The cutting edge science behind gummy empire Nourished
As founder and chief executive of Nourished, Melissa Snover has built a supplements business rooted in data, cutting edge technology and AI. What began as a frustration with generic vitamins has evolved into a multinational platform able to tailor bespoke gummies based on individual needs.
Nourished promises to assess your lifestyle, diet, goals and habits, then translate that information into a 3D-printed supplement stack.
The native New Yorker, now based in the UK, tells CityAM how the technology has evolved, why personalisation is becoming central to the supplement business and how automation and smart manufacturing are shaping the future of wellness.
Walk us through how Nourished determines what each customer needs?
Our algorithm is really the brains behind our personalisation. When someone completes the assessment, it looks at their lifestyle, goals, diet and habits, then cross-references those answers with a large and constantly evolving body of clinical studies, nutritional research and ingredient data. It weighs different inputs to build a picture of what that individual’s body may benefit from. The outcome isn’t generic – it’s a tailored gummy stack designed to support someone’s unique circumstances and remove the guesswork from supplementation.
How much data does the algorithm draw upon?
The data set behind the algorithm is constantly developing. We update it all the time with emerging clinical studies, new scientific research and new ingredients we bring into the range. Every addition expands the system’s understanding of how nutrients behave, how different lifestyles influence needs, and which combinations work well together. This growing body of data is what allows the recommendations to be accurate, science-backed and genuinely personalised rather than relying on broad assumptions.
Does the algorithm get smarter and if so how quickly is it evolving?
Yes, the algorithm is constantly evolving, and it’s been exciting to watch how much it has developed over the past five years. It learns from anonymised patterns and has become far more nuanced over time. Because every interaction feeds into its understanding, it improves steadily, and as the dataset grows, the recommendations naturally become more precise and responsive.
How did 3D printing change the game for the vitamin industry?
Traditional supplement manufacturing is built for scale, not personalisation – millions of identical tablets produced months in advance. Our patented 3D printing technology flipped that model. It allows us to create a bespoke gummy stack for each customer on demand, layer by layer. Our unique encapsulation approach also gives us much greater freedom in formulation, meaning we can combine ingredients that normally can’t coexist in traditional tablets or gummies.
What new innovations are on the horizon for Nourished?
Automation is a major focus for us. We’re integrating technologies such as vibratory bowl systems, automated cooking equipment and smart quality-control tools to streamline production further. These upgrades improve consistency across every batch and free up the team to spend more time developing new formulations and enhancing customer experiences. Over time, this level of automation will allow us to scale globally while maintaining the high-quality standards and precision that sit at the heart of our personalised approach.
How do you validate a new nutrient before it becomes part of a Nourished stack?
We use a sophisticated AI tool that understands complex health regulations and clinical data. It helps us build compliant formulations, check safety parameters and generate documentation efficiently, allowing us to innovate quickly without adding risk. It also enables us to tailor formulations to different markets by accounting for country-specific regulations around dosages and permitted ingredients. Alongside that, we only use active ingredients with strong third-party scientific backing, supported by human clinical trials. We don’t use ingredients tested on animals and won’t compromise on scientific standards.
What does the scientific testing cycle look like?
We’re extremely proud of our third-party testing programme. Since we launched, we’ve outsourced over 200,000 tests to accredited labs. These tests validate everything from stability and potency to heavy metals and water activity. When we create a new formulation – whether it’s for sleep, cognition or immunity – it goes through this extensive testing pipeline to make sure it performs exactly as intended and delivers consistent results.
What are you working on right now that most excites you?
Right now, we’re focused on the launch of Formulaic with Boots in January, which brings personalised nutrition to the high street for the first time. It combines our understanding of behavioural insight, data and personalised manufacturing into an experience that people can access in a familiar, trusted retail setting. The aim is to make tailored nutrition more approachable and accessible to a wider audience.
How has self-optimisation culture shaped the way people engage with nutrition?
We’re seeing people take a far more proactive approach to their wellbeing. They want solutions that support energy, focus, mood and long-term health rather than generic supplements. Personalised nutrition fits naturally into that mindset because it offers relevance and clarity, removing the overwhelm that often comes with trying to optimise everything at once.
Are you seeing people pair Nourished stacks with wearables or biomarkers?
Yes, increasingly so. Many customers are using wearables or biomarker data to better understand sleep, stress, recovery and metabolism, then using that insight to fine-tune their routines. It’s a growing trend that opens up exciting possibilities for deeper personalisation in the future.
Do you worry that optimisation culture risks overwhelming people?
There’s definitely a risk of overload. Our approach is to keep the experience simple and human. Once someone completes the assessment, we distill everything into a single, personalised daily stack. All the complexity happens behind the scenes, so the customer doesn’t have to think about it.