How WeWard Convinced Venus Williams To Put Her Money Where Your Feet Are

In early 2019, French engineer Yves Benchimol found himself living what had become a typical modern lifestyle: working from a computer, ordering food delivery, taking Ubers, and not moving much.

Looking at his sedentary routine, Benchimol had a realization that would lead to the creation of WeWard, a free mobile app that rewards users for walking.

"It was based on my life," Benchimol said. "Wo I said, 'Okay, why not like trying to use technology to not only simplify our life but maybe try to make people move a bit more?'"

Today, the company has 20 million users worldwide, has paid out €20 million in rewards to users, and contributed €1 million to charities. That momentum and mission led to WeWard's biggest coup: Securing tennis legend Venus Williams as both an investor and ambassador.

From Math to Movement

Benchimol's journey began as a graduate of the prestigious École Polytechnique in France with expertise in applied mathematics and computer science. He launched his first venture in 2015: Occi.io, B2B data analytics solution for large retailers. "It wasn't a big success. It was not a failure," Benchimol said.

After leaving Occi.io in 2019, his vision for WeWard emerged from observing broader societal trends.

"I feel like the society is trying to push people to stay at home more and more," he said. "It was right before COVID and COVID – especially with remote work – made the problem even bigger today."

His solution was to create an app focusing on walking because, he said, it's "the most accessible physical activity" and "the least painful physical activity" that nearly anyone can do.

Walking also had the advantage of being easily measurable by smartphone sensors, making it ideal for gamification.

The Three Pillars of Digital Motivation

Before building WeWard, Benchimol studied cognitive science to understand human motivation, how the brain works, and how to motivate people. From this research, he joined forces with co-founder Nicolas Hardy – a developer and engineer – to build WeWard around three behavioral pillars that drive engagement: rewards, social connection, and gamification.

"The reward was inspired by the loyalty program," he said. "Basically the social is inspired by social media, and the other one is the gamification. Loyalty programs, social media, and games have always tried to trick your brain to make you do stuff that you didn't plan to do at the beginning and make you addicted to something."

Unlike other apps that drive brand loyalty or increased screen time, WeWard hijacks these mechanisms for physical health: "We will do the same, but the end goal will be different, which is to increase your time spent by walking."

Users can convert steps into rewards including cash that can be transferred to a bank account, gift cards, or charitable donations. Top users can earn on average €100 per year by walking, Benchimol said, while those who engage with partner brands through affiliate marketing "can earn 1000s of euros per year."

WeWard users have been shown to increase their walking time by nearly 25%, and collectively, the company estimates their users' walking activity has saved over 600,000 tons of CO2 emissions.

A Profitable Path and Global Ambitions

Unlike many startups that burn investor cash to fuel growth, WeWard charted a different course. The company raised a modest €4-5 million during COVID, including investments from Kima Ventures, but Benchimol the WeWard is profitable and in no rush to raise more money.

"I'm not good at raising money. I don't like to do it, and my time is better spent focusing on my team than discussing and trying to convince, especially investors," Benchimol said. "I built the strategy of the company to not be dependent on any VC, and even if we never raise like we raise enough money. I'm sure that if we don't raise money in the future, the company will continue to grow."

This self-sufficiency comes from a business model combining in-app advertising with affiliate partnerships, primarily with health, wellness and fitness brands. Rather than relying on venture capital, Benchimol said: "I'm the type of entrepreneurs that like to take money from clients and not from VC."

The Venus Williams Connection

WeWard's latest development may be its most significant: a partnership with seven-time Grand Slam champion and entrepreneur Venus Williams, who's joining as both an investor and ambassador.

How does a French startup connect with one of the world's most successful athletes?

In what Benchimol described as either luck or destiny, the connection happened just before he relocated to New York to expand WeWard's American presence. During a farewell lunch with his family at a Paris restaurant, he spotted Williams at a nearby table.

"I don't know if I was lucky. I don't know how it happened," Benchimol recalled. "In front of my family, I said, 'Okay, I need to go.' And I pitched my company to Venus Williams."

That chance encounter led to further discussions, with Williams eventually deciding to become a shareholder. "She definitely understood how a startup works," said Benchimol. "She said, 'Okay, I want to be a shareholder of this company. I trust it in terms of its image and business. It can be huge, especially in the US and in terms of impact.'"

Williams herself explained her alignment with WeWard's mission in a statement: "As a health and wellness enthusiast, I'm thrilled to partner with WeWard. "A big part of wellness and physical activity is simply moving your body in any way you can, and with WeWard, walking becomes a fun and rewarding experience. I'm excited to be part of a movement that encourages people to take the first step toward a healthier, more active lifestyle."

To announce the partnership, WeWard and Williams released a 50-second video showing the tennis champion celebrating reaching her step goal during a match, and the company has pledged a €25,000 donation to Williams's chosen charity, CARE. An additional in-app "Venus Williams Championship" challenge could increase that donation to €40,000.

Looking Forward

Having expanded from Europe to the United States, WeWard now operates in 29 countries and has recorded one million downloads in the United States since launching there. But Benchimol's ambitions remain global.

"The internationalization of the company is the main focus," he said, with upcoming initiatives in South America, Japan, and Canada.

For Benchimol, being physically present in the American market has been crucial to the company's success. "If you want to be big in the US market, you have to be in the US market," he advised other entrepreneurs. "This deal with Venus would never happened if we didn't have an office here in New York."