Who?
Amy Nicholson, Head of Brand, Known Nutrition
Age:
29
From:
Liverpool
Bio | Intro:
After working in beauty marketing for over 7 years, Amy has teamed up with a new brand on the market, Known Nutrition, to help launch their all-new Collagen product with a never seen formulation.
Thank you for the opportunity to interview you. I would love to know how you became interested in health & wellbeing, was it an early passion? What was your motivation?
When I was around 16, I suffered so badly with bloating and just feeling generally tired and lethargic – which obviously at such a young age isn’t normal.
I started making a conscious effort to eat better and exercise more, nothing mad just walks and bike rides and generally being a bit more active and after about three weeks I cannot tell you the impact that it had on everything in my life. My body, my mind, my moods, my relationships were all massively improved. I know it sounds cliche but I would honestly go as far as saying that health and fitness changed my life.
That change really taught me the impact of what you put in and do to your body can have such an enormous impact on how you look and feel so I started training at the gym, and I’ve kept it up for nearly 15 years.
What are some of the changes and trends you’ve observed in the supplement industry over the last few years?
It has to be the increase in Nutricosmetics (beauty supplements) and Nootropics (brain supplements).
Search inquiries for collagen increased 33% from March 2020 to December 2020, suggesting there’s a vastly increased interest in beauty as a subsection of the supplement industry. Top beauty-boosting ingredients include Collagen, Vitamin C, Omega-3s, Hyaluronic Acid, Ceramides, and antioxidant-rich Green Tea and Vegetable Blends.
With the increase of stress levels after the impact of the pandemic, anti-stress supplements such as Ashwagandha and Rhodiola are also massively on the rise, which isn’t surprising as our lives are becoming ever more stressful and people are looking for natural ways to help manage them.
Can you tell us about the idea and mission behind Known Nutrition?
The mission for Known is really simple. To make health and beauty supplements that work and taste good. By that, we mean that we make sure every single one of our supplements is scientifically proven to give effective results and are enjoyable to take day in, day out.
Why’s that so important? Well to see results from any supplement you need to take it consistently so making sure that it’s a joy to take really is non-negotiable for us.
If you’ve ever tried a Marine Collagen product, you’ll know that historically they don’t tend to taste great and we want to change that.
What’s different about your formulation?
Our formula uses Liposomal Technology to ensure your body absorbs as much of the supplement as possible. It’s been developed to allow for 98% Collagen absorption as opposed to many other supplement forms which can have an absorption rate as low as 15%.
Our vitamins don’t use capsules or tablets to deliver nutrients to the body. Instead, the vitamins are encapsulated in pockets of fat called ‘Liposomes’ (hence the name). Doing this supports a faster, more effective delivery of both of the key nutrients – helping your body reap more of the benefits more quickly.
Now, here’s where it gets a bit complicated.
We only want to encapsulate vitamins in Lipo that are hard for your body to absorb. That’s why we specifically chose to coat only the Vitamin C element of the formula in Liposomes.
Vitamin C generally has a low absorption rate. But we included it in our formula because, when absorbed effectively, it’s an expert at accelerating the Collagen Synthesis process within the body. Simply put, encapsulating Vitamin C in Liposomes and combining it with a dose of Collagen supports a faster, more effective delivery of both of the key nutrients – helping your body reap more of the benefits more quickly.
We also included 7 more nourishing skincare ingredients including; Retinol; Vitamin B5; E; Pine Bark Extract’ Bilberry Extract and Flaxseed Oil; to bring you a super sachet that gives you all of your beauty essentials in one easy to take, super tasty supplement.
How do you define the term “Healthy Lifestyle”?
Living a life that is purposeful, full of tasty nutritious food and a healthy amount of exercise, sleep and meaningful time with the people you love.
I’m also a real believer in intuitive eating. It means that you’re at peace with all types of food. Unlike traditional diets that restrict or ban certain foods, intuitive eating requires you to stop looking at food as “good” or “bad.” Instead, you listen to your body and eat what feels right for you.
Your proudest moment?
It has to be the development of our all Advanced Collagen Supplement. From product concept to creating the branding and creative campaign, it has been such a long process but we’re nearly there.
In a world where botox, fillers and Instagrams filters are becoming ever the norm, I’m so proud to be part of a brand that is providing women with a natural solution to looking and feeling like the best version of themselves.
What’s your motto?
If you want to do something but you’re worried about the consequences, consider whether you can live with the worst-case outcome. If you can, then go for it.
In summary, it’s basically that you’ll regret the things you didn’t do more than the things you did so just for what you want.
What is the best advice you have been given?
It’s quite depressing but it’s that no matter what you do in life you’re going to die anyway, so whatever opportunities come your way…go for them.
Because in 100 years time no one going to care whether you failed or not so you might as well try.
What are your top 10 tips for a Healthy Lifestyle?
- Sleep at least 8 hours a day
- Spend at least half an hour a day exercising (if not more). This doesn’t have to be in the gym it can just be a walk but make sure you move your body every single day
- Pick an exercise you enjoy. It doesn’t matter if this isn’t the exercise that burns the most calories or gives you the flattest stomach – you just need to enjoy it because you’ll be more likely to want to do it again
- Eat three nutritious meals and two healthy snacks a day. Don’t ever let yourself get too hungry as this is when you’ll make bad decisions and reach for the sugar
- Be conscious of the people you spend the most time with. Your diet isn’t just your food, it’s the people around you and the way that you talk to yourself. Make sure you’re spending time with people who fill you up and don’t drain your energy
- Get outside as much as you can
- Take pleasure in the small things. Make a conscious effort to be grateful for everything you have in your life, even the small things like your morning coffee or a daily walk
- Take your supplements daily and make sure you’re being consistent with them
- Stay connected to people. Life gets busy, make sure you take the time to have meaningful conversations with the people you care about and if you’re having a down day tell people how you feel, a problem shared is a problem halved
- Be present. Try to stay in the moment and be mindful of exactly where you are as much as you can
What do you have to say to the next generation, particularly for those hoping to follow in your footsteps?
Take every single opportunity that gets put in front of you. Strive to do the best you can do in every single thing you do and never settle for average.
Oh, and learn when to quit. Recognise when a job, a person or a project may have run its course and it’s time to move on.
People often talk about working hard and sticking to things (which don’t get me wrong is a very important part of success) but they don’t talk about the power of quitting. Sometimes you have to quit things to allow your life to progress. It’s a very important part of the growth that people don’t champion often enough.
In a nutshell, your philosophy is…
Just go for it.
What health and wellbeing trends do you see being popular in 2022?
I think the key ones will be the rise of the ones I mentioned earlier: Nutricosmetics (beauty supplements) and Nootropics (brain supplements).
Why? Well, beauty (skin & hair) really does start from within and consumers are becoming increasingly educated in this area.
‘Skinmunity’ is on the rise, the process of treating our skin from the inside out with the aim of strengthening its defences. Born from nationwide lockdowns and having to hide behind masks, some of the ways we can care for our skin’s immunity include boosting antioxidants to fight oxidative stress, reducing inflammation and calming the skin, all of which can be supported by our taking our Advanced Collagen Supplement.
Further, supplements are only becoming more advanced in their formulations which ultimately makes them more effective. Take our Advanced Collagen Supplement, for example, the Liposomal Formulation really is so much more advanced than anything else on the market and that will only continue as people become more aware of the impact they can make through supplementation.
Do Known have any new products coming up in 2022 to respond to these trends?
Not any I can tell you about just yet! But there will definitely be some exciting ones, yes.
Known Nutrition’s Advanced Collagen Supplement is now available to pre-order here.
