Paddle. Ski. Row.

Whipr launched on Kickstarter in August 2020, becoming the second-highest funded fitness campaign in history with $3.5M pledged by 9,100 backers. Subsequent pre-orders brought total sales to $5.7M. In September 2021, Whipr, Inc. completed a $1.35M public raise at a $19.95M valuation.

In June 2021 – after three months of COVID-related supply delays – we shipped 21 containers of merchandise to distribution partners in Hong Kong to fulfill more than 12,000 orders. Soon after, the global shipping crisis pushed transit times from 1–2 months to 8–12 months. Several containers sat at ports for 3+ months, and freight costs increased by as much as 10x, creating liabilities far beyond our available cash.

During the 2021–2022 crisis, freight costs surged well beyond our original budgets. Customers who paid the additional shipping fees received their pre-orders. Some chose not to pay the surcharges; under our campaign terms, those pledges were non-refundable and treated as forfeited. We understand the frustration—this was a regrettable but unavoidable outcome of the crisis and a known risk of crowdfunding.

We pursued multiple paths to bridge the gap: negotiating equity arrangements with our freight provider, seeking additional funding, exploring a company sale, and bringing in new management. Despite these efforts, the combination of inflated shipping and material costs, slowing sales, rising debt, and reduced consumer confidence left no viable path forward.

In February 2023, Whipr, Inc. was dissolved and remaining inventory liquidated. In total, the company sold over $8M in product and delivered more than 14,000 orders before closing.

Whipr products are no longer available on this website, though limited stock may appear through third-party sellers.