獨家:“減肥神藥”經銷商迎來重組,CEO下臺業務大縮水

據《財富》看到的內部信件以及有關知情人士透露,由創始人基金(Founders Fund)和老虎環球基金(Tiger Global)投資的減肥初創公司Calibrate正在對其管理團隊進行調整。
Calibrate的創始人、首席執行官伊莎貝爾?凱尼恩在周一下午在發給員工的一條Slack消息中確認,她將卸任CEO一職,不再負責公司的日常運營。不過她表示將繼續以“創始人”身份留在公司。另據知情人士透露,Calibrate的首席財務官戴夫?菲爾丁也將離職。該知情人士表示,接替他們二人的潛在人選目前正在接受面試。凱尼恩在Slack上發布的那條消息也顯示,該公司已指定兩名高管(斯科特·洪肯和埃德·卡迪)負責日常運營,并且直接向董事會匯報工作。
我們目前尚不清楚這是否為最終方案,也不知道該公司打算何時正式發布相關消息。不過Calibrate首席財務官戴夫?菲爾丁向《財富》表示,他目前仍在該公司工作,并拒絕進一步置評。
Calibrate是其母公司Redesigning Health于2019年創辦的?!敦敻弧啡涨翱吹搅艘环釸edesigning Health致投資者的信,信中稱,母公司將在推動Calibrate的重組過程中發揮積極作用。據悉,今年曾向Calibrate發放大部分貸款的馬德林資產管理公司(Madryn Asset Management)也是促成Calibrate重組的重要推手。
Redesigning Health的一位女性發言人在聲明中稱:“我們仍然對該公司的業務發展軌跡充滿信心,特別是在馬德林資產管理公司的資金支持下,我們有信心讓公司走上盈利之路?!彼€指出,Redesigning Health公司“將為Calibrate的運營、財務和規劃工作提供日常支持”。
Calibrate是一家創辦于2019年的公司,旨在幫助患者實現減肥目標。它可以通過遠程醫療向患者開具GLP-1類藥物的處方,這類藥物主要用于治療糖尿病,但也有不少人用它們來減肥(比如最近大熱的所謂“減肥神藥”Ozempic)。該平臺還可以通過視頻提供營養、鍛煉、睡眠和情緒健康等方面的指導。隨著人們對Ozemic的需求激增,Calibrate從創始人基金和老虎環球基金等風投公司手中拉到了超過1.6億美元的融資。Calibrate還與一家大型企業展開了合作,為其員工提供代謝方面的健康服務。
但該公司今年也遇到了一些麻煩。上文提到的那封信中指出,由于藥品供不應求,Calibrate只得退還了多名患者繳納的費用,目前該公司也無力開展證券融資。據《內幕》(Insider)報道,該公司還在兩輪裁員中解雇了大約250人。更糟糕的是,今年夏天曾一度傳出Calibrate要被一家“大型醫療行業領軍企業”收購的傳聞,但消息最終無疾而終。(不過Redesigning Health公司在信中稱,它相信未來Calibrate仍有可能與那家公司或者其他公司達成收購協議。)
那封寫給投資者的信還表示,目前Calibrate的投資者方已經深度介入重組工作,并將開始“迅速縮減”Calibrate公司直接面向消費者的業務規模,同時努力使公司實現盈利。信中稱,作為重組的一部分,馬德林資產管理公司將與其他投資者一道,再度向該公司注資2000萬美元現金,以推動使其盈利所需的改革。
Redesigning Health向其第一支風投基金的部分投資者表示,它已經將向Calibrate的投資減記了1倍。
“目前看來不太可能出現一個有吸引力的結果了?!毙胖袑懙?。(財富中文網)
譯者:樸成奎
據《財富》看到的內部信件以及有關知情人士透露,由創始人基金(Founders Fund)和老虎環球基金(Tiger Global)投資的減肥初創公司Calibrate正在對其管理團隊進行調整。
Calibrate的創始人、首席執行官伊莎貝爾?凱尼恩在周一下午在發給員工的一條Slack消息中確認,她將卸任CEO一職,不再負責公司的日常運營。不過她表示將繼續以“創始人”身份留在公司。另據知情人士透露,Calibrate的首席財務官戴夫?菲爾丁也將離職。該知情人士表示,接替他們二人的潛在人選目前正在接受面試。凱尼恩在Slack上發布的那條消息也顯示,該公司已指定兩名高管(斯科特·洪肯和埃德·卡迪)負責日常運營,并且直接向董事會匯報工作。
我們目前尚不清楚這是否為最終方案,也不知道該公司打算何時正式發布相關消息。不過Calibrate首席財務官戴夫?菲爾丁向《財富》表示,他目前仍在該公司工作,并拒絕進一步置評。
Calibrate是其母公司Redesigning Health于2019年創辦的?!敦敻弧啡涨翱吹搅艘环釸edesigning Health致投資者的信,信中稱,母公司將在推動Calibrate的重組過程中發揮積極作用。據悉,今年曾向Calibrate發放大部分貸款的馬德林資產管理公司(Madryn Asset Management)也是促成Calibrate重組的重要推手。
Redesigning Health的一位女性發言人在聲明中稱:“我們仍然對該公司的業務發展軌跡充滿信心,特別是在馬德林資產管理公司的資金支持下,我們有信心讓公司走上盈利之路?!彼€指出,Redesigning Health公司“將為Calibrate的運營、財務和規劃工作提供日常支持”。
Calibrate是一家創辦于2019年的公司,旨在幫助患者實現減肥目標。它可以通過遠程醫療向患者開具GLP-1類藥物的處方,這類藥物主要用于治療糖尿病,但也有不少人用它們來減肥(比如最近大熱的所謂“減肥神藥”Ozempic)。該平臺還可以通過視頻提供營養、鍛煉、睡眠和情緒健康等方面的指導。隨著人們對Ozemic的需求激增,Calibrate從創始人基金和老虎環球基金等風投公司手中拉到了超過1.6億美元的融資。Calibrate還與一家大型企業展開了合作,為其員工提供代謝方面的健康服務。
但該公司今年也遇到了一些麻煩。上文提到的那封信中指出,由于藥品供不應求,Calibrate只得退還了多名患者繳納的費用,目前該公司也無力開展證券融資。據《內幕》(Insider)報道,該公司還在兩輪裁員中解雇了大約250人。更糟糕的是,今年夏天曾一度傳出Calibrate要被一家“大型醫療行業領軍企業”收購的傳聞,但消息最終無疾而終。(不過Redesigning Health公司在信中稱,它相信未來Calibrate仍有可能與那家公司或者其他公司達成收購協議。)
那封寫給投資者的信還表示,目前Calibrate的投資者方已經深度介入重組工作,并將開始“迅速縮減”Calibrate公司直接面向消費者的業務規模,同時努力使公司實現盈利。信中稱,作為重組的一部分,馬德林資產管理公司將與其他投資者一道,再度向該公司注資2000萬美元現金,以推動使其盈利所需的改革。
Redesigning Health向其第一支風投基金的部分投資者表示,它已經將向Calibrate的投資減記了1倍。
“目前看來不太可能出現一個有吸引力的結果了?!毙胖袑懙?。(財富中文網)
譯者:樸成奎
Calibrate, the weight loss startup backed by Founders Fund and Tiger Global, is making changes to its management team as investors restructure the company, according to an investor letter, internal correspondence seen by Fortune, as well as another person familiar with the changes.
