Recap: Strava to acquire Runna
Issue 119 l Eka’s Weekly Roundup (22 April 2025)
You will likely have seen Runna’s announcement last week that Strava announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the company.
Eka led the Runna seed round two years ago, and is the largest non-founder shareholder. We are thrilled for the Dom, Ben, and the entire Runna team for this next chapter. It’s worth reflecting on why Runna has been so important to our Consumer Health thesis and is a key milestone in the Eka journey.
Runna reminder: what it is. Runna has created an app & community for novice and experienced runners to train and share their love for running. The product is just awesome, and Runna’s usage, customer feedback and growth suggests it is (some reviews below)!
Why it matters for our thesis. It is a great example of a tool which enables people to take greater control over their health and wellbeing (i.e. preventative health). Core to that is physical activity (1 in 3 people globally are insufficiently active). Running is an extraordinarily accessible sport (no special equipment, you can do it anywhere). Habitual runners are estimated to add 3 years to their life and see a 27% reduction in all-cause mortality rates.
How Eka was additional. We were the only term sheet in Runna’s seed round. You can read Jon’s original “Why We Invested” post here - a lot of it still rings true today!
Strava is a mission-aligned acquirer. Strava is the global leading platform for movement. As Jon wrote (below), it’s mission is to connect athletes (defined as anyone who sweats) to what motivates them and help them achieve their personal best.
The consumer reviews are just awesome. The App Store and iOS reviews have been so insightful into looking at Runna’s impact. Hamish at Eka has built a tool which means we get a live dashboard of all commentary on our consumer-facing companies, including Runna. We showcase some of our favourite below.
Reactions to Runna 🗞️
The world’s biggest team is getting a new coach
Read the Strava press release in the link below.
Key points:
SAN FRANCISCO – April 17, 2025 – Strava, the app for active people, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Runna, a UK-headquartered tech company developing personalized running training plans and coaching. The acquisition unites the world’s largest fitness community with a leading app in the fiercely competitive running training space, creating compelling value for users and shareholders of both companies.
Dom’s post puts it all together perfectly
If you don’t already follow Dom, make sure you do. His posts are golden (see this most recent one about Ben).
Jon’s overview of how this fits into the Eka thesis
You can also read his ‘Why we Invested’ post here.
Consumer reviews which get us excited!
As mentioned, this is a great tool which our colleague Hamish has built to look at reviews for our consumer facing companies.
Here are a few which get us pumped about Runna and its impact on people.
👋 Getting in Touch
If you’re looking for funding, you can get in touch here.
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We are open to feedback: let us know what more you’d like to hear about 💪.
Amazing story with great insights for aspiring founders. Thanks for sharing Estia.
Massive congratulations!