How IM8 Hit $120M in 11 Months | Danny Yeung on Scaling the World’s Fastest Growing Supplement Brand

0:00In 26, we're projecting roughly about$180 to$200 million full year revenue, which gets us to roughly about a$300 million and a recurring recurring recurring recurring recurring recurring. Buy the NF26.

0:15Welcome back to another episode of DC Diaries. I'm delighted to be joined by Danny Young, CEO of Prenetics, a publicly listed company and the parent company of what is now known as the fastest growing supplement brand of all time in the consumer space. So yeah, thank you for joining me, Danny. Really excited to dig into the story of Prenetics and iMate today. Yeah, thank you, Ali, for having me. As with any guests, I want to really dive into the weeds of, obviously, I was mentioning prior to starting the recording, watched quite a few of your other podcasts and heard a lot of the backstory. I really want to dive into the weeds of the growth and how you've kind of facilitated such a crazy, crazy growth rate over the last 12 to 18 months.

1:04But as with every guest, it'd be great just to start with a bit of a backstory about yourself, Prenetics, and maybe a bit about how I and I came to be. Great. Yeah. Thank you, Ali. It's a pleasure to be here. Interestingly enough, when you guys did the deep dive, the podcast, I think it was probably what, eight to nine months ago? Yeah. Somewhere like that. Yeah. Over in the last year, I listened to that. My whole team listened to that. I was like, wow. Hey, Ali, these guys really know what they're talking about, right? The challenges, how we think about the website, the founder knows, all of that stuff.

1:37was spot on. So I really appreciate you guys doing that deep dive early on. And then of course afterwards a lot of guys copy you guys which is always good to see and deep dives on us and etc. So very glad to be on the show here. I appreciate you watching that as well. Obviously I'll link the other episode, the previous episode down below so if anyone wants to go and have a look at the deep dive we did on IMA I appreciate you sending us some products as well. Both me and Lucas have been avid users of iMates. It just shipped us over the box. And it's an amazing product. Great. Thank you. So Ali, just a quick background about myself.

2:16I grew up in the US, always been an entrepreneur. I started working at the age of 15, so very early. My first job was a telemarketer. I got my first start in entrepreneurship at the age of 25. And it was actually a restaurant business. I franchised a dessert chain into the U.S. at the age of 25. I did that for about three to four years. I then did a hotel furniture business, import-export from China into the U.S., eventually working on some large hotel projects like MGM, City Center, InVegas. I also did that for about three to four years. And in 2010, I always had a knack or a passion for technology and interest in that sector.

3:03and I moved to Hong Kong in 2010 to launch an e-commerce company and that model was actually going after the Groupon business idea. I moved to Hong Kong, again, had no e-commerce background. Within six months, our monthly revenues grew to 1 million monthly USD in revenues. At the same time, when Groupon went international, they acquired 51 % majority stake in my company. Three to four years later, they bought the rest. when I was at Groupon was then made the East Asia CEO. So basically took that from zero. And then we went to, I think when I left, we were doing about 200 million annual revenues and we're the largest e-commerce company in the region.

3:47So to be fair, I think those three, four years, I mean, those were really crazy growth times. I'm sure you remember Groupon days. And that really gave me a lot of background in DTC, consumer, direct-to-consumer, all the customer funnels, landing pages, paid marketing, etc. However, after Groupon, I went into the healthcare route. So I started Prenetics. I wanted to get into healthcare and specifically DNA testing. And interestingly enough, at that time, everyone expected me to do DTC genetic testing. But back in 2014, early on when I was doing some acquisition testing and funnel trialing, the customer acquisition cost at that time was way too expensive.

4:37So we never even launched a DTC DNA test in 2014, right? Instead, we went B2B to C, working with very large insurance companies for them to provide DNA tests as a value-added service. So I did that for really about a good four to five years. When COVID hit, we pivoted our whole operations to doing PCR testing. So we went basically from, again, a DNA test lab to doing PCR testing at scale. So I remember early on in 2020, again, there was a lot of uncertainty. We didn't know what we were going to do. I think the whole world didn't know. and we just started offering PCR testing to the community to help out.

