SNEAK PEEK
Here’s what we’re working on next.
INTRODUCING THE BASEBAR
The BaseBar is a height-adjustable pullup bar. We’ve just finished our first prototype. As far as first prototypes go, we are really happy. We have a few things to tweak to make it more stable, but it looks like we are on track to launch first quarter 2020.
WHY MAKE IT?
“My girlfriend is a climber. Last year she purchased a chinup bar that attaches to your doorframe. When we were moving out of the apartment six months later, we didn’t get a chunk of our rental bond back due to damage on the wall. I decided our next product would tackle pullups at home. “
Jason Gulati, Head of Product
SHIPPING JUNE 2020.
PRE ORDER NOW AND SAVE 30%.
STUFF YOU SHOULD KNOW
Exercise Science Principles.
‘WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU MAKES YOU STRONGER’
(PROGRESSIVE OVERLOAD)
The General Adaptation Syndrome was popularised by Hans Selye.1 The theory proposes that when our body encounters a stressor that causes a disturbance, our body will undergo changes so we can tolerate that stressor better when exposed to it in the future.
- When we go for a run, our muscles demand more oxygen. Our heart rate increases to send more blood around the body.
A long-term adaption is the thickness of our left ventricle increasing, allowing use to pump more blood with every beat.
- When we lift something heavy, our body has neural and structural changes that will allow us to move something bigger in the future; this might involve being able to recruit more of your muscle (motor unit recruitment) or having more contractile proteins in your muscle (hypertrophy).
In fitness, the process of adaptation is known as supercompensation.3 We often think that training makes us fitter. But, few of us consider the timeframe. For example, you may think that performing a resistance training session makes you stronger. In fact, the opposite is true. Most people would be unable to perform the same resistance training session in succession. You are actually weaker after your training bout. However, this training bout acts as a stimulus for various adaptations to take place throughout our body over the next 48 hours. The recovery period is where we make our performance gains.
Giving our body enough recovery time allows our muscles to undergo a series of adaptations leading to a new, higher baseline (approximately 48hours).
With our new, higher baseline we also need a new, higher stimulus to trigger an adaptation. We can’t use the same stressor because we have already adapted to it!
There are several different variables you can manipulate:
EXTRACT FROM MASTER THE BASICS
FROM THE FOUNDER
Going from concept to company.
Jason Gulati founded BaseBlocks in 2017. He studied Exercise Physiology at the University of New South Wales, worked as personal trainer for over ten years and received his Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in 2015.
STARTING FROM SCRATCH
Q: Why did you decide to launch using Kickstarter?
One drawback of (big) physical products is the up-front cost of manufacturing. One fear of launching something new is nobody wants it. Those two things add up to a lot of debt. Crowdfunding platforms allow the project creator to keep all their equity and sell the product before it even exits. While the total amount raised can look attractive, I was less concerned about stuffing my wallet and more concerned with seeing if there was product-market fit.
Q: How long did it take to plan your Kickstarter campaign?
It took about three months to understand the ins and outs of Kickstarter. At the surface level, it may look like you launch something cool, it becomes viral and you get rich. This definitely isn’t the case. More projects fail then get funded (63.5% according to launchboom). I bought every book from Amazon on Kickstarter and Crowdfunding and reached out to all project creators who had an active campaign running (Luckily, the Kickstarter community is awesome and many project creators were happy to jump on a call)..
Q: How much did you raise?
We were fully funded in under 3 hours and went on to reach 7x our Funding goal.
Q: Was that all profit?
Absolutely not. It may surprise you, but many successful Kickstarter campaigns actually go out of business before they even start. Firstly, the amount of money you raise needs to cover inventory and shipping. Many products need to go through additional rounds of prototyping which cost money. Second, you have sold your product at a discounted rate which decreases your profit margin (that’s the deal with your backers - they get you started, you give them a special price). Thirdly, which is often left out of the story, your campaign is typically fuelled via digital marketing.
Q: Would you recommend Kickstarter to someone looking to launch a product?
If you have a Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ) and significant tooling costs, definitely. Use it as a platform to test product-market fit, rather than trying to generate revenue and profits. If you are a first-timer, also don’t be too concerned with driving the total amount raised to the sky; try and set a goal for a certain number of units. The first manufacturing run is filled with hurdles; it is easier to mange the expectations of 500 backers, compared to 5000.
Got a question? Ask me anything.
jason@baseblocks.fit
jason@baseblocks.fit
COLLABORATIONS
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