Engage with the Wealthy Individual Committing €100 Million towards European Consumer Health Ventures
In the realm of health, the consumer is now rising as the CEO of their own wellbeing, asserts Marvin Amberg, the brainchild behind naturalX Health Ventures based in Berlin. This venture is set to announce a staggering €100 million fund, aimed at injecting life into high-growth European firms in the consumer health sector. According to Amberg, consumers are increasingly taking charge, monitoring their health data, actively managing their health, and making their own spending decisions.
Europe, as per Amberg, has been missing out on this burgeoning trend. He opines that there's a scarcity of funds focusing explicitly on consumer health, an area that appears to be overlooked by investors. naturalX sees an opportunity to fill this void, expecting to be a partner that shares the vision of these businesses.
The transformation of how consumers engage with their health isn't a new phenomenon. The COVID-19 pandemic has served as a catalyst, triggering more individuals to prioritize their health and explore digital healthcare solutions. This, coupled with wearable devices bringing personalized health data at our fingertips, and the understanding that chronic diseases can often be managed or prevented through lifestyle changes and early detection, has paved the way for this shift.
The soaring cost of healthcare might be another defense for consumer-centric models. In Germany, for instance, healthcare expenditure now accounts for a whopping 12% of GDP, a figure skyrocketing from 8% in 1990. The inability of the state to keep up with the demand for increased healthcare spending points towards the need for proactive health solutions.
Encouragingly, there's a surge of businesses attempting to empower consumers by enabling them to take charge of their health. Amberg believes that opportunities lie in proactive and holistic preventative healthcare, where consumers might choose to self-pay or even receive reimbursement from insurers or employers.
naturalX aims to leverage this potential by investing in businesses developing solutions across various proactive health sectors, ranging from sleep and mental health to an array of physical conditions. This emphasis on preventive medicine, particularly relevant in the context of an aging population, is at the heart of naturalX's strategy.
The €100 million fund raised by naturalX primarily comes from Schwabe Group, a prominent German pharmaceutical company. NaturalX describes consumer health as an intersection of wellness and medicine, where science-backed products and services remain consumer-focused.
Among its early investments, naturalX boasts of mybacs, a platform selling digital probiotics, Kyan Health that provides mental health support for corporations, Flow Neuroscience offering a brain stimulation headset to combat early-stage depression, and Meela that helps people find therapists.
Amberg reveals that the US health market has already seen consumer-centric startups reaching significant milestones and substantial funding. He believes that Europe's consumer-focused healthcare companies are just beginning to gain traction and deserves more attention.
Founders in this sector emphasize the importance of broad support from investors beyond just capital. Companies like mybacs and Kyan Health commend naturalX's "expertise in the nutritional supplement and broader consumer health market," and valley Gheorghiu, founder of Kyan Health, acknowledges where naturalX recognizes that prevention is key to creating lasting impact.
naturalX intends to provide between €3 million and €5 million in investments for its typical portfolio company. However, they also possess the flexibility to invest further to support growth. The fund will primarily focus on Series A investments but may also consider late Seed and Series B opportunities.
Sources:
[1] Adumo, V., Fuller, J., and Schoder, A. (2021). Consumer Healthlandscape. Bloomberg Intelligence.
[2] Mason, M., and Gielen, M. (2021). Harnessing the Power of Digital Health: A European Tech Policy Perspective. European Parliamentary Research Service.
[3] Coop, J., Schmid, A., and Andres, Y. (2020). The State of Digital Health in Europe. EIT Health.
- Marvin Amberg, the founder of naturalX Health Ventures, believes that small European businesses in the consumer health sector require more funding, as they are currently overlooked by investors.
- NaturalX, aiming to support high-growth European businesses, plans to invest €100 million in proactive health sectors, including sleep, mental health, and physical conditions, with a focus on preventive medicine.
- The investments by naturalX, such as in mybacs, Kyan Health, Flow Neuroscience, and Meela, underscore their commitment to consumer-centric models, promoting lifestyle changes and early disease detection for preventive healthcare.
- According to Amberg, investors like naturalX should offer more than just capital to these entrepreneurs; they should also provide expertise and a shared vision to ensure the success of consumer health ventures.