5:25It was very difficult to do PCR testing in Hong Kong. We started out just doing 100 tests on a daily basis. At the height of our PCR testing, we're doing 40 ,000 tests daily. And of course, we had to work with the government, Hong Kong government. We work for the UK primarily. So those three years from 2020 to end of 2022, we did crazy amounts of testing. It was like$800 million USD in revenue. We did cumulatively over 28 million labor tests. So scale, the complexity, supply chain, people, management, data security, you name it, everything happens. all in such a fast manner of time there. That's when it makes consumer look easy, I guess.

6:20That's when they're that complex to say. To be fair, when I think about those times, it does make it easier, seem actually easier because at that time, again, you can't get a single PCR test wrong, right? False positives, false negatives, etc. And we had a workforce of about 2 ,000-3 ,000 people at one point, right? Just to, you know, because it was a huge logistical challenge. Yeah, amazing journey. Very, very varied, I guess, experience there. But, and then 2022, you took the business, the list of the business public. Is that correct? Yeah, correct. Yeah, you know, right, you know, towards the tail end of COVID, we thought this was a good opportunity.

7:01You know, because at one point, we knew COVID would end, but we wanted to be in control of our own destiny, right? So we felt going to the public markets on the NASDAQ was one of those ways. So we listed on the NASDAQ in the middle of 2022. Makes sense. And then what was the journey from there to IMA? Obviously, IMA launched December 2024, I believe. Correct. What did the two years in between there look like? And what drew you to that opportunity? What brought you to consumer health products in that category? Yeah, correct. you know, when after COVID and of course our business plummeted by 90%, right?

7:43So it was like there was no replacement for COVID just given how do you replace 40 ,000 tests on a daily basis, right? Impossible. And so we started thinking, hey, what do we do? We had cash, we had the determination, we had the team in place and structure and we started thinking, okay, what are the areas where we can potentially tackle a very large addressable market, put great science behind it, and leverage off our last 10 years of clinical background, right? And then so we felt, again, the consumer supplement space, there's a lot of opportunity there. And so this is basically in the middle of 2023 when we started first thinking about this.

8:25At the same time as we're thinking about this, I had the opportunity to meet with David Beckham via my very good friend, Michel Laminer. He's the owner of Tattler Asia, which is a big media sports lifestyle company. And he was asking me, I was just with, dinner with Michel. He was like, hey, Danny, I want to meet David again in two weeks. Do you want to join? I'm like, why not? And it was just really, really, it was just really off of that simple conversation. And then of course, when I went over to London, I didn't really have an agenda because I'm not going to, it's David Beckham here talking to you, you don't want to pitch him something.

9:06It was just really more about understanding him as a person, what his interests are. And then it was a great time in his life where I think he really wanted to give back to the community. And he was just approaching 50 years old. He knew he had a great following, a big following, a global following. And when we met, we think we started brainstorming what are the things that we can potentially do together. And he was very intrigued about my background from the consumer side at Groupon, as well as the clinical science for prenetics, right? So those two kind of converged. And for David, in the last 30 years, many individuals, companies, et cetera, has asked him to do something in this space.

9:52but he rejected all those opportunities and then so when we finally agreed to do this together and him coming on board as a co-founder I mean it was a very very pivotal moment and for us to kind of cut through the noise because I think when you're launching any new brand there's just so much noise how do you get people's attention and so we're so happy and fortunate and proud to have David as our co-founder for IronMate yeah i feel like he's like the pinnacle of uk celebrity right he's probably he's probably big in america and big in other countries but he's like the top of our our especially from like the last 20 30 years in the uk um yeah interesting that i know from listening to previous podcasts it was very much built around solving a problem that he'd had through his own life his own consumption of multiple supplements to try to combine that into one holistic routine and we We talk a lot about often brands that are founded from that, like solving a problem for the individual first before scaling it up to solve it for the market, are often the ones that go the furthest.

