“The Optum Now collaboration is symbolic coming together with a consumer wellness offering,” said Vous Vitamin CEO Brad Helfand. “It sends a signal to the marketplace [that a personalized vitamin service] is an area consumers have interest in the coming years and that established players like Optum Now want to approach the vitamin mass market.”
The partnership took nearly three years to develop, though Helfand said negotiations sped up in the last six months.
Expanding health care ties
Optum Now grew out of a 2022 partnership between UnitedHealth Group’s subsidiary Optum and RVO Health, a health information platform and subsidiary of digital media company Red Ventures.
“Optum Now was interested in our company for two reasons,” he said. “We offer personalized all-in-one vitamins and set fixed subscription pricing because these attributes lead to efficiencies when it comes to pill load and cost savings.”
Vous Vitamin products may be appealing to consumers because in many cases they need to buy fewer add-on bottles of supplements, which translates into a lower cost. Helfand said these supplement users consume less product and often use an all-in-one product catered to their needs.
Optum is not the first large-scale health care company Vous Vitamin has partnered with, but it declined to mention these other organizations.
Chris Otterstetter, director of business operations at RVO Health, could not comment on the deal but said his company was excited to launch the Optum Now affiliate partner page which not only includes Vous Vitamin but other health and wellness brands. Among these companies are Wellos and Real Appeal where consumers can receive nutrition guidance and support.
Cost savings
According to Vous Vitamin, it partners with health care companies to provide consumers with the greatest financial benefit.
Helfand said that the competitors’ products come in pill packs with varying costs because of the personalization process, but that Vous Vitamin guarantees fixed pricing.
For Optum Now customers, this means a 20% recurring savings on vitamins, which he added his company can only offer to members of large organizations.
Another reason consumers are drawn to Vous Vitamin, founded by Drs. Arielle Levitan and Romy Block, is that it is physician led, Helfand said.
