The Pathway to Longevity
Moderator: Anna Magzanyan
President
LA Times Studios
Speakers: Lauren Antion
Co-Head of Beauty, Personal Care & Wellness | Intrepid Investment Bankers
Lauren Antion serves as the co-head of the Beauty, Personal Care & Wellness practice for Intrepid Investment Bankers. She has significant experience sourcing and executing transactions with a strong understanding of trends and value-drivers across the sector as well as close relationships with leading acquirers and investors. She joined the investment bank in 2015 and previously worked at Herbalife International of America as a member of the Global Contact Strategy Team. She completed the Business Bridge Program at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.
Miranda Kerr
Founder & CEO | KORA Organics
Miranda Kerr is a certified health coach, holistic health expert and entrepreneur. She is a pioneer in the clean beauty movement and launched KORA Organics in 2009 to help others achieve clinical results using certified organic ingredients and sustainable harvesting practices. Now, KORA Organics is sold in 30 countries and shipped across the globe to over 160 countries and growing. She has a successful international modeling career and was the first Australian Victoria’s Secret Angel.
Dr. Yasmeen Nkrumah-Elie
Global Director of External Research | ChromaDex
Yasmeen “Dr. Yaz” Nkrumah-Elie, Ph.D, is the global director of external research at ChromaDex, where her team manages a portfolio of nearly 300 agreements supporting the advancement of NAD+ science, primarily through the use of the ingredient Niagen. She recently became the first recipient of the Council for Responsible Nutrition & Radicle Science “Woman Trailblazer Award.”
ON EMERGING TRENDS IN THE HEALTH AND WELLNESS INDUSTRY
Lauren Antion: The health care, wellness and beauty industries are converging in both products and services. There’s a lot of new entrants in the supplements category. On the services side, the medical spa space combines medical services and aesthetics. You have a lot of M&A interest and buyer interest.
Miranda Kerr: People are understanding the science behind certified organic ingredients and other ingredients that we work with. I’m very excited about how tech and health are merging. Little things such as wearing an oura ring to track your sleep and fitness instruments that are available that help you work out in less time. Now I can spend more time with my kids and my business.
Yasmeen Nkrumah-Elie: It’s wonderful that we are recognizing the needs of women. Science is starting to catch up. We are moving towards trends of healthy aging and we are including women. We have differences in our bodies and how we function.
We are developing products for women. NAD supports your body and you need it throughout your whole life. We understand that health starts at the cellular level. There’s exciting work in the area of healthy aging.
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF COLLABORATION
Kerr: It’s exciting to collaborate with like-minded people. We just launched a collaboration with Pressed Juicery where we have seven days of turmeric shots. We also collaborated with Hatch on a wind down routine. Aligning with a company that shares similar values with you allows you to touch their customers who may not have heard of you before.
Antion: Brand collaborations can be very additive and can drive brand awareness and customer acquisition in a short period of time. You have to share a demographic but also need alignment on brand values. It should also be complimentary to other products that are existing for each brand. It can be an impactful tool.
Nkrumah-Elie: There’s so many different researchers looking at different areas. When we collaborate in the science space, we open up new ideas. We’re taking care of our stress. When we work together, we figure out how to make it better for all of us. We make sure that our habits are not only about the moment, but also the long-term vision about how it can impact our health. You want to make sure that you’re taking care of body, mind and spirit.
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF GENETIC TESTING AND NUTRITION IN LONGEVITY
Nkrumah-Elie: Genetic testing or personalized testing for nutrition like NAD testing and measuring levels of different vitamins helps you understand the dynamics of your body. The personalization of what we take into our bodies has come to the forefront.
Kerr: My needs now as a mother are different from what they were and continue to evolve. I do blood tests regularly to see my needs from a nutritional standpoint. It’s not one-size-fits-all. I believe in investing in testing. We will continue to learn more, but there are simple things that we can do daily. We can eat organic fruits and vegetables. We can invest in a water filtration system. We can do exercise that we really enjoy. There is so much to be said for maintaining an attitude of gratitude. On the back of our products, we have a positive word to remind you to have an uplifting moment for yourself.
ON ENTREPRENEURS GROWING AND SCALING A BUSINESS
Antion: When scaling an early-stage business, focus on the product is key. First, make sure that the consumer wants to repurchase your product. Leverage surveys to get feedback and ask about new products. Second, set measures and tangible KPIs for the business. Measure what’s working and be nimble and pivot. Third, in the early lifecycle of a brand, depth is more important than breadth. Focus on distribution and drive traffic. You can leverage that success down the line to enter a bigger distribution with better terms. Consumers are smarter than ever about the ingredients in their products. They not only want clean, but products need to work. Buyers are focused on products that have a good ingredient profile with clinical data.