Kogan enters wearables, fitness and health sectors with Fortis

Online retailer Kogan is targeting the $3 billion health and fitness industry with the launch of a new brand called Fortis.

Fortis will cover wearables to exercise bikes and will ease the technology etailer’s transition into other categories. Hardware, homeware, camping and the outdoors are areas of interest, founder Rusland Kogan said in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald.

The new product range will be sold exclusively by Kogan. “Because it’s direct from the manufacturer to the public, it cuts out all the middlemen, making it more affordable for Aussies to get fit, and stay fit,” it said in the company’s statement.

Fortis’ TrackFit, a wearable that tracks exercise performance and sleeping patterns, is being sold online for $69, while a pair of 24kg adjustable dumbbells are priced at $219.

The etailer aggressively entered the 3D printing market in March with the XYZ’s da Vinci 1.0 3D Printer at a price of $699, significantly cheaper than the $1499 price tag of the only notable 3D printer available in general retail, Officeworks’ Cube 3D Printer.

Kogan entered the New Zealand market in March, while its founder Ruslan Kogan was named 162 of BRW’s 200 richest Australians with a net worth of $320 million.