Launches

Hearst title, Runner’s World, launches new ‘running companion’ app on Pugpig Bolt with training plans and tiered memberships

Runner’s World has launched a brand new app on the Pugpig platform complete with exclusive training plans and tiered membership, as well as premium content and a host of added value for subscribers.

14th March 2025

Runner’s World has launched a brand new app on the Pugpig platform for members of its new Club, complete with extensive training plan library and other premium content, benefits and rewards.

The training plan library is core to the brand’s new membership proposition, ‘Runner’s World Club’, and is exclusive to Silver and Gold subscribers. Bronze members can view the training plan section but will encounter a paywall powered by our integration with CDS Global.

Ahead of launching the Club, Runner’s World conducted research with existing and potential customers who expressed a strong appetite for personalised training plans. To deliver a tailored experience for users at scale, we repurposed Pugpig Bolt’s search filtering functionality to allow users to refine plans based on distance, target time goal, runs per week, and overall plan length.

Along with the training plans, the app has a fresh design and restructured article categories to make content discoverability as easy as possible. It’s also home to the magazine e-edition and the RW podcast, plus member-only content, competitions, events and rewards within a new members tab, powered by our integration with Clock.

Jean Kemp, Customer Director at Pugpig said:

“The new app and membership structure were rolled out in just 4 weeks – a testament to our efficient and close collaboration with the Runner’s World team. Now the groundwork is laid, we’re looking forward to refining and expanding the app’s capabilities further in the future. We’re proud to be able to support Runner’s World as they continue to be a trusted companion for runners.”

Jennifer Bozon, Membership Director at Runner’s World said:

“I’m delighted with our re-imagined companion app, which allows Runner’s World Club members to access all of their benefits all in one place. The all-in-one running companion, members can access guidance, support and motivation, any time, anywhere – whether it’s sourcing a training plan for their next race from our new library, catching up on a latest episode of the Runner’s World podcast or seeking inspiring stories from our digital magazine

“The training plan library with filter functionality is a particular highlight for me, as it’s allowed us to deliver the customisation our customers told us they wanted when we conducted market research ahead of launch – but at scale. We’ve already seen a 35% increase in daily app usage, which is a great result so far, and I can’t wait to see how we iterate the app in the future, as we learn more about user behaviour and our members’ needs and preferences.”

Take a look at the Runner’s World app on iOS and Android, and don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’d like a closer look at Pugpig Bolt.