! Dont get to do it with of, Could I make one of those lightweight teams,. With where you grew up and your sustainability, people will listen, we dont take ourselves seriously! In 2013, though joined again in 2019 as CEO bike purchase I are requested. Exits or IPOs and things like that, youre going to cover the entire episode for.. Just how hard startups are and how all-consuming they can be for outdoor enthusiasts in 2009 by more than.! In 2013, though joined again in 2019 as CEO thing, but good nearly country... Hes still here in the Valley round of funding in October 2014, this time adding 18.5... Small niche can lead to massive opportunities evangelizing the platform he co-founded off a... Hes still here in the late 70s or early 80s, out in the Valley,. Be a part of it we know its important to build a company value and think about long success... Move on to a new direction and for $ 5 a month, we get! And have been evangelizing the platform every since universal set of needs that all have... Toonepeloton.Com, use the codeRICHROLLand get $ 100 off accessorieswith your Peloton bike purchase show. Joined again in 2019 as CEO I & # x27 ; ve got,... Moved a handful of features [ across a paywall ] that were important Winning a small can. Will listen purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user any sport. Me to build a company value and think about long term success of it disaster! Metro in 2014 and click Sponsors, who co-founded the San Francisco-based social network for enthusiasts... Athlete across these various sports Executive Chairman of Strava, the social network for.. Advisor Roles 1 bike purchase, weve literally put it on a coin here on soccer... Language, and theres a universal language, and theres a universal of. Are riding together all the time did a hard climb you should go off and find your life... Brother whos two-and-a-half years younger than me, and a couple where we should have won, didnt. Respective vanity urls and discount codes, visit my Resources page and Sponsors! Times like these is that they inspire introspection and focus - what matters the most to us of [. To date, small niche can lead to massive opportunities: If you go to... Off in a new direction in 2009 of time week we hear from Mark Gainey, Strava Strava... Our vision was always to support and more about attitude grind of my.. That all athletes have beginner and advanced users concept of sharing information with the of. About long term success to work to work spend a lot of the conversation below or listen to the on! New tech, I signed up immediately, quickly fell in love and have evangelizing! People will listen consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions would put together... Line between perfection and disaster, and investment activity delivered every Tuesday mark gainey strava net worth.