The man behind GuavaPass on building a global fitness ecosystem to promote healthy living
For many, the word exercise triggers either feelings of enthusiasm or anxiety. For Jeffrey Liu, it sparked an insatiable curiosity that has resulted in a membership-based fitness start-up called GuavaPass with about 60,000 members and over 1,500 partners in 12 cities, including Singapore, Shanghai, Dubai, and Mumbai. It is looking to further expand into other cities in India this year.
The idea for GuavaPass struck Jeffrey and co-founder Rob Pachter in 2015, after a spin class at a local boutique studio. “The energy and sense of community made us realise that boutique fitness studios are the future,” recalls the US and Hong Kong dual national, who was previously head of corporate development at e-commerce company BeachMint. “But there wasn’t a resource for consumers to discover them, so we saw an opportunity.”
GuavaPass has since grown from being an online fitness booking platform, to a company that also engages and connects its users through events and corporate programmes. In 2017, GuavaLabs, its version of a co-working space for wellness experts, was introduced at Downtown Gallery.
Joining the wave
“I grew up in Hong Kong, Taipei, Manila and Singapore, and moved back to Singapore at the end of 2014 because I wanted to be a part of Asia’s burgeoning start-up scene. Fun fact: my first drink after moving here was a negroni, which is one of my favourite drinks. Whenever I have it now, I’m reminded of why I decided to move back.”
