The athleisure and activewear giant Lululemon is betting on the future of personalised remote exercise as a way to reach customers by acquiring Mirror for $500m.

Mirror sells a giant wall or floor mounted mirror for US$1,495 that sits in your home and streams interactive fitness classes. The streamed workout classes are produced by Mirror and cover the usual suspects: yoga, boxing, HIIT, etc.

Mirror, which is based in New York, expects to bring in over $100 million in revenue this year and either break even or be slightly profitable in 2021.

Home fitness products like Peloton and streaming classes have boomed during the pandemic.

Gyms and fitness studios are largely closed, and many customers are nervous to return to those that have reopened.

Brynn Putnam founded Mirror in 2016 and launched in 2018 after two years in stealth mode.

Investor Hayley Bay Barna shared some reflections on how it got started:

“Reflecting back, the story of Mirror is particularly inspiring, as it is a reminder that founder talent comes in many forms. When we invested in Brynn, she was a former ballet dancer and small business owner, not a typical tech startup founder. On top of that, Brynn was 9 months pregnant when she pitched the Firstround partnership. She signed the docs for our investment in Mirror while at the hospital to give birth.”

Expect to see more home fitness streaming products like this in residential and commercial office environments as in-person gym attendance remains subdued.

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