Sportland x YuMuuv: Igniting the Spirit of Movement

Introduction

Sportland, a leading retail company specializing in athletic and leisurewear, has been a key player in the Baltic region for over 25 years. With operations in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as e-commerce in Finland and Poland, the company employs over 400 people in Estonia alone. Their mission is to improve young people’s lives through the products they sell. In line with this vision, Sportland has consistently prioritized an active lifestyle for its employees, leading them to seek an engaging platform to enhance their internal sports initiatives. This is where YuMuuv came in.

The Challenge

Sportland had a long-standing tradition of organizing sports-related activities for employees. However, they wanted to improve participation and engagement while ensuring that data tracking and management were efficient. Their primary challenge was finding a platform that offered diverse engagement opportunities, allowed easy tracking of participation, and minimized manual effort. Additionally, Sportland needed a solution that could be implemented seamlessly without requiring extensive manual work to consolidate data from different sources. Their goal was to ensure employees remained motivated and engaged in the long run, rather than just for short bursts of activity.

Why YuMuuv?

After conducting extensive research and evaluating multiple service providers, Sportland chose YuMuuv due to its:

• Broad range of activity tracking capabilities.
• Automated data collection and reporting.
• Ability to create dynamic and varied challenges throughout the year.
• User-friendly interface that encouraged participation.
• Strong customer support and adaptability.
• Scalability to accommodate both smaller and larger teams.

YuMuuv offered the perfect balance between engagement and data tracking, ensuring that employees could seamlessly log their activities while also allowing Sportland's leadership to monitor participation trends and overall fitness improvements.

Implementation and Evolution

Initially, Sportland planned to focus on specific sports each month, but they found that this was difficult to execute consistently. Instead, they pivoted toward a model emphasizing individual performance measured through various angles. This shift allowed greater flexibility while maintaining engagement across a wide range of employees.

Throughout the year, Sportland created monthly challenges that kept employees motivated. YuMuuv’s versatility ensured that activities remained engaging and accessible, preventing challenges from becoming monotonous. Additionally, Sportland extended its sports initiatives beyond the platform, incorporating live events and team-building activities to further support their employees’ well-being. This hybrid approach—combining digital tracking with real-world engagement—helped solidify the culture of movement within the organization.

Participation and Engagement

Initially aiming for 50% employee participation, Sportland exceeded expectations, with over 75% of their workforce actively engaging with YuMuuv. The success was attributed to several key factors:

1. Realistic Challenge Design – Ensuring that goals were achievable and inclusive. Challenges were designed to cater to employees of all fitness levels.
2. Incentive System – Rather than rewarding only top performers, Sportland implemented a lottery-based reward system for those who met challenge goals, making participation more appealing to all.
3. Store-Level Integration – By incorporating the initiative into store operations and onboarding programs, Sportland ensured that new employees were introduced to the sports year immediately. This ensured that movement became an integral part of the work environment.
4. Strong Internal Communication – Regular updates via Facebook groups and other internal channels helped keep engagement high. Employees were kept informed of upcoming challenges, leaderboard standings, and shared success stories to create a sense of community.

Beyond participation, Sportland found that engagement levels remained consistent throughout the year, indicating that employees were truly enjoying the challenges rather than seeing them as an obligation. The variety of activities also allowed employees to discover new sports and fitness activities that they might not have considered previously.

Management Buy-In and Future Plans

While top management was supportive, Sportland recognized that participation at the store-manager level significantly impacted engagement. Stores with highly involved managers showed higher participation rates, leading Sportland to focus on motivating store managers to take a more active role in future initiatives. Recognizing this, Sportland plans to integrate movement and physical wellness into managerial responsibilities, ensuring that it becomes a core aspect of leadership training.

Looking ahead, Sportland plans to:

• Continue with YuMuuv while refining their approach to maximize participation.
• Enhance stability in engagement levels.
• Strengthen internal communication around challenges.
• Expand their sports calendar to include even more diverse activities.
• Introduce specialized challenges tailored to specific demographics within the company, such as challenges aimed at beginners, more competitive ones for athletes, and wellness-based challenges focused on mindfulness and relaxation.
• Implement a recognition system where engaged employees and teams receive acknowledgment for their efforts, creating an even stronger sense of motivation.

YuMuuv’s Growth and Feedback

Sportland was particularly impressed with YuMuuv’s continuous development, particularly with the introduction of an announcement system. However, they provided constructive feedback, suggesting an internal communication feature that allows users to react to announcements, enhancing interaction and engagement within the platform. Sportland believes that fostering two-way communication within YuMuuv will make participation feel even more organic and inclusive.

Additionally, Sportland suggested the possibility of integrating wearable devices directly into the platform, allowing employees to sync their activities seamlessly. This would remove any potential barriers for those who already track their activities via smartwatches or fitness bands.

Long-Term Impact

Beyond the immediate success of their first year using YuMuuv, Sportland sees this collaboration as a long-term investment in their employees’ well-being. Studies have shown that companies with strong wellness initiatives experience lower turnover rates, increased productivity, and overall higher employee satisfaction. Sportland believes that by making movement a core component of their company culture, they can further enhance employee happiness and engagement.

Moreover, Sportland hopes to expand the program across their other regional operations. While currently implemented only in Estonia, the company sees significant potential in introducing YuMuuv to their Latvian and Lithuanian branches. This would create a cross-border sports initiative that fosters unity and friendly competition across the entire organization.

Conclusion

The collaboration between Sportland and YuMuuv has proven highly successful, fostering an active lifestyle among employees while aligning with the company’s mission. Sportland’s commitment to continuous improvement, coupled with YuMuuv’s adaptability and user-friendly approach, has created a sustainable and engaging wellness program.

With plans to refine and expand their initiatives, Sportland looks forward to further collaboration with YuMuuv, ensuring that employee wellness remains a core component of their organizational culture. By maintaining a strong focus on inclusivity, realistic goals, and continuous innovation, Sportland is set to further enhance its reputation as a company that truly cares about the well-being of its employees.