Healthtech startup Grow Fit has raised $4.5 Mn in Series A funding in a round led by Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG), the PE arm of Manipal Group.
According to a report in Inc42, existing investors, SAR Group and The Grover Trust also participated in this round. With this investment, Dr. Ranjan Pai, the MD & CEO of MEMG, will be joining the Bengaluru-based company’s board.
Grow Fit was earlier backed by GrowthStory, a platform that promotes greenfield ventures, started by K Ganesh and Meena Ganesh.
“Companies which have the right genes can always raise funding, even in a somewhat tight market. Grow Fit’s laser-like focus on customer outcomes sets it apart from others. It takes a unique dedication to go against the conventional wisdom of transactions and the team at Grow Fit has demonstrated this commitment time and again,” K Ganesh told Inc42.
Grow Fit plans to use the funds it raised to integrate different sources of data from wearable technology and medical reports. The aim is to make the app a one-stop, comprehensive companion for wellness. Also, it aims to expand mobile solutions for fertility, joint health, stress management and more.
Grow Fit was launched in September 2015 by Jyotsna Pattabiraman with the idea of addressing lifestyle diseases with its platform. It wants to help over 300 million Indians who are at risk of contracting lifestyle diseases, with its coaching, health foods and behavioral insights.
It has an easy-to-use, one-on-one, chat-based coaching programme that connects users all over India to experts in mental and physical health. The areas of sleep, skin and hair, nutrition and exercise are catered to.
“Grow Fit combines data science, medical science, and behavioural insights to help people achieve their health goals and live their best lives. We are an outcome-oriented company and have always stressed a science-and-data approach,” says Jyotsna
Grow Fit also offers health foods and concierge services. Besides physical health, Grow Fit also tackles mental health through a separate app called Grow Self.
A group on nutritionists, food technologists, counsellors, technologists, and product people make up the team of Grow Fit.
Grow Fit also recently acquired Drink King to foray into functional beverages.
Dr Ranjan Pai, CEO and MD, MEMG said, “Grow Fit has the right approach to reach millions of Indians who can benefit from better nutrition and coaching. I was impressed by their novel approach, their investment in R&D, and their technology platform. Indians need to make drastic changes to their health habits and Grow Fit makes it effortless for them. This is a huge opportunity and we are looking forward to unlocking it.”
Inc42 reports that the company claims to have an 80% success rate. As per a company statement, the Grow Fit mobile app has seen over 300,000 downloads on Android and iOS combined and more than 150,000 diet charts have been generated for users. The company uses data science and machine learning to identify and validate strategies for customer success.