Stretchd was acquired by Good Feet Holdings in an acquisition deal and is ready to bring the brand to neighborhoods everywhere.
Good Feet Holdings, owners of The Good Feet Store and ING Source, is expanding its portfolio with the acquisition of Stretchd, an assisted stretching concept. With this deal, Stretchd is positioning itself for growth beyond its home state of New York.
“We’re very happy and lucky to have found Good Feet,” said Vanessa Chu, co-founder and chief operating officer of Stretchd. “We’re excited to continue to grow our retail footprint as founders and entrepreneurs of a brand.”
The deal closed November 1. Founded in 2018, Stretchd’s motto is, “Why stretch when we can do it for you?” The brand has two corporate locations in New York City.
Stretchd trains its stretchers to provide custom experiences for everyone.
Good Feet has a similar mission to bring people comfort, especially through its flagship brand, The Good Feet Store. Founded in 1992, the brand uses the arch support invented by podiatrist George Alzner to help eliminate foot-related pain. The Good Feet Store recently opened its 250th location; the majority of its stores are franchised.
Good Feet’s interest in acquiring Stretchd came from the two brands’ matching values, said Doug Zarkin, chief brand officer for Good Feet Holdings. The company hired Zarkin in October.
“It’s not just about foot pain, it’s not just about plantar fasciitis, it’s about the whole kinetic chain from your head to your toes,” said Zarkin. “So this is a natural opportunity for Good Feet Holdings to bring in another business that can focus on being a mission-driven brand.”
Though Stretchd has just two locations, Zarkin said the brand is very scalable and offers a good “you get what you pay for” product, he said. Chu, meanwhile, said the opportunity to franchise the brand and work with an experienced franchisor was a key factor.
Hundreds of new Stretchd locations aren’t popping up immediately, though. Zarkin said his motto is, “grow at the speed of smart.”
“We want to figure out and bring in partners that are committed to a mission-driven company like The Good Feet Store and like Stretchd,” Zarkin said. “The demand is there. The question is how fast we can get there in the right way.”
Good Feet wants to maintain brand consistency while being diligent in all aspects, including people, markets and locations. Because national growth also means dealing with more competition, Zarkin wants to find sweet spots in the market. Good Feet plans to leverage Stretchd’s proven methods and concept to grow interest in the brand, especially as it competes against similar concepts such as StretchLab and Stretch Zone.
Everything in the brand, including the look, reflects that outlook, said Jeff Barrinigan, Stretchd’s co-founder and program director.
Stretchd doesn’t just do stretching. It also helps the body through massages and much more.
“There’s so many layers to what goes into what the person is going to experience on the table,” said Barrinigan. “Our method incorporates a lot of subtlety into it, which I think is overlooked in a lot of other places.”
Zarkin finds the challenge “terrifyingly exciting” as he starts his new role at Good Feet.
“We really believe that bringing this experience to someone in a convenient, accessible and enjoyable way is going to be really exciting for everyone involved,” Chu said.