When fitness enthusiasts flock to the latest workout craze, protein drink or wearable health tech, there is often an innovative entrepreneur behind the trend who invented a product to cater to their own fitness needs.
Today, the foam roller—used for muscle massage—is a sought-after personal recovery tool on the workout scene, and Mike Jastram is the man manufacturing an advanced version.
As Business Report details in its new Entrepreneur feature, Jastram founded his company in 1990, initially producing custom-made bungee cord straps for a variety of industries. With a lean staff, Sea Ties Inc. quickly developed expertise in different types of manufacturing and assembly, and eventually shifted into producing consumer fitness products in the mid-1990s. When Jastram teamed up with his business partner, Ron Johnson—a fitness enthusiast and mechanical engineer—STI began manufacturing Johnson’s version of a foam roller, which quickly became the company’s best-selling product.
The patented RumbleRoller uses high-quality foam covered in malleable yet firm nodules that manipulate muscle tissue, and promises to deliver the same rehabilitating benefits as a deep-tissue massage. Since launching the product in November 2009, over 600,000 RumbleRollers have been sold.
In the early days, Jastram and Johnson traveled to countless trade shows to put the roller in front of potential customers and let people experience it for themselves. Ultimately, the trade shows yielded big orders. The RumbleRoller ended up in the P90X Beachbody workout program and trickled into the hands of celebrities, personal trainers and the larger CrossFit community, many of whom continually praise the RumbleRoller via social media.
Big-box retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods and Bed Bath & Beyond now carry the Baton Rouge-made product. However, the rapid rise in the popularity of foam rollers poses increased competition. As a result, STI must constantly work to differentiate the RumbleRoller from cheaper competitors and copycats.
“There is the good, the better and the best,” says General Manager Bryan Jastram. “We are the best category. We see people transitioning to our rollers as they progress.”
Read the full Entrepreneur feature. Send your comments to editors@businessreport.com.