Calibrate’s founder and chief executive, Isabelle Kenyon, is stepping down as CEO and will no longer oversee day-to-day operations, she confirmed in a Slack message sent to employees Monday afternoon that was seen by Fortune. In the note she stated she would be staying with the company as “founder.” Calibrate CFO Dave Fielding will also step down, according to someone familiar with the matter. Potential replacements for both those roles are being interviewed, the person says. Calibrate executives Scott Honken and Ed Cudahy have been promoted to oversee day-to-day operations and will report directly to the board, according to Kenyon’s Slack message.
It’s unclear whether the plans are final, nor when the company plans to officially implement them. When reached by Fortune, Calibrate CFO Dave Fielding said he was still with the company, declining to comment further.
Redesign Health, the startup studio that initially launched Calibrate in 2019 and that sent the letter to its investors seen by Fortune, will play an active role in facilitating the restructuring, according to the letter. So will Madryn Asset Management, the alternative asset management firm that lent Calibrate the majority of its funding this year.
“We are still very confident in the business’ trajectory, especially with the financial support Madryn is providing in order to put the company on a path to profitability,” a Redesign Health spokeswoman said in a statement, noting that Redesign will provide “day-to-day support for Calibrate’s operational, financial, and planning efforts.”
Calibrate launched in 2019 to help patients achieve weight loss. The company prescribes patients GLP-1 medications typically used to treat Type 2 diabetes, such as the popular drug often used for weight loss Ozempic, via telemedicine. The platform also offers video coaching for patients on things like nutrition, exercise, sleep, and emotional health. As demand for Ozempic skyrocketed, Calibrate racked up more than $160 million in capital from venture capital firms including Founders Fund and Tiger Global. Calibrate had started working with an employer to provide metabolic health services.
But the company has run into trouble this year. Calibrate had to refund many patients’ subscription fees due to medication shortages, the letter states, and the company has not been able to raise equity funding. Insider reported that the company let go of about 250 people over two rounds of layoffs. To make matters worse, acquisition talks this summer between Calibrate and a “large healthcare leader” fizzled, according to the letter. (Redesign said in the letter that its believes a future transaction between that company or another are still possible)
Now Calibrate’s investors are stepping in to reshuffle management, start a “rapid down-sizing” of Calibrate’s direct-to-consumer operations, and get the company to profitability, according to the investor letter. As part of the restructuring, Madryn Asset Management and other investors will deploy another $20 million of cash into the company to make the changes needed to get it to profitability, according to the letter.
Redesign told some investors in its first venture fund that it had marked down its Calibrate investment to 1x.
“An attractive outcome has become less likely,” the letter reads.