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While playing basketball for the German national team, Vadim Fedotov saw the disadvantages of sports supplements with his own eyes. After tearing his anterior cruciate ligament, he was prescribed a handful of commercially available vitamins and nutrients, but none of them worked. He realized that supplementation must go beyond one-size-fits-all formulas and meet the needs of each person in real time.
Fedotov is currently the co-founder and CEO of the company Bioniqwhich offers users tailor-made supplements to “provide exactly what your body needs.” Using an AI-powered algorithm built on a proprietary database of over 6 million biochemical data points, the company provides personalized complement recommendations based on key biomarkers, either from a recent blood test or from personal questionnaire data and other users’ such as you.
“No supplement company has ever given the consumer the opportunity to know whether the product actually works,” says Fedotov. “We wanted to create the first measurable product that would allow us to check whether the supplement has a positive effect on the body.”
Since its launch, Bioniq and its Bioniq GO and Bioniq PRO products have delivered positive results, attracting over 100,000 users, with 92% of them reporting significant improvement from one complement cycle to the next. Fedotov joined the One Day with Jon Bier podcast to talk about the challenges his company faces in a highly regulated market and what he’s learned along the way.
Get your legal geese in order
Fedotov realized that long-term success in the highly regulated complement industry required meticulous attention to legal details and compliance. Putting in the work from the starting to get the legal foundation right allowed Bioniq to focus on product development and customer experience knowing that the operational side was on solid footing.
“The one thing I never regret spending money on is lawyers, legal issues, certification and ensuring every little thing is prepared. So when we get going, we’ll be ready,” he explains.
Keep your friends apart
One of the key lessons Fedotov learned from founding Bioniq was the importance of separating business from friendship. He explains: “Number one is to make friends with your team members. Don’t work with friends.” Fedotov realized that mixing personal and business relationships can often lead to tension, blurred boundaries, and divergent expectations that may ultimately strain business and personal connections.
Stay focused
Another key lesson was to focus the radar laser on one foremost goal and perfect it before expanding the business. For Bioniq, this means perfecting its personalized complement offering before considering further expansion or diversification. Fedotov says he has learned from past experience that expanding too quickly into too many areas can drain a company’s resources and hinder long-term success.
“Focus on one thing and improve it,” he says.
Let people work at their very own pace
Like many ambitious founders, Fedotov has trouble taking time without work. He finally took a leave of absence this summer after working 24/7 for Bioniq for the past six years. “It was the biggest leap for me,” he says.
But he understands that this is not necessarily a healthy way to run a healthcare business (“That’s my problem,” he says) and has made every effort not to impose his tireless work ethic on his team.
“I learned from sports that if I constantly push my teammates, in the short run they will do what I want, but in the long run they won’t stick with me.”
Expect to fail
Fedotov is not afraid to talk truthfully about the challenges of being an entrepreneur. It’s not as glamorous as people make it out to be.
“If you want to talk about a 37-year-old guy sitting on his bed and crying because he doesn’t really understand why everything is going wrong, that’s the life of a founder,” he says. “People don’t talk about It, they simply see you smiling because you have to represent, you have to stand out, you have to be a visionary. But the path to it is not that way.