SAFS & BETA

What SAFS & BETA does

SAFS & BETA Bildungs-Akademie is a German private education provider operating for over 35 years in the professional fitness, health, and wellness certification market. The company delivers an 80+ course catalog across seven categories — Fitness (18 courses), Group (6), Ernährung/Nutrition (12), Yoga (21), Pilates (5), Gesundheit/Health (11), and Karrierepaket/Career bundles (7) — targeting aspiring and practicing fitness professionals, yoga instructors, nutrition coaches, and career changers. Core certifications include Fitnesstrainer A-Lizenz and B-Lizenz, Personal Trainer, Pilates Trainer, Yoga Trainer, and Ernährungsberater B-Lizenz programs, with courses issued in both German and English and yoga credentials certified by the American Yoga Alliance.

The company runs a direct-to-consumer online learning platform combining self-paced online courses (typically 3-month duration) with live online instructor-led formats (e.g., 8-day intensives), supported by Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and a HubSpot/Klaviyo marketing stack. Courses are sold as one-time perpetual licenses priced between €490 and €2,160, with bundled career packages (e.g., the A-Lizenz Karrierepaket at €2,052) offering multi-credential pathways. Several courses hold ZFU (Zentrale Fernunterrichtsbehörde) approval, conferring regulatory recognition for German distance education. SAFS & BETA is privately held and operated by founders Dr. Julian Bergmann and David Keppeler, with no disclosed external institutional ownership, funding rounds, M&A activity, or enterprise customers; customer concentration is therefore structurally low and revenue is generated entirely through high-volume individual course sales via safs-beta.de.

Name

SAFS & BETA

Legal name

SAFS & BETA Bildungs-Akademie

Website

https://safs-beta.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SAFS & BETA Bildungs-Akademie is a German private education provider selling 80+ professional fitness, yoga, Pilates, nutrition, and health certification courses online to aspiring and practicing trainers and career changers, operating for 35+ years as a self-described market leader.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fitness Education and Certification

NAICS

Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114), Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAAAHAC

Yoga, Pilates & Mind-Body Movement Education

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Health, Wellness & Lifestyle Education (Nutrition, Fitness, Mindfulness)

SECONDARYHSADACAL

Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) & Pilates Instructor Training

Home & Personal Services/Fitness, Wellness & Personal Training/Yoga & Pilates Instruction

Keywords

• Fitness trainer certification
• Yoga instructor training
• Pilates certification courses
• Nutrition coach training
• Online fitness education

Headquarters

HQ city

Mainz-kastel

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Course Sales (One-time Purchase): The primary revenue stream consists of one-time course fees for professional certifications in fitness, yoga, Pilates, and nutrition. Courses are sold as complete packages with no recurring subscription required for access.
2. Career Package Bundles: Bundled course packages that combine multiple certifications at discounted rates, offering comprehensive career preparation programs for fitness professionals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

SAFS & BETA Bildungs-Akademie is a German education and training provider offering professional certification programs in fitness, yoga, pilates, nutrition, and health. The company delivers courses through online self-paced, live online instructor-led, and bundled career package formats, with 80+ courses across 7 categories. Core certifications include Fitnesstrainer A-Lizenz and B-Lizenz, Personal Trainer, Pilates Trainer, Yoga Trainer, and Ernährungsberater B-Lizenz, with ZFU regulatory approval and American Yoga Alliance international recognition.

Product overview

SAFS & BETA Bildungs-Akademie is a comprehensive education academy offering professional certification and training programs in the fitness and health industry. The company operates as a course marketplace with multiple delivery formats (online, live-online, and in-person) and seven main product categories: Fitness (18 courses), Group (6 courses), Nutrition (12 courses), Yoga (21 courses), Pilates (5 courses), Health (11 courses), and Career Packages (7 bundles). The core offerings include professional licensing courses such as Fitnesstrainer A-Lizenz and B-Lizenz (fitness trainer licenses), Personal Trainer certification, and specialized instructor training in Pilates, Yoga, and Nutrition. The company issues dual-language certificates (German and English) for international recognition, with Yoga training specifically certified by the American Yoga Alliance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fitnesstrainer A-Lizenz Karrierepaket

Quantifiable outcome

• 4.9/5.0 average customer rating with 1,635 reviews and 100% recommendation rate

