Fitt Insider Dick's Sporting Goods Scales Up, F45 Gets Competitive, Insurgent Wellness Brands Rise
Mar 18, 2026
F45 debuts PEAK500, a 30-minute in-studio competition with a global leaderboard and racing ambitions. A Bain study spotlights insurgent wellness brands driving major CPG growth and leaning into better-for-you claims. Dick's Sporting Goods doubles down on youth sports, investing in apps, experiences, and the $40B family market.
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F45 Builds Its Own Fitness Racing Format
- F45 created Peak 500 to turn studio classes into a repeatable competitive format with a global leaderboard.
- The 30-minute event tests output across five standardized stations and can scale from in-studio benchmarking to larger fitness racing events.
Insurgent Wellness Brands Power CPG Growth
- Bain found 113 insurgent CPG brands drove 36% of category growth, signaling a structural shift toward wellness-native players.
- About 44% promoted Better For You claims and 40% emphasized protein, and these brands grew roughly 10x faster than the category average.
Incumbents Respond With Mergers And Acquisitions
- Big CPG incumbents have started acquiring insurgent brands, with about a quarter already bought, validating the startup-to-acquirer pathway.
- Examples include Ciete, Simple Mills, and Poppy, showing M&A as a primary exit and growth channel.