These former professional tennis players earn $ 70 million a year by selling superfood powders

At 24, German tennis player pro Michael Kuech was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He spent most of 2013 in surgery and chemotherapy. As part of her recovery, girlfriend and tennis player Kristel de Groot fed her superfood powder mixes with wheat grass, barley grass, chia seeds, spirulina and other ingredients suitable for you. Kuech regained his physical strength and mental chutzpan.

I was wondering what is a wheatgrass? What is Barley Grass? Not a clue. But when I started using them, I became much better, Kuech, now with 32 reminders.

When cancer was free, the couple decided to bring their revitalizing mixture to the masses and develop superfood powders in their Amsterdam apartment before releasing Super in 2014. Since then, the founders (de Groot of CMO and CEO Kuech) have grown their team to 120 employees and raised $ 18 million in funding Beyond Meat-Backers Power Led by Plant Ventures. They say their energy-boosting blends, which come from flavored acai and banana to maca, guarantee $ 70 million last year, which is 3,900% more than in 2017.

Your Supers growth story describes the trend in the health food industry towards dried products. Legacy and new age companies are showcasing these versions of pantries such as Trader Joes powdered peanut butter and Sakara Lifes Protein + Greens powder, both of which can be whipped into smoothies, oatmeal and other foods. The global powdered superfood market (a term made by marketers to label nutrient-rich foods) is expected to grow at an annual rate of nine percent from 2021-2025 to $ 31.2 billion. Research and the market report.

Sold largely directly to consumers, although its products are also available at Target, Whole Foods and specialty stores nationwide, the certified B-Corp Your Super has been able to rise from a very crowded superfood space with supply chain transparency and good to consumers, for the benefit of the world. With each Super purchase, the company donates one of its snack bars to someone in need. The company is also slowing its growth to consumer focus on health as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. There are two groups of people coming from Covid: one set struggled with a healthy diet at home. The second set said: Okay, if that happens, I need to eat healthy; I have to maintain my immune system, Kuech points out. With these two types, we have seen growth and steady growth.

When De Groot and Kuech launched their products to farmers in Germany and the Netherlands in 2015, they switched to the Internet and began supplying blends across Europe. Without marketing to U.S. consumers, they found that 10% of your audience was in North America.

We just did influencer marketing, and U.S. consumers realized it, Kuech says. We called our customers and asked: Why are you ordering from us in Berlin? You have to wait four weeks, pay $ 25 for the shipment, it makes no sense. Through these discussions, the founders learned that U.S. customers were willing to wait and pay more for the purity of your Supers and the transparency of sourcing. And so, de Groot and Kuech packed their bags and moved to Los Angeles to take advantage of their American fandom.

Superfood powders are not a substitute for a complete diet, and not all powders are equivalent, warns nutritionist Melissa Halas, MA, RD, CDE. Everyone needs to eat more plant-based whole foods that are closer to nature, but powders can give you more antioxidants, fiber, vitamins and minerals, he says. The purpose of nutrition is to make sure you get foods from a wide variety of substances, the same goes for supplements: make sure someone recommends checking them out.

Your Supers-dehydrated blends won’t replace instant ramen soon. A seven-ounce can of 40 servings of Supers Super Green costs $ 34.90, making the price prohibitive for many customers. However, de Groot and Kuech point out that only about 30% of their customer base is located on the west and east coasts. The remaining 70% live in central America and come from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. We hear so many stories from customers who experience the same thing [Kuech] went through, and it seems like it’s coming out of where you’re cancer-free and anything but healthy and there’s a moment where you say you can change things and you understand how you can change your diet and feel good quickly, de Groot says.

In the future, the company plans to expand its Los Angeles staff by 10 before the end of the years. During this time, Your Super will also launch a coffee alternative with lupine and chaga called Super Brew. As for de Groot and Kuech personally, they will turn their 13-year dating and founding ship into marriage in October. Kuech says: We met on the tennis court and never looked back.