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Founders Mike and Chris began Second Nature as a result of they had been annoyed with the established order of the weight-loss business: calorie counting, fad diets, and deceptive vitamin recommendation.
As scientists and after researching the most recent dietary and behavioural-change science, they had been assured there was a greater option to make shedding pounds really feel simpler by constructing more healthy habits.
Now elevating on Seedrs, we interviewed the founders, Chris Edson and Mike Gibbs on their journey thus far constructing Second Nature.
We’d like to learn about your profession earlier than Second Nature and the place you first discovered that entrepreneurial spark.
Mike: I’ve been doing random enterprise issues since an early age. Following within the footsteps of my older brothers, I used to play loads of Counter Strike (a Half Life mod) and I had an organization after I was 13-14 reselling Counter Strike game-servers; very random however I assume it made cash. I additionally realized some nice enterprise classes at age 14 concerning the significance of who you go into enterprise with.
Once I was a bit older I performed loads of on-line poker (reasonably efficiently) however as a substitute ended up operating a poker affiliate-marketing firm throughout Cambridge College (maybe burning the candles on a number of too many ends…). I bought that firm on the finish of college earlier than doing a number of years in technique consultancy to study loads of the work and life expertise that you just don’t typically get uncovered to in UK faculties and unis. After which Second Nature started!
Chris: Rising up, I really wasn’t all in favour of constructing companies. I used to be simply all in favour of a really wide selection of issues and struggling to know what I needed to do with my life.
Going by means of college, I began to construct a love of designing merchandise. After which my first job out of college was working within the healthcare business – serving to design the technique for NHS providers.
My need to assist the tens of millions of individuals residing with diabetes and weight problems got here from my time working with the NHS. So many individuals need assistance and don’t know the place to show. That’s the place the entrepreneurial spark got here from – it was bringing collectively my love of product design with an enormous downside that I believed may assist the lives of tens of millions.
How does your app work?
Our app makes use of behavioural science to retrain your thoughts to make wholesome decisions mechanically, so these stick in the long term.
However we don’t simply take a look at what you’re consuming and the way a lot you weigh. We additionally take a look at your sleep patterns, train ranges, the way you regulate feelings, and different habits that influence the best way you could be feeling.
We pair you with a registered nutritionist who supplies one-to-one recommendation and helps you to construct new, more healthy habits.
Our app additionally has a whole lot of easy, indulgent recipes in addition to day by day articles that specify the science of wholesome residing – so you are feeling empowered to make modifications, quite than simply being advised what to do.
We need to make shedding pounds really feel simpler; to make it really feel second nature.
What are you able to inform us concerning the market and the way Second Nature is positioning itself for achievement?
Within the UK we’re the one B2C weight-loss firm that can be nationally commissioned by the NHS within the area of diabetes prevention and weight administration.
We predict our work with the NHS offers us an awesome degree of credibility that we take issues like information safety and affected person security very significantly, and we aren’t one other fad-diet or promoting snake oil.
What does your aggressive panorama appear like and the way does Second Nature differentiate itself?
Our predominant opponents are Weight Watchers, Slimming World, and Noom. All of those corporations take a calorie-counting-first strategy to weight-reduction plan and weight reduction; which we basically disagree with as an total strategy to well being and sustainable weight reduction – primarily as a result of we consider it units folks up with unhealthy relationships with meals and reduces meals far a lot all the way down to its base numbers.
We’re additionally sturdy advocates for specializing in holistic well being, quite than only a single side of the life-style spectrum i.e. we don’t simply concentrate on what you eat, or train, or sleep, or meditation. We cowl all these areas and attempt to set up what the best influence focus could be throughout all these areas for folks relying on their present life circumstances.
May you inform us about a few of your largest achievements up to now?
Mike: From my aspect, I used to be blown away by our medical examine outcomes displaying nearly 40% of individuals decreased their blood sugar ranges under the sort 2 diabetes vary. Once we began the corporate, sort 2 diabetes was largely seen as an inevitably progressive illness, and we’d have been extraordinarily proud of serving to 10% of individuals to attain these outcomes – not to mention nearly 40%.
Chris: Alongside serving to reverse diabetes (which is type of insane when you concentrate on it) – I’m personally most pleased with the crew we’ve constructed at Second Nature. They’re probably the most inspirational group of individuals I’ve ever labored with. I selfishly rank that as an achievement – despite the fact that that is actually only a veiled praise to them.
What do you hope Second Nature achieves within the subsequent few years?
Our two main objectives are to interrupt into the US medical health insurance market, and to proceed to scale within the UK to grow to be a family title within the well being and wellness area.
What do you like to do in your free time?
Mike: I’m comparatively good at practising what we preach, so I attempt to train most mornings and usually prepare dinner within the night (I’m a creature of behavior so I simply rotate by means of 5-10 of my favorite Second Nature recipes…which I added to the programme within the first place!). I’m fairly an enormous foodie so attempting out new eating places is one other fav exercise. Apart from that I’m in all probability planning my subsequent vacation/journey – I typically discover it’s useful to have one thing to sit up for, even when it’s booked a 12 months away!
Chris: What is that this “free time” you communicate of?
I’m joking – however startup constructing is fairly full on! Plus I’m obsessive about it. So I usually spend my free time engaged on aspect initiatives for the corporate.
I do try to stability {that a} bit with another issues. I’ve not too long ago began a YouTube Channel – The Sincere Founder. I’m additionally actually into my train, in addition to spending time with my spouse & my very annoying Parson Russell Terrier pet.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learnt thus far constructing Second Nature?
Mike: The significance of actually believing within the mission of your organization. Constructing a startup, notably in well being tech, is monumentally tough. There are loads of difficult occasions, so it’s grow to be clear that having 100% conviction within the mission lets you push by means of and never quit. Persistence is vital.
Chris: Just like Mike, that persistence is every little thing. It’s the number one predictor of success in any firm. It’s primarily getting by means of the grind. That’s a lot of the battle.
There’s an awesome ebook on this – Grit. The thesis could be that expertise solely actually will get you thus far. The remaining is simply working very onerous and never being smacked down by the ups & downs of startup life.
Second Nature has raised over £3.6M and are at the moment overfunding! Be part of their mission Second Nature’s mission to to eradicate weight problems and sort 2 diabetes. Try the marketing campaign web page right here.
