The Abs Company was founded in 2006 by fitness innovators, Don Brown, David Augustine, and Sean Gagnon. Their decades of experience running health clubs and developing fitness products taught them that one consistent desire amongst fitness enthusiasts was to have great ABS. Brown’s first product, the world famous Ab Roller® sold over 10 million units and generated over $1BILLION in worldwide sales. It remains one of the best selling fitness products of all time!
The success of the Ab Roller® opened the door for inventors to approach Brown with their ideas so that they too could follow the path to product success. Several ideas came their way but the trio knew that their next success would be in the areas they knew best – Fitness and ABS!
In 2005 an inventor from Texas named Rob Nelson proposed the concept that would later become the Ab Coaster®. The product was the first AB product to work from the bottom up and was a true innovation in fitness. After a redesign Brown and team became co-inventors with Nelson and officially launched Ab Coaster LLC to bring this revolutionary product to the market.
The Ab Coaster® debuted at the IHRSA Convention in 2007 in San Francisco. It was a small 10×10 booth with 2 handmade samples and the intent was to simply gauge interest. The product was an instant hit. It was simple, innovative and focussed on the ABS! The team knew they had a winner on their hands and simultaneously launched the product into the commercial and consumer markets. One year later the Ab Coaster® won the FIBO Global Innovation award which is given annually to the most innovative fitness product in the world! To date the Ab Coaster® has generated over $100M in worldwide sales and can be found in hundreds of thousands of homes and 25,000 commercial fitness facilities in 68 countries around the globe.
Sensing a need for a single source AB equipment provider, Ab Coaster, LLC became The Abs Company in 2012 with a single mission – We Change Lives from the Core®. AB products serve as a gateway to fitness for many people so the goal became to provide the most innovative and effective core training products in the fitness market. Over the years, The Abs Company has assembled a complete line of innovative and effective equipment, with brands including: Ab Coaster®, Ab Solo®, Abs Bench, Target Abs, and more. These products are proudly featured in fitness facilities around the world.
In 2014 Gagnon and long time friend Mike Ritter developed a new innovation called the TireFlip 180®. This patented product instantly became another hit and launched The Abs Company into the Functional Training market where they have continued to develop an array of products around a concept they call Core-Based Functional Training.
In 2017 The Abs Company signed an agreement with inventor Chris Wagner to develop his SledMill® Concept and bring it to the market. The SledMill followed in the footsteps of the TireFlip 180 and now allowed facilities to safely provide all of the benefits of sled training in only 8 feet of space! The SledMill is used throughout the fitness community by health clubs, Colleges, Rehab facilities and military installations including the US Army and NAVY SEALs.
On Jun 18, 2018 Gagnon achieved a long time professional goal of owning The Abs Company and bought out the partnership from Brown and Augustine. In the process he and Ritter rolled their innovation into the company giving Ritter an equity stake in the business. Now these former college roommates plan to continue sharing their passion for fitness around the world. Armed with over 40 world wide patents and trademarks the company aims to become the world leader in Abs HIIT and Glute Training Equipment.
The Abs Company is guided by a set of core values which are non-negotiable. They include such things as gratitude, innovation, and integrity.
In 2019 The Abs Company signed an agreement with inventor Steve Tylee to develop a revolutionary Glute Training Product. The original invention was a dual motion machine to train the glutes in a down and back motion. Gagnon figured out a way to combine this into one motion and the Glute Coaster was born. It is now used in fitness facilities around the globe and is part of a concept called the Glute Zone!
After over a decade in the great state of NJ, the Abs Company decided to relocate their world HQ to beautiful Lakewood Ranch in SW Florida. This move not only provided for a more business-friendly environment, but also allowed the company to build a beautiful new facility where they can welcome customers to experience all that The Abs Company has to offer!
For Years The Abs Company has been providing innovative ab machines to help create unique and inviting ab training areas inside of fitness facilities. In 2022 we launched our patented concept – The 6 Minute Ab Zone. This zone includes 6 of our most popular ab machines and a timing light to guide users through the circuit. Simply start when the light is green and rotate when it turns red for a complete and effective Ab Workout in just 6 minutes!
Enter the Zones – in 2023 we finalized our zone concept and started introducing it to the industry. The patented Ab Zone™, HIIT Zone™ and Glute Zone™ became popular worldwide and we knew the ZONE training concept was a “HIIT”.
he Ab & Glute Zone was born. We saw that Ab and Glute training are the hottest trends in fitness today. There are TWO body parts that most members are concerned with, The Belly and the Butt. The Front and the Back. We created a dedicated area to work them both! We also launched several key new products including 4 Glute products and 1 Ab product that are the anchors of our Ab & Glute Zone.
