A message to backers

Hello Backers,

First and foremost, we want to thank you all for helping bring Whipr to life. You helped us take a dream and turn it into a reality and for that, we are and always will be incredibly grateful.

Today we have good news and bad news.

First the good news… We’ve come to terms with the shipping agents responsible for fulfilling the crowdfunding campaign. This released the final container (container 12) from impound and those backers, with a couple of re-delivery exemptions, finally got their products.

Now, the bad news. Due to shipping overages and COVID induced cost increases, fulfillment of the Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns ran far over-budget and Whipr is currently unable to support future operations. We currently have no paid staff and customer service has ceased operations. Warranty claims, product support, spares, tutorials, videos, app updates and new products (a few of which are near ready for release) will all be halted. Existing inventory is leveraged by creditors and as such will be sold off to cover factored finance debts. Whipr itself as a company is currently insolvent.

We’re well aware that this is not a desirable outcome, we fought hard for it not to be the case but the economics of this campaign changed and it’s been too much to surmount.

FINANCES AND WHAT HAPPENED

We’d like to stress that in August 2020, when the campaigns launched, we had solid quotes with our manufacturers. We knew that costs may increase during development and we were prepared for the campaign to simply break even, but the amount by which they increased far exceeded our forecast. When it came to shipping, the quotes we received were increased exponentially with excess fees and due to the ‘blank check’ nature of bulk shipping agreements, we've been forced to pay a considerable amount in shipping overages.

To put the situation in perspective, here is the financial breakdown of the campaign. The numbers have been actualized to only include expenses associated with the Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns:

Of the $4,819,530 raised on Kickstarter, Indiegogo and Backerkit; Whipr received $3,908,900 after platform, processing and advertising fees.
COVID increases pushed our manufacturing costs to an average of 150% higher than forecast
Shipping cost 141% more than was collected
Factory shutdowns, increased material/tooling costs and increased contractor/staffing needs raised our projected expenses by 179%
The net effect was a total campaign loss of $1.94MM, a far cry from the originally forecast profit of around $500-600k**
To boil that down to an easy number, the average backer cost us $170 over and above their pledged amount.

Instead of coming back to you for more money, we secured loans to pay for the difference. We've paid off a lot of it but Whipr is currently over $1MM in debt. This is comprised of over $300k in shipping overages and $700k in factored financing used to cover increases in manufacturing costs.

We’ve been unable to recoup these losses with onward sales and we've been unable to secure further financing or investment. Further, a combination of the cost of finance and prohibitive shipping costs don’t leave us the margins we need to operate. As such, the business is insolvent and will now go through a period of administrative shutdown.

The following should answer some of the more common questions you may have.

SO, WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

While it is technically possible that we could receive an investment or buyout that would steer us to a better path, Whipr is now forced to effectively shut the business down. Our creditors will require that the current (limited) inventory will be liquidated in order to pay off the campaign and shipping debts.

CAN I STILL BUY WHIPR PRODUCTS?

For the foreseeable future, now is your last chance to add to your whipr products. For the next 7 days, backers have first access to the liquidation with 60% off everything in the store. We can’t do anything about the shipping (which is listed at cost) but you’ll be getting product at close to or under original Kickstarter pricing.

Use code CLEARANCE60 for 60% off everything at whipr.com.

This code will be active only until August 10, while stocks last.

To future proof your existing products we highly suggest that you purchase the following items:

Base unit replacement rope: User replaceable rope specially formulated for whipr by Marlow ropes (a video guide will be published shortly)
SUP paddle: our most popular add-on for customers that purchased rowers
Ski Accessory: our second most popular add-on for customers that purchased rowers

CAN I HELP?

If you'd like to contribute directly to Whipr please scroll to the bottom of this page and add to our shipping fund. All money collected at this link will go directly towards paying the excess shipping fees incurred by your shipments.

WHAT ABOUT MY WARRANTY/ITEMS?

The terms of Kickstarter and Indiegogo will should be consulted for any questions on perk/rewards. In plain language, Whipr, Inc. has made all possible good faith efforts to fulfill crowdfunded campaigns with multiple attempts to provide a means to claim backer rewards. All backers with unclaimed rewards have been notified by email multiple times of the methods by which they can claim their rewards including last chance notices. We tried to make it work, but we are unable to process refund requests. If you'd like to claim your reward you may still pay the invoice you were sent.

If Whipr, Inc. remains insolvent the company will no longer be in operation in order to service your warranty.

PERSONAL NOTE FROM THE FOUNDER

When I launched Whipr it was a dream that came true, likely because of you. For that I thank you. I could never have expected what transpired over the next 18 months as I saw the best laid plans fall apart due to the pandemic.

