Hardware Podcasts

Zumba: Beto Perez & Alberto Perlman (January, 2017)

How I Built This · 4 Dec 2017 · 40m

What this episode covers

Beto Perez and Alberto Perlman, co-founders of Zumba, recount how a music mix-up in Colombia led to a fitness phenomenon, eventually partnering with Alberto Aguillon to scale the brand in the US. They detail the struggle to secure initial funding after 9/11, the creative workaround of using phonetic scripts for Beto’s infomercial, and the pivotal launch of the Zumba Instructor Network which generated immediate revenue. The episode highlights their strategic pivot to licensing music from major artists like Pitbull, turning Zumba into a global marketing platform for Latin and pop music while maintaining a grassroots community focus.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Crunch, Fitness Quest, Kellogg's, 24 Hour Fitness, Equinox
Products
Zumba, Emperor of Ice Cream
Also
Pitbull

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