Acquisition activity in personalised nutrition space: bioniq buys LOEWI
bioniq markets its personalised nutrition solutions in the UK, the UAE and Russia. The acquisition will enable the health tech firm to expand into new European markets.
“Thanks to LOEWI’s patented personalisation concept, bioniq’s mission to make health accessible and actionable can now be achieved on an even larger scale…This acquisition will help us improve our own personalised solutions and make them available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and The Netherlands,” said Vadim Fedotov, CEO and partner at bioniq, in a press release issued on Wednesday.
Yesterday [Thursday] he told Nutraingredients: “We prioritised these markets because we see a very high demand for a healthy lifestyle in those markets…Their habits, their needs and their openness to improve their health is a key factor for us.”
This is bioniq’s first acquisition, but with ambitious plans for global expansion and venture capital backing to the tune of €13.5m ($15m), the firm is potentially seeking further targets.
Targeting ten countries by the end of the year
“The business target for bioniq is to become the leading global health platform, so for this, obviously, geographic expansion is key.
“The goal is to be present in ten countries by the end of this year, either through organic expansion or acquisition, so we are looking at different opportunities and targets as well,” Fedotov told this publication.
He continued: “Acquisitions will always be an opportunity for growth, especially when we see a strategic fit in terms of geolocation, strength of team, client base and a potential for scale and growth.”
A scientific spin-off of the Technical University of Munich, LOEWI has delivered tailored nutrients based on health-relevant data derived from lifestyle questionnaires and blood tests since 2019.
The start-up says its personalisation tool is based on a proprietary database of more than 15,000 scientific studies and takes into consideration more than 9,000 interactions with diseases, medications and allergies.
Tour de France
The German national football team and skiing team, as well as cyclists competing in the Tour de France use LOEWI to support their health and optimise their training and nutrition.
LOEWI says 95% of customers improve their blood data and 89% report improved wellbeing after three months of taking its personalised nutrients.
LOEWI collaborates with TU Munich, University of Turin and University of Zürich to gain new scientific findings in the field of personalised nutrition and health.
“We are impressed by the team’s achievements in building connections with leading research institutions and sport organisations,” said Fedotov.
Founded in 2019 by former German national team basketball player Vadim Fedotov and neurosurgeon Dr Konstantin Karuzin, bioniq offers personalised supplements based on blood tests.
These include GO - personalised supplements based on clinical data with up to 10m possible formula combinations; BALANCE - personalised supplements based on a 35 parameter blood test; and LIFE - a private health management solution that monitors up to 50 parameters in the blood to inform bespoke supplement design and recommendations from certified nutritionists.
Strategic partnership
bioniq is a strategic partner to King’s College Hospital London, Lanserhof medical leisure group, European Medical Center, UFC, US wearable technology company WHOOP and Finnish sleep and activity tracker firm Ōura.
Asked exactly how bioniq plans to integrate LOEWI’s technology with its own, Fedotov said: “We will use part of the technology built for the foundation and the part that was localised for the markets that LOEWI is in.
“This will provide LOEWI’s current and bioniq’s future clients with an ideal mix that will incorporate the strong sides of both products to be delivered to markets locally.”
He added: “The integration of LOEWI with local partners, research institutions and local suppliers is also of great benefit for bioniq to enhance and scale partnerships with additional datasets and products, including blood markers and other services that can be provided based on the clients’ needs.”
Neither company was willing to disclose details of the deal.
