consumer experience, has been designed so as to be just what it takes. Pleasant but not too pleasant so as to precisely prevent excessive nibbling! Carticalm®, for instance, a product for the joints formulated with harpagophytum, copper, manganese and hyaluronic acid retains a certain bitterness. Moreover, I dare you to take more than the recommended dose (3 gum- mies per day) of Defensim®, which contains eucalyptus oil but also an olive tree extract, propolis and rosehip. It’s just a ques- our discourse as there is a fine line between therapeutics and tion of balance! nutrition. The clinical data supporting the active ingredients and (approved) generic health claims are essential for this Actif’s Mag: You have talked about objectified active type of approach. Since May, the complete range is available ingredients. How do you source your raw materials? in local pharmacies in Occitanie and we intend to expand this Andréa Diot: Effectiveness is at the heart of Kalyotis’ strategy, perimeter quickly. so selecting the right active ingredients is crucial. Moreover, consumers are currently looking for very specific ingredients Actif’s Mag: Has the health crisis had any impact on that bring something to mind when included in the formu- your projects? lations.This is why, in each product of the range, the ingre- Andréa Diot: The health crisis obviously scared me very dients are backed by a solid scientific dossier that includes much at the beginning, as I was in the midst of launching the clinical data. I found in the Spanish company Pharmactive project. There were delays in setting up the company... As for Biotech Products the ideal partner to provide the scientific the idea of knocking on the doors of pharmacies, it was seve- backing for the formulations of my food supplements. Even rely compromised... But finally, the effects were not as nega- if their manufacturing is outsourced (Irati), the products are tive as expected. The lockdown brought a lot of visibility to our still made in France and, out of this concern for effectiveness, website and the Covid-19 crisis led to the birth of our product analytical assays are carried out to check the active ingre- Defensim®. dients concentration. Actif’s Mag: What are the growth drivers you identified? Actif’s Mag: What is your strategy in terms of Andréa Diot: As foolishly as it may seem, I would dare to say distribution, sales channels? it’s all about meeting consumer needs. Today, they need to be Andréa Diot: Our first sales were made online, through the reassured about product effectiveness. And the answer is pro- Kalyotis website, but the main objective is to enter the French vided by science. Offering scientifically proven solutions with pharmacies. Which is not that easy. We need to brace oursel- a pleasant mouthfeel that also bring a touch of joy in the face of ves up with patience and audacity and target those pharma- everyday problems seems to be a good starting point to satis- cies that are already focused on food supplements. Once the fy consumers and improve their daily lives. Also, the targeted product has been tasted, things change! The company was set areas are strictly related to health (as opposed to beauty). At up in July 2020 and the first launches were made in February the onset of the project, we had targeted the 45-year-olds, but this year on the Internet. In parallel, we also approached phar- finally the target turns out to be broader, especially because of macists in our department. What we noticed is that the largest sports people, and a younger population. Certain consumers structures are also the most reticent ones. We need to temper having tested the products have revealed another target! This is the case of Sterolim®, which is indicated for circulation and cholesterol, but which also acts on satiety. Closely listening to our consumers remains of essence. Actif’s Mag: What about the future, which would be your ideal scenariofor Kalyotis? Andréa Diot: Over 400 packs have been sold in four months, which is encouraging for the future! The goal is to develop as much as possible the pharmacy network and to deploy it across the entire French territory. In terms of launches, two new pro- ducts will be launched in 2022 to complete the current range (three products). We will continue in the same “therapeutic” vein. It is important to inform consumers about future launches in order to prevent them from seeking elsewhere what they are looking for and heighten our reputation. • Comments collected by Elisa Duclos #76 - 52 -GAM s’fitcA