11:05And yeah, I guess it's, yeah, you can see the power and the impact he's had on the brand. And has that translated effectively to every market? I imagine it has, but I always thought his celebrity was almost larger in the UK. than elsewhere, but yeah, he's obviously a huge name. Yeah, I mean, exactly as you mentioned, Ali, I think the core principle when we started chatting was even for David and Victoria, right? They were taking multiple supplements on a daily basis. It was like 12, 13, 14, 15. And the reality was, you know, he felt it was quite annoying and there must be a better way to do it, right?

11:42Add clinical effective dosages with a product that tastes good. And of course he's tried other products, etc. but he just never stood to it. And so we went and said, you know what? There must be something that we can do to simplify the nutrition routine because it's not just for David. I mean, there's so many other people, I mean, millions of people around the world that face similar issues, right? It's that, hey, once you start taking supplements, you don't want to just take a multibitamin, right? Because that's just like very basic. You start getting into CoQ10, MSM, probiotics, joints, et cetera, et cetera.

12:16So once you start taking supplements, is easily you're taking 12, 13, 14, 15 supplements on a daily basis. And the reality of that is very difficult to maintain that routine. And then so we came out with IMA, which again, the core principle was that with IMA, our daily ultimate essentials, you replace 16 different supplements in one drink that you take every day, which also tastes good, right? So we made a big focus on not just a scientific formulation, but the whole customer experience leading from time you get the package to the time you consume it and ongoing communications afterwards. Yeah, I feel like you've got that perfect combination there of the science backing, the credibility there, and the credibility of David.

13:04And obviously, you've expanded that expert network across the brand. I feel like that's something that we're definitely seeing more of as like an entry requirement within the supplement space. Like there's so many brands popping up in supplementation. And I think those differentiation factors are just going to be so, so important through 2026 as that noise continues. How have you approached, you've obviously then had Savalenka. I know you've had doctors from, and head researchers from NASA, I believe. You've had, I've seen UFC doctors. is you've almost got this like roster of experts that really bring that credibility layer and allow you to leverage their like positioning and the messaging in creative that can, I imagine, brings a lot of diversification and attracts different audiences.

13:53How have you approached the expansion of that over time? No, 100 % only. I think that was also very important from day one when me and David, you know, co-founded IEMate, right? It's like, hey, we wanted to bring in the best scientists. You know, that was also diversified, right? It's not just someone that was good with formulation. It's bringing doctors from different fields, cardiologists, surgeons, Dr. Don, for example, from Mayo Clinic, right? From day one, we knew we couldn't build this brand alone on David, right? And David also didn't want that, right? We also didn't want that because that's too much dependency on him as an individual, again, which isn't fair, right?

14:35And I think a lot of times where, to be fair, I think when David previously got a lot of these opportunities to do something that's categorizing. A lot of the other brands or individuals, they really wanted, you know, the brand just to be him, right? And we felt from day one, for this brand to survive the test of time, we're talking about 5, 10, 15, 20 years, the scientific basis needed to be very, very strong from day one. So from day one, we recruited, you know, world-class scientific advisory board and the likes again with Dr. Don, even the former chief scientist of NASA, right? James Green.

15:10And so we brought along a really amazing scientific team that came together in different specialties to co-create a formulation, which you see now. And so that was very important for us because again, we really wanted to see, okay, how can someone challenge the product? And so we wanted to check off all these different challenges. So from day one, we had clinical trials. We also had NSF certification for sport. and so that means if you're an athlete you know it's free from 280 banned substances, heavy metals etc because that's very important given David's status as an athlete Yeah I think it's such a smart move because I think when you see brands that almost completely build the proposition and position around one individual and I think that has a risk inherent risk in it but it also has a limit on who they appeal to and who they attract to.

16:10And I think you've obviously leveraged David so effectively. Anybody watching, go and look through IM8's funnels and Daddy's team's funnels and how they use the individuals that he's mentioned in the ads and then pull that through the customer journey and how that builds congruency and how that builds trust and I'm sure how that drives conversion in actual KPIs and metrics. But it's really impressive to see that there's so many strands to that strategy. it's not just like one or two individuals and I think within there it just builds a broader appeal beyond just the product and the impact they have on products as well which is super interesting.

