SoulCycle, the indoor cycling chain, files for initial public offering

It will separate from majority owner Equinox and operate independently prior to completion of the IPO.

SoulCycle Holdings LLC was converted into SoulCycle Inc. Now that it has filed, SoulCycle is in its so-called “quiet period” and can’t comment on the reasons behind the filing.

Co-founders Ms Cutler and Ms Rice say they came up with the idea, because they were looking for a fitness activity which didn’t feel like work.

Rice and Cutler don’t seem to be sweating it, though.

Since inception, SoulCycle has attracted riders with an immersive fitness experience that enables them to release stress, burn fat, tone muscle, improve aerobic endurance and change their bodies, fast.

Currently, there are about 40 SoulCycle locations in the United States, and the company made $26.5 million in profit last year, nearly 240% more than it did in 2012. SoulCycle has 38 studios in seven cities and plans to expand to 250 studios over the next couple years. With each gym averaging about $4 million in annual revenue, SoulCycle could eventually be one of the most valuable fitness brands in the country. Thirty percent of its weekly rides are reserved within the first 15 minutes of availability in its “Monday at noon” experience.

The company, which revealed Thursday that it’s going public, might start making classes available to customers in their homes, SoulCycle said in a filing with the SEC. The company has not yet decided which index to list on or what symbol to list under.

Soul Cycle is planning to open a studio on Boston’s Boylston Street this fall. The company cited grassroots marketing initiatives, digital engagement programs and social responsibility activities as nurturing the growth of the brand.

I’d be a buyer of the SoulCycle IPO myself at those prices, but we’ll have to wait a while longer to find out its exact valuation.

“If in the future we lose such celebrity ridership, this could have a negative effect on our business”, it warns.

A SoulCycle class at the Spotify House during SXSW 2015 on March 17, 2015, in Austin, Texas. To put that in context, sports apparel maker Nike Inc. spent 10% of its revenue on advertising and promotion in 2014, or $3.2 billion. Today, SoulCycle claims it has a community of 300,000 unique riders who created an online account and attended a paid or complimentary class.

The deal, which is being underwritten by Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, William Blair, Cowen and Company and RBC Capital Markets, will need to go through regulatory approval and pricing before hitting the markets.