Startup Spotlight is an interview series showcasing early-stage health, fitness, and wellness companies.
In this Q&A, we caught up with Max Gomez, co-founder and CEO of Breathwrk, to learn more about the company’s mission, raising venture capital, and going viral on TikTok.
Can you tell us about what you’re working on at Breathwrk?
Max Gomez: Breathwrk is on a mission to change the health of the world through breathing. The Breathwrk app offers evidence-based breathing exercises that combat stress and anxiety, help increase energy and endurance, and much more.
How did you come up with the idea? What key insight led you to pursue this opportunity?
MG: I learned about breathing exercises through a therapist for severe anxiety. That led me to dive into the deep end on how breath can help with things such as athletic performance, sleep, energy, focus, mood, and overall health.
How did you turn your idea into a company?
MG: We got our first MVP up within eight weeks from conception, from which we raised venture capital from Bessemer Ventures. With the new support, we were able to scale and grow to over 750K users and 2.4M followers on TikTok
How big can this get? What’s the addressable market and how do you go about capturing it?
MG: We believe the total addressable market is close to $1B. Given the application of breath to numerous life situations and times of the day, everyone can benefit from breathing better.
Who is the core customer? How are you acquiring customers? And how will you grow the customer base?
MG: Our core customer is anyone who wants to improve their energy, focus, anxiety, stress, sleep, and athletic performance. So basically everyone! As it pertains to growth and acceptance, we acquire many of our new users through referrals and TikTok.
Looking at your road map, what are some of the milestones you’re targeting over the next 3-6 months?
MG: We are launching more gamified and social features in the product to keep it even more engaging while also adding over 30 new pieces of content.
Anything else you’d like to share with readers?
MG: Guided breathing is one of the fastest ways to change both your body and mind to improve your life!
If you’re interested in having your company featured in our Startup Spotlight series, send an email to team@fitt.co.
