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In addition, the economy of the country has continuously been rising giving more
consumers the ability to reach high living standards through healthy lifestyles and
preferences 2. They generate better incomes due to the increasing number of high paying
but more stressful jobs. To cope with stress at work, many young professionals and adults
engage in sports-related activities then complement it with consumption of vitamins and
dietary supplements. These factors offered better opportunities for the consumer health
market to progress further.
Company Background
BioBalance is a health service institute that offers nutrient testing in order to deliver
the right combination of nutrients that are unique for every individual. They test for the
levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, etc., and then based on the test
results, they would carefully craft a personalized supplementation for the client. However,
these supplements that they include in the customized supplement protocol are also
offered in retail. 92% of the company’s income is generated from the nutrient testing and
personalized supplementation. However, the supplements offered in bottles comprise the
remaining 8% only. BioBalance is currently exploring opportunities of maximizing the
retailing of its supplements.
BioBalance was co-founded by the owners of United Laboratories Inc., one of the
leading pharmaceutical companies in the Philippines. However, it functions as a separate
entity from Unilab. The vitamins and dietary supplements market was led by Unilab with a
value share of 26% in 2015 through its active promotion and top grossing popular brands
like Ceelin and Enercon-C4.
Product
BioBalance carries a wide range of vitamins, minerals and supplements that are bio-
identical, bioavailable and bioactive.
Bio-identical
BioBalance products offer exactly the same nutrients that are in the same
form as absorbed by the body. As an example, instead of providing Vitamin B12 as
cyanocobalamin – a product that is commercially available, BioBalance provides B12
as methylcobalamin, which is exactly identical or bio-identical to the one used by the
body to absorb the nutrient in its fullest. The substance does not need to be further
broken down which makes it more beneficial for the body.
Bioavailable
BioBalance products use mechanisms for proper absorption of the nutrients
in the body. For example, Omega 3 fish oils should be enteric-coated to prevent the
oils from being dissolved in the stomach because of the acidic environment.
BioBalance provides enteric-coated Omega 3 and delivers the oils for proper
absorption and is, therefore, bioavailable in the intestines, rather in the stomach.
Bioactive
BioBalance products are in their active form and are ready to be used by the
body. To illustrate, instead of providing Vitamin B9 as folic acid, which still needs to
undergo multiple changes before it can be used by the body, BioBalance provides B9
as 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF). 5-MTHF is already bioactive and therefore
does not require any other changes or conversion before it can be fully utilized.
1. Personalized – Based on the nutrient test results, BioBalance is now able to identify
the nutrient deficiencies of the client. In reference to the test results, they will
produce a personalized supplementation protocol specifically addressing the
deficiencies of the client. They will repack the vitamins and supplements in such a
way that each pack will contain the right combination of vitamins of what is exactly
needed by the individual. Figure 1 illustrates the repacked vitamins and
supplements.
Figure 1. BioBalance vitamins and supplements repacked as morning, noon and evening.
2. Retail – Because customization entails a premium fee, the clients can opt to
purchase the products on a per bottle basis, but not per piece or “tingi”. This is
therefore not limited to clients who underwent the tests because these supplements
can be bought over-the-counter similar to the commercially available vitamins.
Figure 2. BioBalance Multivitamins, Multiminerals and Amino Acid Complete are just 3 of the 54 SKUs carried by BioBalance.
Price
BioBalance imports their products from the United States to be able to provide their
clients the optimal nutrient balance that they need. Despite being imported and unique in
formulation, the products are at par with those that are commercially available in the
market. Shown in Table 1 are the price list and product line of BioBalance.
*cost per piece is restricted for customized repackaging of supplements, not available for retail
Promotion
Place
The supplements are available at the wellness center and can be purchased over the
counter. Some of their partner doctors dispense BioBalance supplements in their respective
clinics at a higher price to incorporate their profit margin. The doctors will purchase from
BioBalance at a discounted rate, another privilege entitled to partner doctors.
SWOT
Strengths
BioBalance has a unique product offering that offers a wide range of bio-identical,
bioavailable and bioactive products. It is the sole distributor of these supplements in the
Philippines. In terms of quality, BioBalance supplements are manufactured in the US that
strictly observes Good Manufacturing Practices. Moreover, only few companies that import
their products adhere to Good Transportation Practices. BioBalance religiously executes
both. For example, heat can rapidly destroy various vitamins and minerals. The supplements
should be shipped overseas in temperature-controlled containers to guarantee that the
vitamins have been transported properly and with maintained quality.
BioBalance is affiliated with United Laboratories that has a very wide distribution
network from which BioBalance could benefit from.
Weaknesses
BioBalance currently has only one wellness clinic, located within a condominium. It
has very low visibility and therefore creates low awareness of its existence. Even if it is the
sole distributor of BioBalance products in the Philippines, it could barely accommodate the
demands in the metro due to lack of key distribution channels. However, some of the
partner doctors purchase supplements from BioBalance and dispense those at their
respective clinics, which marginally expands its distribution network.
Opportunities
Euromonitor International cited an article published by Manila Times last June 2014.
Based on the report, taking food supplements can reduce hospital stays that would translate
to cost savings.5 Because of this, a growing number of Filipinos turn to health supplements
to prevent illnesses.
Another opportunity that BioBalance can take advantage of is the fact that Filipinos
are becoming more comfortable with online payments. With the rise of e-commerce and
online banking in the Philippines7, more Filipinos are now relying on online payment
platforms.
Threats
The massive propagation of the multi-level marketing industry also poses threat to
BioBalance, with almost four million Filipinos involved9. The values and culture of Filipino
consumers correlate with MLM, bringing more success to global companies as well as
consumer health as a whole. Strong connections with friends and families helped Filipino
members of globally renowned MLM companies to succeed in their businesses, making the
country a significant contributor in the global earnings of the industry.
The increasing trend of internet users mentioned as on opportunity earlier, can also
be considered as a threat. This means that these internet users are transformed to more
informed consumers. The internet provided access to global information, trends, issues,
news, innovations and awareness that directly affected consumer health in a positive stance
in 2015.10 This allowed consumers to be more accepting and confident towards self-care or
self-medication. Therefore, without proper communication of its value proposition, the
market will never be educated as to what BioBalance products have to offer.