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• American Yoga AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe yoga teacher training programs offered by SAFS & BETA are recognized and certified by the American Yoga Alliance, providing students with internationally recognized credentials alongside their German certificates.
• HubSpotcoreTechnology or IntegrationHubSpot CRM, marketing automation, email marketing (HubSpot Marketing Hub), and analytics platforms are used for customer relationship management, marketing campaigns, and website visitor tracking.
• Google (Analytics, Ads, Tag Manager, Cloud)coreTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Analytics for web analytics, Google Ads for advertising, Google Tag Manager for tag management, Google Cloud services for infrastructure, and Google Workspace productivity tools.
• Meta Platforms (Facebook, Instagram)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerFacebook and Instagram platforms used for social media marketing, advertising, and customer engagement through paid campaigns and organic content.
• Microsoft (Teams, 365, Clarity)majorTechnology or IntegrationMicrosoft Teams for video conferencing and webinars, Microsoft 365 for productivity, and Microsoft Clarity for web analytics.
• KlaviyomajorTechnology or IntegrationEmail and SMS marketing platform used for newsletter distribution, customer communication, and marketing automation.
• ADCELLminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAffiliate marketing partner program for tracking sales referrals and managing commission-based partnerships.
• ZoommajorTechnology or IntegrationVideo conferencing platform used for webinars, online meetings, and live online course delivery.
• Zentrale Fernunterrichtsbehörde (ZFU)coreOthersGerman distance education authority that approves SAFS & BETA's online courses, providing official recognition for their distance learning programs.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• ACE (American Council on Exercise): ACE is a leading global provider of personal trainer and group fitness instructor certifications, comparable to SAFS & BETA's Fitnesstrainer A-/B-Lizenz and Personal Trainer programs. Both monetize recognized credentials and serve aspiring fitness professionals in similar price bands.
• ISSA (International Sports Sciences Association): ISSA sells online personal training, nutrition, and fitness certifications directly to consumers worldwide. Its digital, self-paced delivery model and bundled career tracks closely mirror SAFS & BETA's online + live-online B-Lizenz/A-Lizenz offerings and career packages.
• NASM (National Academy of Sports Medicine): NASM is a major international fitness and personal training certification body offering trainer, nutrition, and performance credentials — directly comparable to SAFS & BETA's fitness trainer and Ernährungsberater programs. Both compete in the same professional-certification category.
• STOTT Pilates (Merrithew): STOTT Pilates is a global Pilates instructor certification provider, directly comparable to SAFS & BETA's Pilates Trainer Ausbildung. Both sell tiered instructor programs (mat, reformer, comprehensive) with internationally portable credentials.
• NSCA (National Strength and Conditioning Association): NSCA offers globally recognized strength and conditioning and personal trainer certifications. Comparable to SAFS & BETA's fitness trainer credentials in serving the same practitioner audience with recognized, employer-valued certifications.
• BSA Akademie: BSA is a long-established German distance-learning academy for fitness, health, and management certifications. Directly comparable as a German competitor offering trainer, nutrition, and wellness credentials with similar ZFU-approved distance-learning formats.
• Polestar Pilates: Polestar delivers comprehensive Pilates instructor education and credentials worldwide. Comparable to SAFS & BETA's Pilates Trainer Online in serving aspiring Pilates instructors with recognized certification pathways.

Regional players

• IST-Studieninstitut: IST is one of Germany's largest state-recognized distance-learning providers, including fitness, health, and management programs. Comparable to SAFS & BETA in delivering adult continuing education in fitness/health through ZFU-approved formats to the German market.

Emerging players

• Yoga Alliance: Yoga Alliance sets standards and registers yoga teacher training schools (including SAFS & BETA). It is a regulatory counterpart rather than direct competitor but shapes the credential ecosystem SAFS & BETA monetizes through its Yoga Trainer programs.
• AFPA (American Fitness Professionals & Associates): AFPA offers online fitness, holistic health, and nutrition certifications directly to consumers. Comparable as a digital-first credentialing peer overlapping with SAFS & BETA's Personal Trainer and Ernährungsberater programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/safsbeta
• Facebookfacebook.com/safsbeta
• Instagraminstagram.com/safsbeta
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/safs-beta-kg

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SAFS & BETA