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Strava CEO resigns AGAIN after laying off 15% of his workforce (38 people) and disastrous secret launch of a new pricing scheme that costs up to $80 per month: A Harvard grad previously resigned in 2014 because his wife had cancer
- Michael Horvath co-founded the exercise app Strava in 2009 to foster a sense of community among active people and allow them to track their activity.
- He resigned in 2014 to care for his wife Anna, whom he married when they were both in their early 20s and who died in 2017: he returned in 2019.
- On February 6, Horvath said he would be stepping down as CEO, saying that they “need a CEO with the experience and skills to help us get the most out of this next chapter.”
The CEO of the fitness app Strava has announced he is stepping down, following the disastrous launch of a new price hike, which customers were not told about, and the layoff of 15 percent of the company’s workforce.
Michael Horvath, who co-founded the app with fellow Harvard rower Mark Gainey in 2009, said he felt the company needed new leadership.
Horvath stepped aside in 2014 to care for his wife Anna and their four children as she was dying of terminal cancer. She passed away in 2017 and he returned as CEO in 2019.
The New Hampshire-based tech entrepreneur said he had come to the conclusion that “Strava needs a CEO with the experience and skills to help us make the most of this next chapter.”
Michael Horvath co-founded Strava in 2009. Earlier this month, he announced that he would step down as CEO.
The exercise tracking app has 95 million users worldwide, according to Business of Apps
In a letter on the company’s website, Horvath wrote: “I informed Strava, the company, this week that we are beginning the search for my successor as CEO. I feel it is important to share the same news with you, the Strava community.’
Horvath met his wife Anna, an artist and printmaker, while they were both studying at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. The couple were married for 25 years and had four children: she died in 2017 at the age of 48.
He said he was proud of his work on the app, which now has active users in every country in the world and 40 million activities uploaded per week. There are 95 million users worldwide, according to Business of Apps.
The app allows users to track their routes in various sports including cycling, running, skiing, and kayaking. People can ‘like’ each other’s sporting achievements by giving ‘kudos’.
Its popularity skyrocketed during the pandemic, with two million new users every month during 2020.
“As co-founder and CEO, making sure we’re choosing the right path to that destination is only part of my job,” Horvath wrote on February 6.
‘The other part is making sure we always recruit and support the right leaders at the right times.
“What got us here won’t be exactly the same as what gets us there.”
He added: “The search for the next Strava CEO is well underway and I can’t wait to see Strava become the company and service that gets the world moving.”
The company came under intense criticism from its users over the new pricing plan, and on January 23, two weeks before Horvath’s resignation, apologized for the botched implementation.
Horvath is pictured with his co-founder Mark Gainey. The couple met at Harvard.
Horvath said it was time for someone else to lead Strava into the next chapter.
The company increased prices at different rates, up to doubling the price for some monthly users up to $80 per month, but did not inform them.
Instead, they sent a standard renewal note saying that the subscription was renewing at a higher rate, while the website still displayed an incorrect lower price.
‘We update our prices. Our message was very confusing. So we’re providing more clarity,’ the company said.
“In an effort to implement pricing updates for our subscription, we made a mistake by not providing enough information directly to our community. We sincerely apologize for the confusion and concern this has caused many of our valued subscribers.
‘Our intention was not to hide these price changes, we just moved too fast. We also missed the opportunity to inform long-standing monthly subscribers that by moving from paying monthly to paying annually, they can avoid a significant price increase entirely.”
The chaos ensued shortly after 38 people were laid off in December, representing 15 percent of the workforce.
The Strava layoffs came as several other companies in the tech and cycling industries announced similar staff cuts.