Fast-Growing Fitness Startup Form Launches Prenatal Program, Grows To $21m And 60k Subscribers

After serendipitously meeting through a combination of Instagram and a connection between their husbands-to-be, Form founders Sami Bernstein-Spalter and Sami Clarke together transformed Clarke’s personal fitness YouTube channel into the Form Fitness app: a bootstrapped, LA-based fitness app that has experienced exponential growth over the last four years. This week, Form Fitness launches its newest community-driven feature: The Prenatal and Postnatal Programs, the platform’s first pregnancy-related series. As part of this launch, the brand has also exclusively shared some of its key growth metrics with Forbes.com, which the co-founders (referred to as ‘the Samis’ by the Form community and brand materials) attribute to a commitment to evolving based on community requests and continuously turning down offers of outside investment.

The pre- and postnatal programs begins at week five of pregnancy and continue through postnatal recovery. Like Form’s pre-existing workout programming, the new Pregnancy Program will include weekly workouts, all under 30 minutes, providing physical and emotional support for each stage of pregnancy. The prenatal section consists of strength work to alleviate challenging symptoms, promote a healthy delivery and increase mindfulness. The postnatal section begins at six weeks postpartum, assuming users have been medically cleared by a doctor, and includes breathwork, core rehab, low-impact routines and specialized affirmations. Ancillary elements of the pre- and postnatal program include a specialized nutrition plan and a Form community chat, one of over 30 WhatsApp group chats moderated a Form brand ambassador.

Created in response to user feedback, like nearly all of Form’s programming updates, this mother-focused launch is the result of looking at user feedback that showed the number one reason women were canceling a Form subscription was due to pregnancy. Now, after six months of development, pre and postnatal-certified trainer and mother Calyn Robinow will lead this new category for the brand. Robinow is the third trainer Form has added in order to expand its library of over 300 workouts with more specialized offerings.

Robinow shares, “During my own pregnancy with my daughter I struggled to find a prenatal fitness program that was tailored to my body’s needs during this time. The prenatal programs I scanned lacked the intensity I craved, so I relied on my background as a personal trainer to adapt regular workouts for pregnancy and to best prepare for labor. I am honored that the Form team trusts in me with such an important task – to be a part of a mama’s journey to motherhood and beyond.”

According to a brand backgrounder, As Form’s library and features expanded, the founders discovered that the true driver of growth was the platform’s user community. A brief, initial focus on attracting new users shifted to nurturing and engaging the existing community. Form’s growth strategy grew into building features and verticals based on listening to user feedback and responding directly to their needs and desires. Now, all launches across movement, nutrition and activewear are closely tied to requests from Form’s community.

This commitment to brand evolution in response to customer requests has resulted in fast growth for the brand. Form has shared exclusively with Forbes.com that its revenue has grown 400% since its inception in 2021. After earning $2.5m in its first year and $6.5m in its second, the brand projects it will earn over $12m now in its third year, totaling $21m. Its subscriber-base has also doubled each year, beginning with 12,000 subscribers in year one, then 30,000 in year two and now in year three the brand is at 60,000 so far.

Launched with a $48,000 investment by its founders Sami Spalter and Sami Clarke, the still-bootstrapped brand regularly turns down offers of outside investment. Spalter shares that, “Starting, scaling and building Form is my dream come true. As someone who has transformed my life & lost over 80 pounds, the toolkit that I leaned on to change my life through movement, nutrition, community and self-love is now what serves women all over the world.” On the topic of remaining committed to growing by listening and remaining a self-funded operation, “At Form, we’re fiercely committed to blazing our own trail. We’ve chosen not to take outside investments right now because we believe in the power of growing on our own terms. Our vision is clear, and we’re not interested in following a conventional path just because others have. We know the strength of staying true to what we believe in, and that’s exactly what’s driving our success!”

After the pre- and post-natal launch, Form will continue to expand its fast-growing activewear line with monthly drops, including new categories such as knitwear and outerwear. It will also continue to add requested monthly workout programs, with new trainers in key categories including strength and Pilates.