How STRV & RevenueCat took Arnold Schwarzenegger’s The Pump to the top 20 in 72 hours

Founded in 2004, STRV is driven by a relentless pursuit of excellence — simply “good enough” won’t cut it. This ethos explains why STRV relies on RevenueCat for their client and internal app projects: it enables seamless in-app subscriptions and frees up engineering hours better spent on creating top-tier apps. In this case study, we explore how STRV used RevenueCat’s capabilities for two groundbreaking projects: The Pump and Float.

From Schwarzenegger to subscriptions: The tech behind The Pump

To stand out in the busy space of fitness apps, STRV faced a daunting task with Arnold Schwarzenegger’s The Pump: embodying the multi-faceted persona of Arnie himself. This was not just an app for counting calories or reps. It was designed to be a community — a space for Arnold to interact with fans and followers, offering them personalized workout plans, motivational content, and even some merch. The app’s brilliant onboarding experience draws users close to Arnie from the get-go, adding a personal touch that fuels rapid engagement and investment.

“From day one, we knew we were going to use RevenueCat for everything related to payments.”

With RevenueCat on board from the outset, STRV could direct their engineering talent toward the app’s unique challenges — like crafting a system robust enough to manage a highly complex, tiered subscription model that also included lifetime memberships. And let’s not forget, the app had to excel on both iOS and Android platforms while being poised for quick scalability.

RevenueCat’s versatility was particularly helpful here. STRV needed a way to test multiple subscription tiers while also offering a one-off lifetime membership product, all without having to build a custom payment backend. “The team didn’t spend much time on payment integration, which was what we needed,” STRV noted.

The result? A limited release that saw lifetime memberships snapped up in just 72 hours, and an app that broke into the Top 20 of the US App Store in its category. The star power of Schwarzenegger brought people to the paywall and RevenueCat ensured a smooth payment experience no matter the scale.

The story of The Pump underscores a critical lesson: moving from idea to execution swiftly doesn’t mean cutting corners. It means selecting the right tools and partners. And for STRV, RevenueCat was that invaluable partner, solving complexities in the background so they could focus on bringing their vision to life.

How RevenueCat breathes life into Float’s analytics

Float isn’t your average wellness app. Think of it as your pocket-sized guide to optimized breathing, with curated exercises backed by breathing coaches and utilized by everyone from Olympic athletes to Navy Seals. 

“The analytics from RevenueCat made it much easier to monitor active subscriptions, churn rates, and active free trials,” STRV says about their Float app. Not just a basic data tracker, RevenueCat also solved nuanced issues that aren’t readily visible in the platforms’ native analytics. It calculated and attributed conversion rates from trials starts with accuracy, even considering the timing nuances that come with seven-day free trials.

Another feature STRV found invaluable were the integrations. “We use Slack integrations for real-time data on subscriptions, especially when launching new campaigns,” the team shared. They also mentioned their ongoing exploration of the integration between Firebase and RevenueCat, aiming to further refine their data reporting.

“Right now, RevenueCat Charts is one of the most vital tools we’re using in Float.”

Wrapping up: The STRV x RevenueCat partnership

Selecting the right tools is often the unsung hero in the journey from a great idea to a thriving product. For STRV, the choice was clear: RevenueCat. Its capabilities go beyond just analytics and payment processing — it serves as a centralized hub for handling subscriptions, free trials, and even complex currency issues. As STRV puts it, RevenueCat offers a dashboard that “provides all the data you need,” supporting not just engineering goals but also business decisions.

When time is of the essence, RevenueCat not only saves STRV valuable days of development time, but also acts as a force multiplier. It streamlines payment flows for both Android and iOS, allowing STRV to focus on what they excel at: building exceptional apps that push boundaries. All in all, RevenueCat plays a crucial role in helping STRV — and by extension, their clients — achieve success, one app at a time.

If you’d like to become a RevenueCat partner, find out more about the benefits and how to join our partner program.