Celebrity Fitness Programme 28 By Sam Wood appoints Impact PR to lead New Zealand launch

Australian celebrity fitness app 28 By Sam Wood has appointed Auckland public relations agency Impact PR to lead its multi-channel New Zealand launch.

The nutrition and health app was started by Sam Wood (pictured above), a celebrity personal trainer and former star of The Bachelor Australia and has grown to be the largest of its kind – used by almost a million Australians to date.

Its rapid growth has seen the platform recently merged with a health tech firm in a USD$50m deal.

New Zealand will be the first international market for the programme with plans to expand into the US, Europe and Canada.

Wood says independent communications agency Impact PR NZ has been appointed to manage its public relations and influencer engagement strategy: “Public relations has been a significant driver of our success in Australia to date and it will form a foundation for the development of our brand during our trans-Tasman expansion.

“We were looking to partner with a market specialist agency with an affinity for the fitness, health and tech sectors and that had a strategic approach that resonated with what we were trying to achieve as we launched in the first country outside of our home market.

“Initial campaign results have been far beyond our expectations and suggest Kiwi consumers are rapid adopters of technology as a tool for addressing the same growing rates of obesity that we are experiencing.”

Fleur Revell-Devlin, managing director of Impact PR, says the nationwide campaign will utilise public relations and influencer engagement to establish the brand in NZ: “We are looking to utilise earned media opportunities in broadcast, print and digital news and social media platforms to rapidly build organic awareness and encourage subscriptions of the new app.”

Revell-Devlin says the combination of artificial intelligence (AI), app gamification, DNA profiling and wearable tech offered by the programme is set to offer a new methodology to help fight the obesity epidemic and associated co-morbidities such as heart disease and diabetes.

She says Wood, who is also a best-selling author and has over 1.1 million followers on his social media platforms, has received international recognition for the app and his holistic and inclusive approach to health and fitness: “The technology has the potential to make a tangible difference in the lives of thousands of New Zealanders and there is a significant alignment with our experience in the healthcare sector and the growth objectives of 28 by Sam Wood.

Photographer (Sam Wood image) – Tobias Rowles