Welsh fitness company AFLUENCR, led by founder and CEO Gareth Manger, today announced a multi-million dollar (NZ) acquisition by New Zealand-based MacroActive, the transactional SaaS platform that powers many of the world’s most influential online health and fitness professionals.
A former Welsh junior judo champion, Manger founded AFLUENCR through a passion for fitness and a desire to help other fitness entrepreneurs successfully scale their online businesses. AFLUENCR was founded in 2019 and is a full-service agency that offers management, strategic planning, digital advertising and bespoke design services in addition to the white label platform MacroActive for fitness, mindset and nutrition.
Manger will now join MacroActive’s Executive Leadership Team as Chief Revenue Officer and intends to continue growing the business in his new role.
The acquisition will have a significant positive impact on AFLUENCR’s base in Cardiff as it opens up a range of new leadership and hiring opportunities as MacroActive continues to invest in the development of its UK headquarters.
Commenting on the announcement, Manger said: “We are very excited about the partnership with MacroActive and it could not have come at a better time – in this current environment, health and fitness are more important than ever. The combination of the two businesses will allow us to better serve our customers with a wider range of services and provide 24/7 customer service backed by MacroActive’s global presence.
“It’s also fantastic to see the impact this will have on our people here in Cardiff. We will shortly be expanding our office space and launching a recruiting campaign to ensure that as agents for EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) we continue to build a strong, forward-thinking team that can move the business forward. “
MacroActive CEO Ken Brickley added, “By joining forces, we are stronger together and now unmistakably the smartest competitive proposition on the market for fitness professionals ready to make an impact. We have always been staunch advocates for our entrepreneurs, and we firmly believe in helping them build lasting assets rather than trading social items for paychecks. “
In the fast-growing creator economy, both companies see the value of leveraging their customers’ shared online reach of more than 100 million people to address two of the top health issues highlighted by the recent pandemic – mental health and obesity.
With the successful acquisition, MacroActive, headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand, can now add Wales to its growing list of overseas operations, which currently includes the United States, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Chile and Russia.
