Commars Company is a sports healthcare startup that manufactures the sports protective gear brand "Gripit" and operates a community focused on recovery after exercise. The representative, Jo Yong-dae, founded the company in September 2020.
The representative, Jo, who was in charge of building online businesses at companies such as E-Land and CJ Olive Young, had a strong interest in health and the environment. Against this background, he founded Commars Company and ventured into the eco-friendly cosmetic business. However, after experiencing health issues, he began exercising such as running, and based on this experience, he pivoted the business to focus on sports healthcare in April 2022.
"Unlike existing sports brands that focus on how to achieve better performance, Commars Company is focused on recreational athletes who want to enjoy exercising in a healthier and longer-lasting way."
About a year after pivoting to the sports healthcare sector, the representative Jo introduced the sports protective gear brand "Gripit" in April 2023. Jo stated, "One third of recreational athletes stop exercising due to pain, and there is no solution to solve this issue," adding that "the protective gear developed and produced by Commars Company can provide assistance."
The types of Gripit include a variety of protective gear for common injuries such as the wrist, elbow, lower back, knee, and ankle. Jo explained, "I am involved in everything from material development to finished goods production based on my experience of feeling pain while exercising," and noted that "the strength lies in accurately targeting the painful areas while providing good elasticity for comfort during exercise."
Gripit conducted functional design and clinical trials of its products through collaborations with soccer team doctors, stretching experts, and universities like Dankook University.
Commars Company also operates an artificial intelligence (AI) consulting service and community. Jo noted, "We have accumulated and analyzed various data related to pain and recovery after exercise," and explained that "by applying AI technology, when customers input information about pain and injuries that occur after exercising, we recommend recovery exercises, dietary intake, and protective gear tailored to each individual."
Since the end of last year, we have also been conducting sports challenges. Through the ongoing community, we set goals such as running and hold programs where participants cheer each other on and exercise together every two months.
Commars Company is also targeting the Japanese market. Jo stated, "Japan has a similar body type to Korea, and the recreational sports market is about ten times larger than in Korea," noting that "we have steadily increased our sales since participating in a sports expo in Japan last year." Jo continued, "This year, we are strengthening our business in Japan by entering Japanese online shopping malls such as Amazon Japan," and he added that "we plan to develop more protective gear products and build a business that connects hospitals and treatment."