S'wellness

Functional foods have been around for decades, but are taking off anew. Consumers have become more health-conscious, weight-loss drugs are changing people’s eating habits and strained household budgets make non-essentials harder to justify

Chocolate is hardly the only treat to be reborn as a wellness product. Supermarket shelves now boast chips with added protein, gut-friendly sodas and collagen oatmeal – all part of the fast-growing “functional foods” market, which is expected to reach $586bn globally by 2030.

Consumers are paying more attention to macronutrients than ever before. Tracking apps, the GLP-1 drug trend (which pushes users toward higher protein intake to prevent muscle loss), and the broader “protein-ification” of the food aisle are all driving demand for products that deliver complete, measurable nutrition in convenient formats.

Most supplement brands lead with clinical claims. Grüns deliberately chose a different approach. The company conducted studies and invested in formulation rigor, but its marketing leaned into lifestyle rather than science.

The creative strategy was volume-driven and human-generated. The team produced high volumes of content, primarily through influencer partnerships and UGC creators, and tested aggressively on Meta.

“We only play in categories that are permanent,” he explained. “Everybody talks about creatine gummies right now. I would be so scared to run one of those businesses. Comprehensive nutrition, that’s fundamental to us living.”