The UK-based enterprise employs 100 employees, together with researchers, product builders, entrepreneurs and everybody in between, guaranteeing ‘vertical integration’, which means scientific adherence and high quality management.
“Final 12 months we generated about 30% of the incremental worth of the class (Euromonitor OC&C evaluation), and we have been the primary probiotic by worth within the UK market,” Will Bowler, CEO at Symprove, informed NutraIngredients.
Gross sales of the liquid probiotic answer have predominantly been D2C on-line, he defined, with an 85% feminine buyer base, however the firm has just lately expanded into numerous well being shops and supermarkets as it really works to “observe the place customers search for intestine well being options”.
The five hundred ml bottles, accessible in a spread of flavors, include 4 dwell micro organism strains: L. rhamnosus, E. faecium, L. plantarum and L. acidophilus. The product is designed to be taken as a shot each morning on an empty abdomen.
A key barrier to entry in retail has been the product’s quick shelf life—an unavoidable aspect impact of promoting a dwell and lively organism—however the science workforce has labored to increase it from 4 months to 1 12 months.
The GP key
The workforce is concentrated on educating normal practitioners and different healthcare practitioners to have the ability to advise their sufferers on intestine well being and ideally suggest Symprove as a complement.
“GPs have round 5 hours of schooling on intestine well being,” mentioned Phil Thomas, the agency’s healthcare practitioner engagement director, referring to information collected by Davies&McKerr (n=432) in June 2024. “Though 77-90% of GPs assume there’s a function for probiotics in supporting well being, 60% of GPs don’t have the boldness or understanding wanted to know what to suggest.”
Bowler famous that it is a main market barrier and a crucial one to beat, as customers typically flip to their GPs for suggestions as soon as they grow to be conscious of probiotics.
Fixing the compliance conundrum
The opposite key barrier for progress for the probiotics market—shared with the broader dietary supplements business, is shopper compliance.
“I’ve a background in prescribed drugs and even when the medicine are life saving there may be nonetheless a difficulty with compliance,” mentioned Thomas. “It’s a kind of human behaviors that even when there’s a extremely robust motive to take one thing, it is vitally tough to stay compliant.”
However the workforce is pleased with its buyer compliance price, with the vast majority of gross sales coming from repeat prospects and 94% of shoppers saying they really feel the distinction in 12 weeks or much less, based on Bowler.
Symprove is acknowledged as one of many extra premium merchandise available on the market, with a really helpful retail value of £80 for a four-week provide. Whereas the workforce has labored to deliver the price down, Bowler identified {that a} increased value level can truly help higher compliance.
“There’s a dedication bias,” he mentioned. “While you spend more cash on a product, you’re more likely to be fairly dedicated to bettering your well being so we do perceive that our prospects are most likely devoted to the trigger.”
The model additionally supplies entry to dietitians in an effort to supply prospects the 360 diploma life-style steerage wanted to help intestine well being.
The primary compliance element although is the format.
“For those who see it sat in your fridge each morning, you aren’t going to neglect to take it,” Bowler mentioned. “It’s a lot simpler to combine it into your morning routine.”
The important thing advantage of the format is that it permits the supply of metabolically lively micro organism, versus freeze dried micro organism.
“This permits the micro organism to outlive the abdomen’s acidic atmosphere and attain the intestine alive and able to help intestine well being,” Bowler defined.
Bacterial antagonism
Since its launch, Tte product vary has modified little or no other than the addition of few additions like an on-the-go format and a brand new pineapple taste launching on the finish of this month.
“Lots of corporations launch a number of NPD for information and pleasure however any new product we launch has to have scientific backing to point out it really works, and that takes time,” Bowler mentioned.
He added that the corporate by no means depends on third get together analysis and ensures all research have been performed on the completed product versus the person strains.
“Micro organism can kill different micro organism and so placing a number of probiotics into one product may doubtlessly result in some strains being killed,” he famous.
The model is at the moment accessible within the UK and a few components of the Center East with plans to start out rising gross sales throughout the European market.