I’ve tried, and I believe succeeded, in surrounding myself with industry professionals and ‘smarter than me’ people to get this project done. None of us had a crystal ball in order to predict the damage COVID would have on our startup business. At every turn we tried to do the ‘right thing’ by backers, but we failed many times to make everyone happy. I accept that as part of business but wish it had been easier to say yes to the many demands that came our way.

I’m very sure that there will be some people reading this and assigning blame on myself or my team and that’s fine, I also accept that. You don’t start this kind of business, stick your neck out that far and not expect to be rewarded with far more pressure than pleasure. This venture has been one of the hardest things I've done in life and I can't tell you how many sleepless nights I've had over the past two years. From solo staffing the company for the first 6 months to hiring a team, to putting out the endless fires that COVID lit around us it's been incredibly difficult ... I only wish I could say that it was successful. Alas that's not the case. That said, I’m proud to have designed and delivered an innovative product that is now in over 12,000 homes around the world, and I’m absolutely stoked to see it having a positive impact on so many people’s lives.

I apologize for this disappointing news, especially to the backers who were negatively impacted in any way. I assure you that we did everything in our power to succeed. As this administrative process takes place many of the decisions will be taken out of my hands, but where there's a chance to steer in to anything that will benefit backers I will endeavor to do so.

We all had great big dreams for this product and this company… but for now, this run is over.

Sincerely,

Luke Tipple
Whipr founder

Amazing Rower--sad that Whipr is going out of business

This is my second Whipr rower--I bought it because Whipr is selling off assets. This is an amazingly compact rower that gives a great workout. It is different from the standard Concept 2 but for the average rower, it really works well.

It's a little difficult to put together the first time--just the three dimensions of it, but once you do it it's easy after that. All parts are modular, which had the potential to be swapped out, including the central ERG unit. It's all very simple and logical.

The ERG unit housing is manufactured out of high impact plastic. Everything is solid. All other parts are manufactured to the highest standards out of steel and high end components. Everything was packed well.

I had no problems with set up and no problems with use. I use it nearly every day and got a second one as a back up.

I am surprised that no one would buy the technology here. This is Whipr's first product and it's really great. At $229 it's a steal--this thing functions like a real rowing machine whereas the rest of the garbage you'd buy at this price point won't last and won't give much of a workout. (Even at 'full' price, the rower was a great buy.) The Whipr isn't the loudest set up out there but is louder than most water and magnetic rowers. At a full clip, it is about as loud as a concept 2.

This thing can be broken down and moved to a new location easily. It can even fit in a suitcase for travel. The rower gives a decent workout. Adherents of the Concept 2 and high-end rowers may find the action less smooth and may not quite get the high end resistance they are looking for, but the rest of us will be satisfied. And if you live in a small space or need a portable rower, this is the one to choose.

I am certain if Whipr had stayed open, Whipr 2.0 would have been even better. The engineering on this thing was just excellent. I guess, when you come down to it, most start ups do fail. It's just sad to see a company that put their heart and soul into this machine got dinged by supply chain issues and added costs courtesy of the pandemic. I, for one, am sorry to see them go.

Again, this thing is a steal for $229--get one while you can!

This is our second machine!

I love this rowing machine so much that I bought a second wind just in case parts of the first one break! I’m so sad the company is going out of business!!

I love the portable skier/rower

I exercise for the purpose of long endurance, but my city doesn’t allow me a beneficial weather for running outdoors for almost half the year & my closest gym is about 45mins. I refuse to sacrifice my time just so I can run on a treadmill. This is a convenient product for me, rower/skier on winter season & running on summer. Though it wouldn’t work for sprint sessions,
I can say that the finished product looks & works amazingly well for my purpose.

A great workout!

This is my 2nd ski accessory because my first one broke after nearly 2 years of almost daily use while traveling with it around the country. Why give it 5 stars when the first one broke? First, let me explain how it broke - The handles are connected to the rope in 2 ways. The rope wraps around the inside of the handle and, for added security, is slipped through a hole with a strong knot on the other end. I didn't have the rope wrapped around the inside of the handle (my fault) and the knot eventually came undone because of this. So, mid workout, the rope released from one of the handles and flew out the other end of the accessory. There was no way to weave it back in without taking the whole accessory apart, and I simply couldn't figure out how to do that without breaking everything. The solution is so simple: don't unwrap the entire rope from the inside of the handle. Given the fact that I didn't pay attention to this clear direction AND this accessory is so affordable, I really can't complain. I love using it so much that I bought a new one even after the first broke. It's a great accessory to get cardio in anywhere you might be traveling... and if you have nonstop sciatica like me, it's a low impact workout that burns calories and fuels muscle. So it's a win for me!

Smart Package in a small design

I use it 4 to 5 days a week, I get a great total body workout giving my feet a break when I'm not running.

Let customers speak for us