Where Is MAXPRO Fitness From Shark Tank Season 13 Today?

MAXPRO Fitness Founder and CEO Nezar Akeel had been traveling as a mechanical engineer for the auto industry but had a hard time keeping up with his workouts. He put his engineering skills to work by designing the MAXPRO portable cable device that provides resistance from 5 pounds to 300 pounds with a simple turn of the dial. Akeel showed off the device on Season 13 of "Shark Tank," and the Sharks were impressed.

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Akeel blew away the Sharks initially with his $500,000 ask and 2.5% stake in the company, but then he generated $4 million in sales in MAXPRO's first year. Although Akeel also mentioned he'd just partnered with NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal, MAXPRO was also losing money to creditors. After Daymond John made an offer that included a $25 royalty per unit sold, Mark Cuban offered $500,000, a 3% ownership in the company, and 5% in advisory shares similar to Shaq's deal.

Although MAXPRO Fitness is still selling its signature product on its website and Amazon, it's unclear if Cuban's deal was finalized. MAXPRO is not listed on Cuban's website as one of his Shark Tank companies. Crunchbase doesn't list Cuban as one of MAXPRO's investors either. That said, Shaq used his celebrity to show off MAXPRO to the 35 million followers on his Instagram account using the tagline, "Be Epic, Train Epic."

The MAXPRO device alone sells for $999 on the MAXPRO website, but as of this writing, it was on sale for $499. MAXPRO allows you to buy accessories separately on its website, including the wall track, backpack, foldable bench, and straps. To bundle all the accessories together, you'll pay $1,688, although it was on sale for $1,249. 

MAXPRO Fitness hasn't developed any new fitness products, but it's seen a bit of growth in other ways. Shark Tank Recap says MAXPRO Fitness has more than 25,000 users and generated $25 million in sales. Sports Illustrated named MAXPRO the "Best Portable Gym" in 2023.

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Shark Kevin O'Leary disagreed with the need for the MAXPRO Fit app to give users some workout analytics. The app features a free and premium version that allows you to connect with other MAXPRO users, take classes that use the MAXPRO device, or build your own MAXPRO workout. The premium version allows you unique analytics such as determining strength differences between your left and right side.

Akeel had hoped his Shark Tank appearance would boost his marketing efforts, but MAXPRO has a limited presence on social media. As a business, MAXPRO has just 564 followers on LinkedIn with only three posts — the last being in May 2024. The company received a Stevie Customer Service Award in 2024.

Fitness companies can show off their brands on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Although MAXPRO has more than 40,000 followers on Instagram, the posts and reels don't get much interaction. MAXPRO's presence on Facebook is a little more modest with 18,000 followers. The posts aren't frequent but feature the device's portability while traveling. Akeel's Shark Tank appearance pulled in 1.2 million views on TikTok, but those views didn't result in many followers. MAXPRO has just over 2,000 followers on TikTok. Some commenters say it's a good product but very pricey, and another likes the MAXPRO because he hasn't been injured.

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An Amazon user wrote a pretty extensive review of the MAXPRO device. As a fellow mechanical engineer, he gave it five stars for its quality, versatility, and ability to save space in your home. He also mentions that you'll never fear dropping a weight on your foot with the MAXPRO device. Even though it's more expensive, another user recommended getting the full bundle because you can do many more workouts with the wall track mount and bench. MAXPRO's naysayers complained about the company's customer service and the inaccuracy of the weights.