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6.
Appendix
6.1 The BungyPump story
In the 2000s, walking with Nordic poles had become one of the most popular forms of regular exercise
for many people in Sweden. It had not only become a well-known activity as
the
form of exercise for
middle-aged to elderly people, but was also seen as a good complement for those who also
participated in other fitness activities such as going to the gym, aerobics classes etc.
In 2007, a small group of curious souls up on the High Coast in Sweden came upon the idea of
somehow combining the benefits of walking with poles with the benefits of working out in a gym. If
the upper body and back muscles could be worked at the same time as aerobic capacity and allround
fitness enhanced through walking, the perfect fitness product could be created! The idea of
BungyPump was born.
Many sweat-filled months followed in a small workshop near Kramfors. Ideas, designs and prototypes
were produced and tested until finally, in 2008, a workable model of a walking pole with built-in
suspension left the workbench and was taken out for trials. The team had done it! BungyPump was a
reality.
Now the idea had actually been realized, how could BungyPump be promoted? How could this
revolutionary fitness tool be presented to the world? Although the design team had created the
ultimate fitness product for lifelong well-being, they needed help to realize the market potential of
their creation.
In late 2009, the designers’ financial reserves were finished. BungyPump was on the verge of
disappearing forever, never to be known outside the small group of designers who had created it. As
fate would have it, a chance meeting between one of the designers and Lena Frejlin, the founder and
CEO of Sports Progress International AB, changed the future of BungyPump.
A manufacturing and distribution agreement was made and finally, in March 2010, BungyPump was
introduced to the market in Sweden. Interest was immediate! Fitness opinion leaders as well as
medical professionals hailed BungyPump as a revolutionary tool with a wide range of benefits for all –
from elite athletes to elderly people, from extreme training to rehabilitation programs.
By 2011, BungyPump had become one of the most successful fitness products in Sweden with retail
partnerships with all the major sports and health product chains: Intersport, Stadium, TeamSportia,
Sportsringen, Life, HälsoKraft and many others.
In 2012, Sports Progress International AB moved to new premises and took on a number of new staff
to deal with the success of BungyPump. Collaborations with export partners are being established all
over the world with a new office and subsidiary company opening in the United States. With interest
in BungyPump growing in Europe, Australia, South America, Russia, Canada, the United States as
well as Japan, the BungyPump story is just beginning!
www.bungypump.com
