HANGZHOU--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitbit (NYSE:FIT), the leader in the global connected health and fitness market, today announced the availability of Fitbit Blaze™ and Fitbit Alta™ devices in China. To celebrate the launch and encourage health and well-being across China, Fitbit and Alibaba organized a major health and fitness event today as part of a joint new ‘China is Getting Fit’ focus. In addition, to extend the new Fitbit® devices to millions of Chinese consumers, Alibaba’s Tmall.com, China’s largest third-party platform for brands and retailers, is hosting a Fitbit Super Brand Day.
“We’ve received positive response around the globe for Fitbit Blaze and Alta, and we’re excited to bring these new products to China. As our most motivating and stylish devices, they are perfect for anyone who is looking to lead a healthier lifestyle or who is already exercising regularly,” said James Park, Fitbit Co-Founder and CEO. “Alibaba is the perfect partner to help us expand our reach to millions more Chinese consumers and show how Fitbit can help them take small steps to be more active, exercise more and sleep better, which can lead to improvements in overall well-being.”
To commemorate the launch, Mr. Park joined Alibaba Partner and Chief Risk Officer Zhenfei Liu and President of Tmall Consumer Electronics and Home Appliances Jing Yin today at Alibaba’s Hangzou headquarters to kick off a new health and fitness focus, ‘China is Getting Fit.’ More than 500 Alibaba employees participated in a coordinated group workout including plank holds, in preparation for a joint Fitbit and Alibaba attempt to break a Guinness World Records fitness record.
“With the increasing importance being placed on personal wellness in China, Alibaba is committed to driving a greater health and fitness culture across our own company, as well as throughout China,” said Mr. Yin. “Alibaba is the gateway to China for international brands and retailers seeking to reach Chinese customers directly. We’re thrilled to work with an innovative brand like Fitbit to foster a large and growing Chinese consumer class who are interested in living a healthy and more active lifestyle.”
Tmall.com’s Super Brand Day initiative has become a critical marketing tool for global brands selling into China. On Super Brand Day, Fitbit enjoys premier placement throughout Alibaba’s ecosystem from Tmall.com to Taobao.com as one of the most promoted products on the portal and mobile app, with strong traffic directed to Tmall.com’s Fitbit page. Alibaba also uses its extensive customer reach to identify a brand’s target audience and drive engagement with those customers. By leveraging this unique service, Fitbit joins several top international companies that have held Super Brand Days to further establish and grow their footprints in the all-important China market.
Fitbit Blaze and Alta are the latest additions to the Fitbit product family, each shipping a million units in the first month of availability. The new devices are also broadly available at leading retail and online stores across China. A part of the Fitbit platform – consisting of devices, apps, social and motivational features, advice and personalized coaching – these products help people make behavioural changes to be more active, exercise more, eat smarter, track their sleep and manage their weight.
About Fitbit Blaze and Alta
Fitbit Blaze (RMB ¥1,598) – Fitbit’s most motivating and smartest fitness tracker – puts the emphasis on next generation health and fitness features first and foremost, such as PurePulse® continuous, wrist-based heart rate tracking; SmartTrack™ automatic exercise recognition; automatic sleep tracking; and FitStar™ by Fitbit on-screen workouts. Curated to fit your life, Fitbit Blaze includes the smart notifications that matter most, like call, text and calendar alerts, so you can stay connected to what’s important. It also has a long battery life that lasts up to 5 days1, allowing you to keep up with your life, day and night.
Fitbit Blaze and Fitbit Blaze accessory bands began shipping to retailers and consumers in North America in late February, and are now available in Asia.
Fitbit Alta (RMB ¥998) is a slim, sleek fitness wristband designed with a satin finish, stainless steel body and features a line of stylish, interchangeable bands in multiple popular colors and premium materials so you can find the right style for every occasion. Features include Reminders to Move, SmartTrack automatic exercise recognition, and all day activity and automatic sleep tracking. Fitbit Alta also helps you stay connected with the smart notifications you need, delivering call, text and calendar notifications when your phone is nearby with a gentle vibrating alert on its vibrant, slender display. Fitbit Alta lasts up to 5 days1 on a single charge and is compatible with more than 200 Android, iOS and Windows mobile devices and computers.
Fitbit Alta and Fitbit Alta accessory bands began shipping to retailers and consumers in North America on March 9 and are also currently available in Asia.
About Tmall.com
Launched in April 2008, Tmall.com (http://www.tmall.com) is dedicated to providing a premium shopping experience for increasingly sophisticated Chinese consumers in search of top-quality branded merchandise. A large number of international and Chinese brands and retailers have established storefronts on Tmall.com. According to iResearch, Tmall.com was China's largest third-party platform for brands and retailers in terms of gross merchandise volume in 2014.
About Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA)
Alibaba Group's mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere. The company is the largest online and mobile commerce company in the world in terms of gross merchandise volume. Founded in 1999, the company provides the fundamental technology infrastructure and marketing reach to help businesses leverage the power of the Internet to establish an online presence and conduct commerce with hundreds of millions of consumers and other businesses.
About Fitbit, Inc. (NYSE:FIT)
Fitbit helps people lead healthier, more active lives by empowering them with data, inspiration and guidance to reach their goals. As the leader in the connected health and fitness category, Fitbit designs products and experiences that track everyday health and fitness. Fitbit’s diverse line of award-winning products includes Fitbit Surge™, Fitbit Blaze™, Fitbit Charge HR™, Alta™, Fitbit Charge™, Fitbit Flex®, Fitbit One® and Fitbit Zip® activity trackers, as well as the Aria® Wi-Fi Smart Scale. Fitbit products are carried in over 50,000 retail stores and in 63 countries around the globe.
Fitbit, the Fitbit logo, Fitbit Surge, Fitbit Blaze, Fitbit Charge HR, Alta, Fitbit Charge, Fitbit Flex, Fitbit One, Fitbit Zip, Aria, PurePulse, SmartTrack and FitStar are trademarks, service marks and/or registered trademarks of Fitbit in the United States and in other countries. All other trademarks, service marks, and product names used herein are the property of their respective owners.
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Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that involve risks and uncertainties including, among other things, statements regarding the availability of Fitbit Blaze and Fitbit Alta devices at retailers and online stores in China. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and may differ materially from actual results due to a variety of factors, including the effects of the highly competitive market in which we operate, including competition from much larger technology companies; any inability to successfully develop and introduce new products, features, and services or enhance existing products and services; product liability issues, security breaches or other defects; and other factors discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in our most recent report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements contained herein are based on information available to us as of the date hereof and we do not assume any obligation to update these statements as a result of new information or future events.
1 Battery life and charge cycles vary with use, settings, and other factors; actual results will vary.