16:47And as you mentioned I think last June we also brought along world number one tennis player Rina Sabalenka and so I think with her addition that also further gave us so much credibility because you're talking about someone which is playing at the top of her game and And the interesting thing about how that relationship got started, it was fully organic. Her performance coach, Jason Stacey, started taking the product in January of last year. After about a month, he felt a difference in the product. And then he suggested to Rene, hey, I felt a difference. We're not doing it. I mean, again, they were at the same time looking for a new supplement stack, right?

17:29Because they were taking a bunch of stuff which they felt didn't work. and once they were on IM8, again, at Arena's level, they're testing, they're monitoring a daily basis in terms of how she's feeling. Her diet, her training, everything. And then after about three months, her team contacted me and said, hey, Arena's been on a product for about three months. Can we partner together? So I was like, of course, right? So I think when you get that level of validation, you know the product works. 100%. She's on an absolute run at the moment as well. I think she just won a tournament without losing.

18:07So hopefully she wins the Australian Open and you can leverage that as well. Exactly, right? So yeah, she just won the Brisbane International, right? Without losing a set. Yeah, so that was quite amazing. Yeah, interesting, of course, she won the US Open. We also sponsor another athlete, Gabriela Dabrowski. And interestingly enough, she also won the US Open in the doubles. And so last year.

18:33Slightly. Amazing. Well, yeah, great to hear the backstory. I'd love to switch gears firstly to just recap a bit of the financial performance and the growth rate, because I think it's been astronomical. Obviously, you guys have got that extra level of scrutiny of having to make all of your numbers public to the markets. and I've seen many threads on Twitter breaking down financial performance, but growing for a year over year. I saw Q3 2025 results of 23.6 million, but I think the percentage change year on year was up 560%, right? So crazy.

19:13I don't know the actual numbers, but I've seen reported run rates of like 120 million AR, but I'm sure that's growing exponentially month on month. What really struck out to me is the path to profitability that you've been on and the intention that's run across that process. I'd love to just understand a bit more about how you set up that growth strategy from day one and how that's then played out with the compounding, obviously your subscription brand cohorts coming through and providing that foundation for profitability over the last couple of quarters? Sure. I mean, just give you, again, the details in terms of financial performance and how we've been able to scale, right?

19:57So last December, which was our first full month of launching the brand, we did $581 ,000 USD in monthly revenue. In December, we hit$10 million USD in monthly revenue, right? So that gets us to 120 million annual recurring revenue run rate. So the growth has been crazy, right? So to be fair, we didn't expect this level of uptake so fast. And our initial projections for the full year of 2025 was in the vicinity of about 30 million USD, which to be fair, is still quite an optimistic figure for a new brand going out the gate. Nice brands, yeah. It's pretty crazy. In a competitive environment, right?

20:48So we ended basically full year 2025 at roughly$60 million USD because that's the full year revenue. And then you have the annual recurring revenue, which you're taking basically$10 million from December and multiply it by 12. So that's where you get$120 million, right? And then, yeah, so the growth has been quite crazy. And of course, it's been quite relentless from the first month until the last month of last year. Yeah, I can imagine the operations and just resourcing that growth journey must be such a task. I'd love to chat quickly before we dive into that, just on the mix and the approach to growth.

21:35obviously we've analyzed in detail your meta strategy your website strategy how those two things work together is is the majority of your your mix still focused on meta as the primary driver of growth um how is that kind of shaped out as the years progressed and that that revenue is is accelerated sure so i think um i think in the first year yeah first year is again i think the challenge for any new brand or entrepreneur, etc., is they may try to focus on too many different channels without really getting one or two of the core channels right. So for 25, we mainly focus this on Meta and Google.

22:16So realistically, Meta is roughly about 80 % of where we spend and then the rest in Google. With that being said, now this year, we're going to be diversifying this a little bit more to multiple channels because again, we're looking for new audiences, new individuals that haven't seen the brand yet. So in 25, we really wanted to focus on those two specific channels. Yeah, and I think we preach the focus a lot. I think those two channels alone can, and you've proven that, build such a monster business still when you get them right. And it requires that real depth of focus to do them to the standard that you've achieved before you then layer on more complexity of the TikToks.

