Forbes 30 Under 30: Who Are 2017’s Wellness Tycoons?

In keeping with tradition, Forbes has kicked off the new year with its sixth annual “30 Under 30” list, featuring 600 young innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders who are transforming the way we live.

Spanning 20 categories with each of the honorees all under 30 years old, once again, this year’s list features a host of startups that are having a significant impact on the wellness industry.

“Over six years, the Forbes 30 Under 30 list has emerged as the way that the world discovers the next generation of entrepreneurs and game-changers,” explained Randall Lane, Editor of Forbes Magazine.

“These are the people that will run every field for the next 50 years,” he added.

From social enterprises and consumer tech companies to food and drink businesses, we’ve scoured the list to highlight the wellness brands that have been pushing boundaries, raising investment and making headlines…..

Alessandro Babini, 25: Co-founder, Humon

Designed for athletes to help them train smarter, Humon’s next-generation wearable has raised over $1 million in funding.

The device, which measures the oxygen levels in muscles to determine how hard athletes should push themselves, as well as when their muscles have recovered enough to resume training, has been designed to work in conjunction with an app, so athletes can view their data in real-time.

“When we started this company we sat down and thought where is the world going to be in 10 years. And in our mind there’s no doubt that we’ll all be wearing some piece of technology that will non-invasively monitor our body parameters, allowing us to be more healthy and in better shape,” Babini told TechCrunch.

“Now today this is steps, sleep time, pace. When we think of this world in the future it will be stuff like vitamin levels, hormone levels and lactic acid. So this is the vision we have for the company.”

Ellie Dinh, 29: Co-founder, Girlfriend Collective

Chic athleisure line Girlfriend Collective has won a cult following thanks to its range of environmentally friendly and fair-trade apparel.

Launched in April 2016, the direct to consumer label uses a fair-trade facility in Vietnam to take recycled polyester and weave it into garments.

After selling 10,000 pairs in the first day of trading, Dinh told InStyle that her husband and co-founder was the brains behind their initial success having created their unique marketing plan to give away leggings and have consumers pay for the shipping cost.

“It’s kind of scary to purchase a $100 pair of leggings from a brand you’ve never heard of. We wanted people to trust us, and by giving people the product, we knew they would trust us—that’s how much we believed in what we’re doing,” she told the publication.

Molly Hayward, 28: Founder, Cora

On a mission to modernise period management, in addition, Hayward’s premium organic tampon company helps provide menstrual products to girls in developing countries.

Launched as a subscription only service, Cora’s entire customer experience is disrupting the feminine care category, from its sleek and convenient packaging to its 100% organic cotton tampons with BPA-free applicators.

Partnering with Target last year, the savvy startup now delivers its most popular products to a wider demographic.

At the time the partnership was announced founders Molly Hayward and Morgen Newman explained:

“Target has proven time and again its dedication to partnering with new brands that are trailblazers in their respective industries, particularly when those brands support the movement for healthier and more sustainable products. We are thrilled to expand Cora beyond our subscription model as it allows more women in the U.S. to access our high-performing organic period products.”

Brett Podolsky, 28 & Jonathan Regev, 29: Co-founders, The Farmer’s Dog

Leveraging the popularity of the subscription model, The Farmer’s Dog delivers made to order pet food to customers for approximately $29 per week.

Currently boasting a wait-list full of consumers itching to join the service, according to Forbes the culmination of three trends have led to the duo’s success. ‘Pet owners have been spending more and more on pet food, with pricier brands like Blue Buffalo, while time-pressed, well-heeled consumers have become accustomed to ordering freshly-made meals. And subscription businesses of all types, including meal services like Blue Apron, have taken off.’

The innovative business has received $2 million in seed funding to-date.

Chloe Coscarelli, 29: Founder, by CHLOE.

With four fast food vegan restaurants, a cookbook and a line of sweets, Chloe Coscarelli recently told Forbes that the secret to her success is having a unique perspective.

Fusing killer eats, convenience and style, the entrepreneur’s health-conscious fast-food joints have been causing such a stir among the vegan community since the first outpost opened in 2015.

Wanting to appeal to vegans and bacon-loving carnivores alike, Coscarelli explained the ethos behind the popular eatery: “it can be healthy or meat-free or whatnot, but if it doesn’t taste good you’re not changing anyone’s mind and you’re not expanding anyone’s horizons,” she told DuJour.

Meika Hollender, 29: Co-founder, Sustain

Hollender and her father have been making waves with their innovative condom company aimed at women. Having closed a $2.5 million Series A funding round in early 2016, the father-daughter duo have worked hard to grow the brand, which can now be found in over 4,000 U.S. retail outlets, including Whole Foods and Target.

Through the use of beautifully-designed packaging and ingredient transparency, the startup hopes to spark a sexual wellness revolution. According to Mindbodygreen Hollender is ‘the woman who will change the way you think about sexual health’.

Emily Cunningham, 26 & Kwami Williams, 25: Co-founders, MoringaConnect

Together with MIT’s D-Lab MoringaConnect co-founders Emily Cunningham and Kwami Williams traveled to northern Ghana to take on the challenges smallholder farmers face daily without access to patient capital, quality inputs, technical training, or guaranteed markets.

Implementing a vertically integrated supply chain, the duo takes the moringa tree, and turns it into beauty products from its seeds for sale by Birchbox and pre-packaged snacks from its leaves for sale in Ghana.

So far, the company has planted over 270,000 trees and provided over $415,000 of income to 2,300 farming families in Ghana.

Christina Bognet, 29: Co-founder, PlateJoy

A nutrition startup specialising in curating recipes for users based on their personal diet needs, PlateJoy recently partnered with Instacart to offer customers same day delivery of their customised grocery lists.

Priced at $59 for a six-month subscription, the service, which provides recommendations, tips and access to a personal nutritionist enables consumers to live a healthier and more convenient life.

Backed by Y Combinator, which provides seed funding for startups in their first stage, PlateJoy has raised approximately $2 million in funding.

Allen Brouwer, 28: Co-founder, BestSelf Co.

Starting as a Kickstarter campaign, BestSelf ended up generating approximately $3 million in revenue in 2016.

Creating meaningful products that help people to become the best version of themselves, the startup’s range of diaries, planners and calendars tap into the current mindful movement that encourages personal growth and wellness through goal setting.

The fast-growing company currently ships to over 70 countries.

Erika Jensen, 27: Co-founder, The Flex Company

San Francisco startup The Flex Company was created to empower women to feel more comfortable about having sex during their period.

The disc-shaped device, which can be worn for up to 12 hours, creates a barrier to the cervix by temporarily blocking menstrual blood.

Changing the way women think about their menstruation, Jensen argues that the company, which has already raised over $4 million, allows couples who wouldn’t have previously had period sex, a new opportunity to talk about it and try it.

“Our mission is at the core of everything we do and the reason we’re excited to get out of bed every day and talk to every woman (and man) we meet about menstruation,” she told the Huffington Post.