fitness equipment

Nautilus, Inc. (NYSE: NLS), located in Vancouver, Washington, United States, is the marketer, developer, and manufacturer of branded health and fitness products sold under such names as Bowflex, Nautilus, PEARL iZUMi, Schwinn Fitness, StairMaster, Trimline and Universal.

Nautilus and its corporate predecessors have been in the exercise and fitness equipment industry for over 30 years.

Organization

Gregg Hammann is the president, chairman, and chief executive officer of Nautilus. As of 2006, it had 1,700 employees and operations in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas, Illinois, Virginia, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, China, and other locations.

The company markets and sells its Bowflex and TreadClimber lines of home fitness equipment through its direct-marketing channel, using a combination of television commercials, infomercials, response mailings, the Internet, and inbound/outbound call centers. Select Bowflex home gyms are also available in retail stores.

The company's Nautilus, Schwinn Fitness, and StairMaster commercial fitness equipment are marketed and sold through its sales force and selected dealers to health clubs, government agencies, hotels, corporate fitness centers, colleges, universities, and assisted living facilities.

Nautilus also markets and sells a complete line of consumer fitness equipment and apparel under its different brand names through a network of specialty dealers, distributors, and retailers worldwide.

History

The current corporate flavor of Nautilus originates in 1986 with the sale of most of the company by the inventor of Nautilus, Arthur Jones. Nautilus became a publicly traded company in May of 1999.

The original form of Nautilus dates back to the late 1960s or early 1970s—depending on how Nautilus is conceived. Nautilus was once just a name for the exercise machines proposed by Arthur Jones, but became several corporate names during and after the ownership of Jones.

Nautilus Institute

The Nautilus Institute is a research-based initiative of Nautilus, Inc. that strives to provide the motivation and education to help more people embrace lifelong health and fitness patterns. The purpose of the institute is to help more people lead a fit and healthy life. The institute has enlisted leading experts to guide its efforts and everything it brings to both society and the fitness industry.

Resources

The institute works to present the best fitness resources the industry has to offer and in the easiest and most convenient way possible, all with the goal of getting more people interested and excited about fitness on a regular and progressive basis. Towards that end, the institute utilizes some of the best talent in the fitness industry.

Sponsorship

The Nautilus Institute was conceived as one way for its sponsor, Nautilus, Inc., to give back to the fitness industry and to the consumers it serves. Any impartial analysis of that company shows that it ss uniquely positioned to serve this leadership role because its sole focus is fitness. The company has products in every category and in every channel and, from a marketing standpoint, has four of the industry's strongest brands. The Company also has a leadership team motivated to make our society healthier through proper fitness and nutrition.

The institute's founder, Gregg Hammonn, in speaking of the institute said:

"Our society embraced a new era of fitness three decades ago through aerobics, equipment and clubs, but fewer than one in five people truly benefit from a fit and healthy lifestyle today. If we are going to tap into all the benefits that sustainable exercise offers our society, we need to help more people start, improve upon, and maintain fitness and exercise patterns for a lifetime.

We all know that a lifetime of sustainable exercise can advance quality of life, reduce health risks and costs, and make people feel better about themselves. We also know there is no magic pill or silver bullet. Instead of over-promising, we need to start motivating and educating. We need to help people take the next step toward all that fitness offers them."

While the institute is sponsored by a corporation, its main goal is educational rather than promotional.

External links

• Nautilus, Inc.
• Nautilus Institute
• Nautilus International