Aire Fresco is the first, and only (so far) application in Spanish that has been shown to have beneficial effects on the well-being and personality of its users. This is supported by the University of Burgos in a study published in the scientific journal International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health from Switzerland.
If there is one topic that has been in vogue these last few months, it is mental health. The names of Naomi Osaka or Simone Biles will sound familiar to you. Anxiety, depression or, simply, the pressure to live up to what is expected of us are some of the most frequent problems we see in our daily lives. You don't have to be a successful athlete to suffer from them. Moreover, the WHO already warned in 2017 that a significant part of the general population suffered from them, but did not have the resources to treat them (WHO, 2018).
Victor Coutin, aware of the problem, founded a year later in Barcelona Aire Fresco, a mindfulness meditation application that today has around 1,200 active monthly users and 37,000 registered. The majority are between 24 and 50 years old. 53% women and 47% men who share the need to find a space that allows them to release stress, have greater mental balance and, ultimately, be happier emotionally and professionally speaking.
The University of Burgos has discovered that "using the Aire Fresco app for 14 days provides benefits on personality characteristics related to successful job performance and better mental health," explains the study's principal investigator, Juan Pablo Pizarro-Ruiz. The application bases its methodology on mindfulness, a practice that consists of focusing all our attention on a single thing. The key is breathing. This practice can be carried out in many ways; in Aire Fresco, they have opted for podcast-type sessions, which are divided by themes —calm, self-control, stress, self-esteem, etc.— and levels according to experience.
Mindfulness is a meditation practice that consists of focusing all our attention on a single thing. The key is breathingUsers have 8 free lifetime sessions. The others are paid. The weekly subscription costs 2.50 euros, the monthly 7 euros, the quarterly 19 and the annual 50. Every so often, Aire Fresco renews its content with new sessions, elaboradas por un equipo de psicólogos developed by a team of psychologistsand professionals in the sector. In addition, they also work with Spanish and Latin universities to "corroborate that the programs have an impact on users," details the CEO.
In addition to the app, Aire Fresco also offers a consulting and support service for companies. Through virtual masterclasses, Coutin and his team design personalized sessions according to the companies' needs. They address problems related to low motivation, lack of leadership, or absence of a sense of belonging. "We do diagnostic work and then tackle it through meditation," explains the CEO. In Spain, starting this year, entities that do not take care of the psychosocial situation and the impacts of stress on their employees may be sanctioned by the Labor Inspectorate with fines of up to 820,000 euros.
Some of the client companies that Aire Fresco currently has are Oracle, here in Barcelona, and the Colegio de Estudios Superiores de Administración (CESA) in Colombia, where the founder is from. In general, most are companies in the technology, healthcare, or education sectors. This type of service currently represents the bulk of their activity.
Aire Fresco has a presence in Spain, Colombia, and Argentina, mainly. Therefore, its team is divided between Latin America and Spanish territory. Apart from Coutin, a year ago Diego Martínez joined the project, who is now co-founder and commercial director. In 2018, when the CEO founded the app, he invested more than 100,000 euros to make it a reality. All of it was his own capital, contributed with the help of external parties.