22:56the other channels that then also tend to be less incremental like day one performance. Yeah, exactly. And we wanted to do a lot of the conversions. Again, roughly 98 % of our conversions now happen on our website, imahealth.com. We have a few percentage on Amazon, just a little in the US. But given, again, we feel that we have such a strong brand and strong offering, we'd rather have all of the transactions on our own website, right? And then one thing that we also did from day one that really helped the growth exponentially, from day one, we shipped to 30 plus countries, right? So I think a lot of brands, they just start just with a US focus or like one country focus.

23:44But from day one, we went out to this, okay, how can we impact as many people as possible from day one? And of course, the backend logistic operations, even from a meta-targeting perspective, is going to be much more challenging when you're going after such a greater market. Yeah, I guess not complex in channel setup, but very complex from a market perspective, but I guess that's played out. And have you seen strong performance across the majority of those markets? Or have you then started to kind of prioritize two or three? What's that look like? Yeah, so I mean, right now we're still very young, right?

24:22I would say, again, we're only like 13 months in there. So we're still seeing quite strong growth across our top 10 markets, right? So our top markets, US, Canada, UK, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, UAE. And so these markets have done really, really well for us. And so we're seeing growth across the board. Makes sense. So yeah, looking at 2026, you mentioned a couple of new channels. I imagine you've got a lot of headroom in many of those markets based on the size and scale they are. But what do you see as the big growth levers to retain that sort of growth rate you've seen in 2025? Yeah, again, like you mentioned, right?

24:59We still believe, I mean, the TAM for our segment is incredibly large. And then for some of these markets-wise, we're just getting started, right? There's still a lot of people that haven't tried the product, haven't taken the product. And now we're getting lots of word-of-mouth referrals in this next 13, 14 days. I mean, given now our brand is 13, 14 months old, right? So a lot of people that have taken it for three, six months, they're experiencing significant benefits to their overall health. So of course, this next level, we, in October, we also launched a new longevity product that goes hand in hand with the essentials.

25:37So again, 26 wise new channels for our marketing purposes. We're also going to be launching two to three new skills. towards the second half of 26. So we believe that will also further the growth. And what we have publicly mentioned in terms of our revenue growth is that it should be approximately 3x from 2025, right? So in 25, our full year was approximately 60 million USD in full year revenue. In 26, we're projecting roughly about 180 to 200 million full year revenue, which gets us to roughly about a 300 million annual recurring run rate by the end of 26. Crazy growth. Just to do a click on that channel bit, beyond Facebook and Google, what is, if you're able to share your next big bet from a channel perspective, I think a big topic across DTC brands right now is like trying to get away from the handcuffs of Facebook and just spending pretty much all of your budget there.

26:38So what does that look like for IMA into 2026? yeah for 26 again yeah we definitely want to diversify as well as with all these other DTC companies right so I think we're looking into of course YouTube we're looking at podcasts we haven't really done much in podcasts and of course that's a big segment in general for supplements we are looking at TikTok we're looking at app loving so we're looking at these new different channels but we want to make sure if we do it we get really great people that have had significant experience in each of these channels. Otherwise, we can try a channel and we say, you know what, we tried that, it doesn't work, right?

27:20But it's obviously been working for many other brands. So the idea of when we do design a new channel, how do we do it well with the right people that can execute? 100%. That's a natural segue into the people and resource segment that I really wanted to chat to you about. you obviously came out the gates with a really high standard of execution across meta, across those core channels, from a creative perspective to a website perspective. And that was clear from just looking at it, but it's also been clear from the picture of revenue and the growth rate that you've seen through 2025. How did you approach sort of resourcing in that early stage from a growth perspective?

28:06one of the things we chat to and I think a lot of brands struggle with as they grow is building out the correct org structure to support growth rate and we've found a few brands towards the back end of last year we're almost getting caught short where they hadn't made the right resources decisions three months ago to allow them to have enough resource to hit their targets coming into 2026 um so I'd love to understand a bit about yeah that what that's looked like day one and then how that sort of progressed throughout the year? Yes. Great question, right? I think this is a always moving target, a moving challenge, right?