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Kodi Berg Taught Herself to Invent. Now Her Patented Weights Are in Hotels Around the World.
Equipt founder Kodi Kitchen Berg went from soap operas to patents, teaching herself product design and building a fitness brand on her own terms.
Kodi Berg didn't come from fitness, design or business. Before Equipt, she was a model and an actress.
Today, Equipt makes patented, design-led weights that sell direct to consumers and through hotels, studios and retailers.
From Soap Opera Actress to Fitness Founder: How Kodi Berg Started Equipt
Kodi started modeling at 15 and appeared in magazines including GQ and Cosmopolitan. She later moved into acting, with credits that include CSI: NY. From 2011 to 2012, she played Dr. Maggie Wurth, a pediatrician on ABC's General Hospital.
The idea for Equipt came after she became a new mom. Traditional fitness felt too focused on end results, and it didn't fit her life.
"If I've got two hours away from my babe, odds are I'm going to go out for martinis with my girlfriends. So how do I bring more movement into my everyday?"
Then she read about the neurology of design: our hands instinctively reach for what we find beautiful. As far as Kodi could tell, nobody had ever applied that to a weight.
How Kodi Berg Designed the Ubarre, a Patented U-Shaped Weight
Equipt's main product is the Ubarre, a U-shaped weight that Kodi invented and patented. The shape came from an idea she kept returning to: what if the U stood for the best version of you? She developed it with her daughter strapped to her chest, visiting steel yards to test materials.
The first hard question was who could make it. The Ubarre had to hit an exact weight like gym equipment, but it also had to look like a design object. Today, she works with Nearshore on that.
When heated studios asked how to clean the wraps, she made a dual-sided version. And when her ideas got more technical, she brought in an engineer who used to work at TRX to help her build tech packs.
The first Ubarre, by her own account, was ugly. It took many rounds of samples to get to the version she sells today.
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How Equipt Grew Through DTC, Neiman Marcus and Hotel Partnerships
Equipt launched direct to consumer on Shopify. Along the way, she taught herself the business side too, from margins to market analysis, and learned to pair her taste with data.
Wholesale followed. At a trade show, a buyer from Neiman Marcus saw Equipt and placed a purchase order on the spot, and the brand was soon stocked at Neiman Marcus.
One of her most important channels came from her own habits. Kodi travels constantly and always packs a Ubarre. She noticed hotel rooms had no good way to move, so she started pitching hotels and filming workout content on the road. In 2021, Equipt announced its first in-room hotel workout venture with Canyon Ranch's newest property. Today, Equipt's weights are used in homes, hotels and gyms worldwide.
She also partners with trainers including Tracy Anderson and Brooke Burke, and is building an app.
Patents, Knockoffs and Protecting a Product Idea
As Equipt grew, a competitor released a near-copy of its Uwraps. Kodi recognized it immediately: it had the same metal-bead defect her own early samples had. It came from the same factory.
That experience made her take intellectual property seriously. The Ubarre holds a design patent for its U-shaped weight, and Equipt has trademarked its language. Her first call on any new product now goes to her patent attorney, who works with female inventors.
She tells young women the same thing she tells her daughter: if you have an idea, start by sketching it.
What's Next for Equipt: Scaling Up
After years of self-funding, Kodi has been getting interest for outside capital and plans to close her first outside round in the new year. She's also building out her team as Equipt scales.
When I asked about her proudest moment, she told me about a customer service call. A woman named Kathy phoned in, and Kodi answered. Kathy hadn't expected to reach the founder. She called to thank her for making something new "for all the crazy old birds like me."
For Kodi, that's the point of the business: making movement feel good for people traditional fitness tends to overlook.
Follow Kodi Berg and Equipt on Social Media
- Kodi (personal): Instagram and Threads @kodikitchenberg · LinkedIn ·
- Equipt: equiptmovement.com · Instagram @equiptmovement · Equipt Movement on YouTube and LinkedIn
Building a physical product? Nearshore makes it easier for brands to find manufacturers in the US, Latin America and select global markets, get quotes and bring products to market. Learn more at nearshored.ai.
