As diabetes and weight loss medications like Ozempic and Wegovy have taken off in recent years, many people have turned away from established diet and nutrition products.
Now, two retailers specializing in nutritional supplements – GNC and Vitamin Shoppe – are trying new approaches to convince people who are taking or interested in these medications.
GNC is dedicating a wall of supplements in its more than 2,300 stores to products it says will appeal to users of Ozempic, which contains the compound semaglutide and other drugs known as GLP-1 drugs. The chain also trains workers to help customers evaluate which substances might help them manage common side effects of these prescription medications.
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Michael Costello, CEO of GNC, said his company sees a “big opening” in helping people taking such drugs to lose weight.
“As we were looking at trends with people, where people are going, Ozempic and obviously Wegovy and other GLP-1s started to blow up,” Costello said in an interview. “We have seen significant side effects for many of these drugs. »
It’s unclear exactly how many Americans are taking Ozempic and similar drugs for weight loss, but Costello referenced a Goldman Sachs study that estimates up to 70 million Americans will have tried these drugs by 2028 .
GNC believes it can expand its weight management category with this push. Currently, less than 10% of GNC’s business comes from its weight management products, but recently, it says, sales in that category have increased by more than 20%.
Retailers, food companies and other businesses are all trying to understand how Ozempic and similar drugs could harm or help their businesses and, if so, what actions they should take in response.
In October, Walmart, which has a large pharmaceutical business, said it found that people taking GLP-1 drugs bought slightly less food than other customers. The previous month, an executive at Nestlé, the world’s largest food company, expressed optimism that consumers would turn to its Lean Cuisine meals, which are “exactly what you would end up eating with this kind of drugs “. And Fitness club chains Life Time Fitness and Equinox offer training programs tailored to people taking medications.
GNC executives said they have assembled more than 20 products that can be used to treat common side effects such as occasional fatigue, nutritional deficiencies, reduced bone density and loss of muscle mass. Some of these products were already sold, but others are new to the retailer. Supplements include once-daily women’s multivitamins, ginger root capsules, and a skinny chocolate shake. On the wall, signs list side effects alongside shelves of supplements that can alleviate them.
None of the supplements that GNC has in its reconfigured store have been specifically designed for or clinically tested on users of the new weight loss drugs. Medical experts say most people can get all the nutrients they need through a well-balanced diet. Additionally, experts say some supplements might not be effective and cause their own side effects.
“Most patients won’t need any supplements,” said Dr. Maria Daniela Hurtado Andrade, an assistant professor at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., whose research focuses on reducing obesity. She also treats patients who take GLP-1 medications.
Retail chain executives said they selected the assortment from their displays after consulting with outside doctors, toxicologists, nutritionists and other professionals.
“All recommendations that GNC makes for support of GLP-1 align with the scientific rationale, the results of our consultations with physicians, and review of the positions of accredited professionals on this topic,” said Rachel Jones, Director of product and scientific innovation of GNC, in a press release.
Some retailers have gone further. The Vitamin Shoppe has partnered with WellSync, a telehealth company that fills GLP-1 medication prescriptions. This is the first time that Vitamin Shoppe, which began operations in 1977, has worked with another company to offer its customers a pharmaceutical option — a sign of how seriously retail executives take Ozempic and his ilk .
“I think there’s no question that we’ve seen people say, ‘Hey, if this isn’t something you offer, I’ll look elsewhere,’” Vitamin Shoppe CEO Lee Wright said. in an interview. .
In a Vitamin Shoppe survey of more than 1,500 customers, 40% of respondents said they would be “extremely” or “very likely” to use a telehealth service offered by the retail chain. Wright said learning that some employees in his stores were already taking GLP-1 medications convinced him to work with WellSync.
The Vitamin Shoppe remains remote from the evaluation and prescription process, which involves an online questionnaire about medical history and goals and, in some cases, a live video interview with a licensed medical provider. (One of the questions is about body mass index.) WellSync manages this process, including working with clinicians. The companies created a subscription service called Whole health Rx, which starts at $219.
To bring people back to the chain, Vitamin Shoppe is offering people who subscribe a $25 voucher to use in its stores or on its website.
Similar to GNC, the Vitamin Shoppe promotes products such as protein powders on its sites to attract people taking Ozempic or similar medications. In early May, Vitamin Shoppe and its sister brand, Super Supplements, will have displays in all 700 stores announcing their telehealth partnership and providing a QR code that will direct consumers to the telehealth portal.
The market for GLP-1 related supplements is relatively new. There have been no significant trials testing the effectiveness of these products in relieving discomfort associated with the use of these medications. And some doctors say many of the common side effects of weight-loss medications can be easily managed or diminish over time, reducing the need for long-term use of supplements.
For example, Hurtado Andrade said that instead of recommending probiotic supplements, which contain live microorganisms like bacteria, she encourages her patients to eat foods containing these microorganisms, such as yogurt or kefir. After a detailed assessment, she has, in some cases, recommended protein shakes, powders and supplements to patients who are not getting enough protein, she said.
“I think this medical monitoring is extremely important because we can really mitigate or decrease the incidence of serious side effects that I think could occur if patients were not closely monitored,” Hurtado Andrade said.
Executives at GNC and Vitamin Shoppe said their employees — whom they call health enthusiasts or coaches — are not a replacement for medical professionals. Executives also said the companies’ approaches and strategies were designed in consultation with staff nutritionists.
“We don’t want our health enthusiasts trying to act out,” said Wright of the Vitamin Shoppe. “They are not doctors. They are not trying to give any medical advice.
GNC’s Costello said his workers are trained to be empathetic when faced with challenges. To that end, he asked retailers to watch Oprah Winfrey’s recent special on Ozempic. The company also taught them to ask “lifestyle questions” before reporting supplements, like “What are your goals?” and “What are you currently doing to achieve your goals?”
That’s all well and good, Hurtado Andrade said, but she worries that retail workers aren’t as knowledgeable as medical professionals about how to interpret and treat symptoms. This requires knowing what questions should be asked, something qualified health care practitioners and providers are trained to do, she said.
“I don’t think any retailer is going to have the ability to think through the questions that need to be asked in order to narrow that gap and understand what diarrhea or any other side effects are related to,” she said.
But those concerns are unlikely to stop retailers and supplement makers from diving deeper into what many analysts believe is a fast-growing market.
Four years ago, before Ozempic became a blockbuster drug, Supergut, a Los Angeles-based company, began selling prebiotic supplements, which feed microorganisms. It marketed these products, like shakes and snack bars, in part to help people control their blood sugar levels.
Two years ago, Supergut began highlighting the potential benefits of its products for gut health and dedicated a section on its website to GLP-1 drugs.
“This is how we are going to connect to the consumer consciousness,” said Marc Washington, CEO of Supergut. “We are extremely relevant to this time and to this Ozempic era,” he added.
In the past six months, sales have quadrupled, he said. GNC carries Supergut on its shelves in the GLP-1 section of its stores, marking the first time the brand has been sold in a national chain. Washington said he is also talking with other national retailers.
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