The concept of single-touch, dosed, healthy baby formulas meet a number of needs expressed by parents for next-gen nutritional support.

Expert Bio: 14 years pediatric and adult global nutrition innovation, during which time he delivered +3.5% in annual  growth initiatives for the #1 US pediatric baby formula brand. Led a global team responsible for financial planning, retail joint business strategy, and annual integrated marketing communications for the $1.3B Similac franchise. Built $360MM in global pipeline sales growth for Abbott Nutrition, where he also formed and led a global commercial innovation team, owning the development of their innovation strategy, consumer and healthcare insights, new product design, and commercial valuation for the $7B portfolio.

Industry Commentary: The US Market for baby formula is a very stable category with a strong consumer segment having intent to pay for technology that makes pediatric feeding more predictable, easier and better for both parent and baby. Their primary challenge is managing nutritional value along with daily lifestyle challenges. Many parents are looking for simplicity in bottle feeding, plus reproducibility, regardless of who is providing care - whether that’s mom, dad, grandparents or a caregiver. I believe the ability for a manufacturer to continue to bring pediatric formulas closer to breast milk, accompanied by a delivery mechanism that meets a parent’s lifestyle needs, can unlock great potential in the category. In addition, the value proposition is positive for a retailer to expand their growth horizon for the formula business, where they are challenged with shelf-space decisions. Providing delivery technology and matched nutritional formulas via e-commerce is the best of both worlds. Finally, from an investor’s perspective, offering predictability in high-quality dosed formula delivered via clean, reproducible dispensing may provide significant competitive advantages and offers unique opportunities for intellectual property protection in this sector.

Additional Industry Expertise:
Former Senior Director of Marketing, PediaSure & Pedialyte
Former Strategic Marketing Lead - Similac Brand Marketing
Former Global Director of Marketing - Innovation / Abbott Nutrition

The baby tech market is vital for major brands. Novel solutions in baby formula feeding have the opportunity for long-term, explosive growth.

Expert Bio: I know this market well, having spent 10 years in five different baby tech categories including formula, pharma and consumer product goods (“CPG”). At Johnson & Johnson, I’m a Product Director, and I’ve led programs in multiple U.S. markets and abroad.

Industry Commentary: There are several tailwinds supporting this industry going forward. For example, American families are now having children later in life, after getting their careers established. At that point, they have more disposable income and choose premium baby products that solve problems in new and unique ways. Consumers have come to appreciate convenience, like pod-based machines for drinks and soups. And there aren’t a lot of players creating new solutions in the baby tech formula space.

I believe that entrepreneurs who innovate, leverage technology and protect their intellectual property have a real opportunity to disrupt the formula feeding marketplace.