5 minutes with a founder: Melissa Snover & Nourished
We sat down with the founder of Nourished, Melissa Snover to explore the inspiration behind the innovative health and wellness brand. Find out how a personal need led to the creation of bespoke 3D-printed vitamin gummies, the challenges overcome, and the unique approach that sets Nourished apart in the industry.
“I accidentally dropped my bag of supplements at airport security. Crawling around in my suit and heels and picking them up inspired me to simplify and enhance how we take our daily vitamins.”
What inspired you to create Nourished, and how did you identify a gap in the health and wellness market?
“My inspiration for creating Nourished came from a personal need for convenience and personalisation in nutrition. As a busy entrepreneur, I found it extremely frustrating to carry around multiple vitamins and supplements whilst travelling to maintain my specific nutrition regime. On one occasion, I accidentally dropped my bag of supplements at airport security. Crawling around in my suit and heels and picking them up inspired me to simplify and enhance how we take our daily vitamins. After doing some market analysis, I realised there were plenty of companies offering ‘personalised vitamins’; but no-one was authentically manufacturing them on demand with the end consumer in mind. I made it my mission to develop a solution that offered truly personalised nutrition, in an easy and enjoyable format that would be convenient to take anywhere.”
What differentiates your brand from others in the industry?
“At Nourished, we have developed patented 3D printing technology in-house to create bespoke gummy stacks tailored to each customer’s specific lifestyle and health goals. Our process starts with a short online questionnaire, which informs our science-backed algorithm to recommend a personalised ‘Stack’ of seven vitamins, superfoods, and nutrients bespoke to the individual. With millions of potential combinations, this ‘Stack’ is then freshly 3D printed on-demand to ensure optimised absorption and efficacy. Making each customer’s ‘Stacks’ to order also sets us apart from traditional supplement brands, where products can be up to 18 months old before a customer consumes them.
How hard has it been to get here?
“Launching Nourished just a few months before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic was a significant challenge! Despite it being an uncertain and difficult time for businesses worldwide, we were extremely grateful to have been able to survive and thrive. We experienced a sharp rise in consumer demand for personalised nutrition during the pandemic, and as we control our entire UK-based supply chain and 3D print each product in demand, we were lucky enough to be relatively unaffected by external factors such as shipping delays, caused by the pandemic.”
So tech is pretty important to you guys…
“Our 3D printing technology is pivotal to our business. It allows us to create truly personalised nutrition products for our customers, to help them fast-track their goals and optimise their lifestyles. We are also constantly innovating our technology, and last year developed a new large scale manufacturing line which enables us to make hundreds of thousands of a specific SKU in a matter of hours. This hybrid manufacturing approach has allowed us to scale our business, whilst maintaining our commitment for sustainable, high impact and innovative nutrition.”
Tell us more about your approach to sustainability…
“Sustainability has always been a core value at Nourished. We are committed to minimising our environmental impact through various initiatives, including the use of 100% plastic-free, recyclable, and home-compostable packaging. Our on-demand production model reduces waste, as we only produce what is needed, and we don’t allow any single use plastic in our manufacturing processes. Additionally, we source high-quality, sustainable and vegetarian ingredients and continuously seek ways to improve our sustainability practices.”
What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs looking to disrupt the health and wellness industry in 24/25?
“My advice would be to stay passionate and be resilient. Identify a unique gap in the market and develop a solution that truly addresses a need. Surround yourself with a talented and dedicated team who share your vision and values and be prepared to face challenges, learn from them, and never give up. Most importantly, stay true to your mission and ensure that your products or services make a positive impact on people’s lives.”
www.get-nourished.com