Health is wealth, they say. But just because something rhymes doesn’t make it true — as investors in countless wellness-and-fitness fads have found to their chagrin. This week there’s Ōura, a maker of tech-enabled rings worn by celebrities including Prince Harry and Gwyneth Paltrow. It has raised $200mn from investors including Fidelity Management and Dexcom, a maker of glucose monitors. That gives it a valuation of $5.2bn.
As befits a society ridden with health anxiety, one-third of wearable users consulted their devices more this year than last. While feeling good is prized, there are many ways to achieve it — and this is the problem which companies like Ōura must wrestle. Fitness is an industry strewn with bad investments. Think of Peloton Interactive, the digitally-connected bike company. After peaking at a $49bn market capitalisation in 2021, it has since crashed to less than one-tenth of that.