VCT-backed LYMA makes one of Time Magazine’s Best Inventions of 2023

Wellness technology brand LYMA has a huge cult following, star-studded with the likes of Kate Hudson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Victoria Beckham and Ana de Armas (the Bond Girl cast as Marilyn Monroe in Blonde). 

LYMA’s first product, its nutraceutical pill, has been hailed by Forbes “the most ground-breaking supplement in the world”. Its subsequent product, the skin-rejuvenating LYMA Laser, has been named one of The Best Inventions of 2023 by Time Magazine. 

LYMA is backed by Pembroke VCT, a fund which targets three sectors the manager knows well: consumer, technology and business services. The Pembroke team has been instrumental in helping LYMA identify opportunities in the skincare and beauty market. The business has now expanded into over 70 countries and doubled revenue every year since launch in 2017.

Read on to find out how founder Lucy Goff went from post-illness frailty to building a global WellTech brand, why Pembroke invested in LYMA, and how you can invest in LYMA and similar companies through the Pembroke VCT. You can also watch our recent video interview with Pembroke’s CEO and CIO, to learn more.

More about LYMA

In 2012, a battle with septicaemia left new mother Lucy Goff severely weakened and unable to function, let alone look after her baby.

Taken to Geneva to convalesce, she met Prof. Paul Clayton, a world authority on degenerative disease prevention. This was to be the start of a larger journey for Lucy.

Prof. Clayton prescribed Lucy a supplement protocol that used peer-reviewed patented ingredients, formulated for the body to absorb effectively – unlike over-the-counter remedies. 

Where all kinds of medication, supplements and visits to doctors had previously failed Lucy, this led her back to full health – and in fact feeling better than she had ever done in her life. 

Inspired by the incredible change she experienced, LYMA was established – with Prof. Clayton on board as Director of Science – to bring the effectiveness of a genuinely science-backed supplement to market. 

The result was the LYMA Supplement – claimed to be the only supplement exclusively formulated with 10 patented ingredients that are backed by hundreds of peer-reviewed medical research papers and clinically proven to benefit body and mind. All of LYMA’s products are backed with scientific validation.

Following the supplement’s success, the company launched the LYMA Laser – the world’s first medical-grade laser cleared by the FDA for cosmetic use at home. As founder Lucy explains, the LYMA Laser “tricks your skin into producing more collagen”, to help clear scars, rosacea and wrinkles. Different from low-end beauty devices such as LEDs, its technology is more akin to the treatment used in hospitals to heal tendons and cartilage; it delivers targeted, controlled power beyond the surface layers of the skin, and is reportedly 100x more effective than LED.

On the day of launch, LYMA received over $1.5 million of orders for the device.

The company’s latest offering is a patented rejuvenating skincare serum and cream duo, developed by a team of plastic surgeons, dermatologists, biochemists and geneticists. LYMA Skincare gathered a waitlist of 30,000 ahead of its debut.

Fast-growing LYMA has won the prestigious 2023 King’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade, after doubling its revenue in 2022 following its US expansion. The business also ranked an impressive 11th in The Sunday Times Hundred 2023, an annual list of the 100 fastest-growing private companies in Britain. 

LYMA plans to launch additional products and continue expanding its ecosystem. 

Why did Pembroke VCT invest in LYMA?

Pembroke VCT invested £1 million into LYMA in 2018. The VCT followed on with a further £1 million in 2020, and now owns 19.7% of the business. The position is now valued at £29.7 million and accounts for 13.9% of net assets (September 2023). Past performance is not a guide to the future.

Pembroke invested in LYMA for two key reasons:

1. The credibility of the products: Pembroke has experienced with a previous investment how difficult it is to gain credibility in the supplement market. The efficacy and science-backed, peer-reviewed credibility of LYMA’s flagship nutraceutical product not only differentiates it from others on the market, but sets a new gold standard in the wellness industry, in Pembroke’s view.
2. The founder: Pembroke is impressed with founder Lucy Goff’s commitment to scientific validation. In Lucy’s view, because there is no real regulation for supplements, many that go onto the market may easily offer limited or no benefit. She’s adamant to offer consumers full transparency over what goes into LYMA products, and what unbiased doctors have to say about them.

Pembroke VCT – NAV and cumulative dividends per share over five years (p)