‘People today are more hectic, more stressed. So they need supplements’
As he returns to Dragons’ Den, Vitabiotics boss Tej Lalvani tells Sophie Christie his secret to healthy profits
FEELING tired?” adverts plaster the London Underground tube network – a clever piece of marketing from Vitabiotics, Britain’s largest vitamin company, targeting fatigued commuters on their way to work. The company, best known for supplement brands such as Perfectil (for skin, hair, and nails), Pregnacare, Wellman and Wellwoman, was founded in 1971 by British chemist Kartar Lalvani, and is now run by his son Tej, who is one of the “dragons” on the BBC television series Dragons’ Den.
A new series of the show, which features budding entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas to five multimillionaires willing to invest for a stake in the company, started last week, and it is the second season Lalvani has appeared on. It’s a natural fit for the enterprising 44-year-old who has grown Vitabiotics’ annual global sales from £2m to £300m since he took over the family business from his father, who remains chairman, two decades ago.
Despite inheriting the business, Indian-born Lalvani stresses that he worked his way up from the bottom after graduating from university – first as a forklift driver in the warehouse, then in product development, before becoming chief operating officer in 2008 and chief executive in 2015.
“When we became Britain’s biggest vitamin supplement company in 2013, it was a huge milestone for us as a family business,” he says.
“As an independent company in a competitive market, we’ve had to work with fewer resources than multinational pharmaceutical firms which have much deeper pockets.”
Much of Lalvani’s success has been the result of effective marketing campaigns and rapid international expansion. Vitabiotics’ is currently sold in more than 100 countries across Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Most recently, Lalvani completed a $20m (£15.5m) deal with US pharmacy giant Walgreens, allowing Vitabiotics to expand into the US market; China is next on the list.
“Since China introduced its twochild policy it has been a big focus for us. The majority of pregnant women take supplements after they’ve conceived, which means Pregnacare could be very successful there. Parents in China also love British brands.
“We currently sell online in China, and once we’re registered with the health ministry, we can sell retail.”
The aforementioned marketing campaigns, while mostly successful, thanks to a roster of celebrity ambassadors including model David Gandy and singer Nicole Scherzinger, have also landed the company in hot water at times.
Much like other big vitamins firms, Vitabiotics has faced scrutiny over claims it has made in its adverts. In 2014, the Advertising Standards Authority banned a television advert featuring English championship swimmer Mark Foster because it breached advertising rules by using a professor to make a health claim, which is prohibited in adverts about food or food supplements.
In 2015, the regulator banned a
‘China is a big focus for us since it began its two-child policy. Pregnacare could be very successful there’
Vitabiotics advert for Pregnacare, a vitamin supplement designed for women trying to conceive, because it said there was no proof that the product could increase the likelihood of pregnancy.
Lalvani says these banned ads have been “few and far between” and were the result of frequent changes of already-unclear regulations about what you can and can’t say in advertising. “We’ve done a lot of lobbying with the Government to get these regulations more clearly defined,” he says.
He is bullish about the future of the vitamins and supplements industry. According to figures from research firm Mintel, the market was worth £423m in 2016 and is forecast to be worth £460m by 2022.
“People today are more hectic, more likely to skip meals, more stressed, do more travelling. This all has a knock-on effect on the immune system and so people need supplements to improve their nutrition. It’s definitely a growth market, particularly with people becoming more conscious about what they eat, and with the rise in vegan and free-from foods,” Lalvani says.
Lalvani’s interests go beyond vitamins and supplements. He and his wife Tara Ruby, also own a property investment business in London. “Property is a big interest of mine, it’s a hobby and I pay close attention to the market,” he says.
This is one of the reasons why he recently bought a stake in property management company Air Agents.
According to the Evening Standard, rival dragon Touker Suleyman is also an investor in the firm, which takes pictures of properties, cleans them and manages them for Airbnb hosts. Last season’s Dragons’ Den saw Lalvani make more investments than any other Dragon on the show, and he claims to have made a few this season as well. “It has been great going back on the show as I know what to expect,” he says. “It’s a great experience and some really good entrepreneurs have walked through the door.”