Sylvia Kampshoff, Kanthaka

What’s the inspiration behind Kanthaka?

I’ve always been passionate about fitness. When I worked in a big law firm, I found it super hard to keep up a healthy lifestyle. I was always looking for a way to schedule a trainer on short notice when time opened up, but there was no easy way to do it. When my son was born, I decided to change my career and follow my passion—health and fitness. I wanted to enable everybody who wants to live a healthier lifestyle, to do so.

It makes me happy to be a small part of a big change in our clients’ lives. 

How do you handle risk and competition?

Our goal is to provide a ten-star client experience. We want to see our clients successfully achieving their fitness goals, and we want to be their partner along the way. We worry less about competition than about providing an experience people love. 

What’s been the #1 (or two) top challenges you’ve faced while launching your company?

As a solo female founder who had just moved from Germany, I had to build a network from scratch and find early believers and Angels to support our journey. I was blown away by the amazing entrepreneurial ecosystem. As soon as we were showing traction and growth, we were able to raise money to grow even faster. 

Have you learned anything new or surprising about yourself through this process?

I have learned that running your own company is totally different from working for somebody. It's my baby and I enjoy every minute working on it and seeing it grow. It keeps me going every day when I get great customer feedback and see the numbers going up. It never feels like work to me in the way that my job in private equity and M&A did. 

Founder Sylvia Kampshoff with some of Kanthaka's early-stage trainers

Why did you decide to raise from the crowd via Republic?

I am all about community and love our users. Republic enables us to grow that community and have our amazing users join our journey. 

What is your superpower?

I am a “people person” with vision. I understand exactly what our core audience wants. 

Do you have any unusual routines or habits?

I train with a different newly onboarded Kanthaka trainer every workday to test them and make sure our clients get to train with the best of the best. I got super fit doing that!

Trial session with one of Kanthaka's yoga trainers

Do you have any other hobbies/things you like to do in your spare time? 

I am a passionate polo player. I love horses, and more than anything—my amazing kids and husband. 

The Kampshoff family

Are there any apps or gadgets that you can’t live without? 

I am all about to-do lists, and I am pretty attached to my reMarkable note-taking pad. 

If you could give yourself one piece of advice 5 years ago, what would it be?

Follow your passion and build something amazing that people will love. 

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received?

Traction trumps everything. 

Do you have a(ny) mentor(s)? If so, what have they taught you?

We have an amazing ecosystem of Angels and two early VCs, who are our best mentors. They each have a different skill set. Together, they have supported us along most steps of our journey in an amazing way. A great ecosystem is crucial.

Sylvia with Kanthaka's investor and accelerator cohort