Dentons assists Les Mills with effective IP protection on new exercise platform

Les Mills is a world leader in the fitness industry for a reason - innovation. Whether it be in their ever-expanding lineup of training programs, their global business model or their range of specially-designed equipment, Les Mills is always innovating. Their next generation SMARTSTEP® exercise platform is no exception.

Released on 1 September 2025, the new SMARTSTEP has been designed to replace the existing model which has been used by thousands all over the world. The impressive innovations in the new SMARTSTEP include integrated risers at each end that can independently click up or down for three height settings (150mm, 200mm, and 250mm). This clever configuration allows for easy adjustment between heights, and between a flat step and an inclined/declined step, all within a lightweight and stackable package.

The Les Mills development team knew that the next generation SMARTSTEP would attract the attention of, not just its customers, members, and instructors, but also its competitors. Given their experience dealing with infringers in this competitive industry, the team wanted to assemble the most effective IP protection possible. This lead them to Dentons.

The Dentons team worked closely with Les Mills from early in the design process to understand their vision, to understand the relevant market opportunities and risks, and to help them to refine their design.

As any designer or product development engineer will know, it can be difficult to gather the feedback necessary to refine a design without disclosing valuable IP to the public. Dentons and Les Mills overcame this by having the Dentons team confidentially test different prototypes in the safety of the Dentons office. They jumped all over the prototypes, tried out the different riser mechanisms, and discussed their thoughts with the Les Mills team.

Then, once the Les Mills team had refined their design, Dr Jeremy Robertson and Dr Andrew Baker worked with them to develop an international IP strategy focused on:

• Protecting the novel functional features of the SMARTSTEP.
• Protecting the novel visual aspects of the SMARTSTEP.
• Providing flexibility for future national phase decisions.
• Enabling the filing of divisional/continuation applications in the future if needed.

Based on this strategy, Jeremy and Andrew worked closely with Les Mills to prepare and file a number of patent and design applications throughout the product development process. These applications will help to ensure the success of the next generation SMARTSTEP and to cement Les Mills' position as a world leader in the fitness industry for many years to come.

To learn more about how Dentons supports clients with IP strategy and patent protection, please visit our Australasia Patents team page and contact a member of our team.

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