Echelon Explains Why Connected Strength is the Future

The Echelon and Primal partnership is focused on creating smart strength ecosystems to deliver the instruction and results consumers crave.

Despite the strength boom currently sweeping across gyms and studios, Echelon Fitness, a leading fitness equipment supplier, says the industry needs to take a different approach when it comes to delivering what consumers and operators need from the modality.

The answer isn’t more strength products; it’s creating an ecosystem of smart products that provide the feedback users crave. Through new partnerships, robust artificial intelligence (AI) implementation and a focus on personalization, the brand is building what consumers are after in a way that makes sense for them and operators. 

“The operators winning right now aren’t the ones with the most machines,” said Josh Voss, senior manager, key accounts at Echelon. “They’re the ones who stopped buying their floor one box at a time.”

AI Can’t Do Everything

Echelon recognizes that AI only represents one piece of the puzzle when it comes to maximizing modern fitness equipment, strength-related or otherwise. To build an intelligent, impactful ecosystem, operators need hardware and software that sync. 

“AI coaching is only as smart as what it can see and control,” Voss said. “You can have a brilliant algorithm, but if it’s sitting on top of equipment that can’t capture reps, resistance, range of motion or output, it’s basically guessing.”

Spaces with machines and tech that speak to each other in real time quickly relay personalized insights rather than generic instruction. That’s a game-changer, especially in high-traffic, low-staff environments, where detailed guidance is often absent. 

“For commercial operators, that’s the whole ballgame,” Voss said. “A hotel, a multifamily property or a university doesn’t want a screen that plays videos. They want a system that adapts to each member and improves engagement.”

A Strong Opportunity

That ballgame, particularly on the strength side of things, is where machine manufacturers now have a chance to score big. It’s no secret that connected fitness has traditionally centered around cardio. Voss argues that the gap represents a massive growth opportunity.

“This is the part I’m most excited about, because cardio has been the connected story for a decade and strength has been the blind spot,” he said. “The opportunity is huge.”

By weaving strength equipment into a gym’s connected ecosystem, operators can close the programming loop. Echelon already does so with FitHub, which ties entire facilities together, making non-connected or non-Echelon equipment “smart,” which allows members and allows operators to gauge usage, manage content and keep members engaged across multiple modalities. Workout Builder creates personalized training plans to bolster engagement and retention as well. 

“The whole strategy is to stop thinking in pieces,” Voss said. “For a long time, the industry sold you a bike here, a treadmill there, an app somewhere else and you were left to stitch it together. We’re going the other direction: one connected platform where the hardware, the software and the coaching share the same backbone.”

The benefits are evident for both operators and members. 

“For a commercial operator, that means one relationship and one system running the whole floor instead of five vendors and five logins,” Voss explained. “For members, the experience feels seamless whether they’re on a bike, a reformer or under a bar.”

Partnering with Primal

This objective to make strength smart also compelled Echelon to recently partner with Primal, a U.K.-based strength-training equipment brand.

“Primal was a natural fit because they’re genuinely premium on the strength side,” Voss said. “The build quality, the design and the durability of their plate-loaded and selectorized equipment are exactly what commercial buyers care about.”

By pairing Primal’s hardware with Echelon’s technology, the brands deliver more of the connected and complete workout experiences strength trainers have long sought. 

“For dealers and commercial accounts, it’s a complete strength environment that captures data and drives engagement, not just equipment that sits there,” Voss said. “For members, strength finally gets the same intelligent, guided, progress-tracking experience cardio has had for years. Connected strength was the one room nobody had claimed, and that’s the gap we built the partnership around.”

Looking Ahead

Voss expects interconnectivity to remain a theme as the industry moves forward in the coming years. 

“Individual pieces of equipment are becoming commodities,” he said. “Many can sell a good treadmill or a solid rack. What people actually pay for, and what keeps them coming back, is the connected experience around it: the coaching, the data, the progression and the engagement. That’s true for a consumer at home and even more for a commercial buyer who has to justify the spend with utilization and retention numbers.” 

If it hasn’t already, the way we talk about machines will soon shift as well, with the concentration highlighting integration above all else. 

“Five years from now, nobody’s going to brag about owning one great machine,” Voss said.  “They’ll talk about the platform their whole fitness experience runs on, and the brands still selling standalone boxes are going to feel that shift first.”