Alessandri says his company is well-positioned to prosper. Unlike Peloton, his products target a broad range of people, from Olympians to those who exercise only fitfully. And for years, Technogym has been building its own digital network. Today, about a quarter of the 40 million daily devotees of Technogym equipment use its mywellness platform, which connects them to their training programs and data.

That feeds into Alessandri’s vision of the all-encompassing role Technogym’s products should play in the lives of its customers. After introducing himself, he sits on one of the black and yellow exercise balls that serve as chairs in the company’s glass meeting rooms and embarks on a six-minute monologue on fitness, lifestyle and technology.

“Wellness means feeling good,” he says. “Wellness is the lifestyle born 2,000 years ago in Italy during the Roman era. Mens sana in corpore sano. A healthy mind in a healthy body.”

He practices what he preaches. His own home is dotted with workout machines, including one in the middle of his library. Technogym’s Cesena campus, all curved roofs and wood interiors -- plus a small army of robotic lawn mowers -- is a cathedral to this vision.

It certainly stands out from the fields of peach trees and low-slung warehouses that mark the drive from Bologna. That’s helpful because it’s a marketing tool, too. More than 25,000 visitors pass through each year, touring the two-floor gym where 1,000 employees are encouraged to work out daily on its dozens of treadmills, stationary bikes and weight machines.

Technogym’s glitzy store in central Milan features neon lights that spell out the company’s “Let’s Move For a Better World” slogan as bikes and treadmills dot two floors. The luxury stylings are well-suited to some of its prices. The polished steel Kinesis machine retails for 11,750 euros, and even the lower-end equipment can set you back four figures.

Yet demand is set to grow.

“It’s a large industry and has seen a lot of growth but overall the category is still in its early days,” said Imperial Capital’s Wood. “Who the winners and losers will be from the next stage of growth is still up in the air.”

Alessandri has a parent’s expectations for Technogym’s future.

“I have two children and Technogym is the third,” he said. “The only things I want from my kids is health, growth and eternity.”