Vancouverite Kiara LeBlanc has always worked in the wellness space: her parents founded essential-oil brand Saje in the early ’90s, and she worked in the family business for a decade. When the LeBlancs stepped away from the company in 2020, Kiara remained interested in the industry—especially after a ski accident forced her to be more mindful about her own physical wellness.

Designer dumbbells with silicone grips and Carrara marble ends on a marble surface with shadows.
Photo by Adam Blasberg

Kiara and her mother Kate LeBlanc had already been talking about launching a line of design-forward free weights under the name Lifted Movement. “We wanted to invent a new category where home decor and fitness equipment can come together, and create weights that you can proudly display,” Kiara explains. Lifted’s weights are powder-coated steel, with Carrara marble ends and a silicone grip handle. They’re designed to be seen, not concealed, which is part of Kiara’s goal of eliminating barriers to movement: “When people hide their weights under their couch or bed, how often are they actually using them?”

Need a Lift: Kiara (left) and her mother Kate LeBlanc officially launched Lifted Movement, a company focused on stylish fitness equipment like hand weights and resistance bands, in late 2023. Photo by Adam Blasberg

Price, of course, can also be a barrier—Kiara says that outfitting a gym with some of the other luxury brands available can be five figures or more—so the Lifted team considered financial accessibility, too. (Their weights start at $100.) Besides beautiful weights, kettlebells, and resistance bands, Lifted’s product line includes exercise-related furniture. The movement cart, in particular, is super stylish and innovative: it’s a minimal, hardworking table that doubles as storage. The company showed off the stunning products at IDS Vancouver last fall and started officially shipping in December.

The wait may be over, but the weights are just getting started.

 

This story was originally published in the January/February 2024 print issue of Western Living magazine.

Alyssa Hirose

Alyssa Hirose

Alyssa Hirose is a Vancouver-based writer, editor, illustrator and comic artist. Her work has been featured in Vancouver magazine, Western Living, BCBusiness, Avenue, Serviette, Geist, BCLiving, Nuvo, Montecristo, The Georgia Straight and more. Her beats are food, travel, arts and culture, style, interior design and anything dog-related. She publishes a daily autobiographical comic on Instagram at @hialyssacomics.