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Today I’m so excited to share what our team has been up to since we began operating last year with the mission to make our comprehensive, science-backed weight care programs accessible to everyone.
Obesity is the number one cause of preventable death in this country and nearly 50% of the population will be clinically obese by 2030. The pandemic made matters far worse. People not only gained an average of 29 lbs while being at home and stressed out but being obese increased the risk of severe illness and hospitilization from COVID-19.
Weight is also deeply stigmatized. We’ve been told over and over to just eat less and move more and then shamed for our lack of willpower when we don’t see success. But there’s little success to be seen despite all our myriad efforts - 50% of the U.S. diets every year and yet only 5% lose weight. Decades of research show us that losing weight and keeping it off require more than just diets and working out. In 2013, the American Medical Association (AMA) classified obesity as a chronic condition and a disease, just like hypertension and high cholesterol. Obesity is a disease, not a decision - and needs to be treated like one.
I co-founded Found because we saw an opportunity to help everyone live their best healthy lives and finally modernize weight care. We’re bringing an integrated, individualized and evidence-based approach to weight health with a heavy focus on being kind to yourself and your body.
Today I’m so excited to share what our team has been up to since we began operating last year with the mission to make our comprehensive, science-backed weight care programs accessible to everyone. We’ve served tens of thousands of people and our members have lost more than 200,000 pounds. Thanks to the growth of this incredible community, Found has become the largest medically guided weight care solution in the U.S. in a year of operations.
More important than pounds lost, our community has “found” healthier, more confident and fulfilled versions of themselves. They’ve discovered they can finish a 5K, keep up with their grandkids, have more energy and finally feel in control of their lifelong sweet cravings and ultimately unleash the quality of life that they’ve been yearning for and deserve. We focus heavily on these non-scale victories, to reinforce that body positivity and self-acceptance are complementary to healthy outcomes that last.
Introducing our leadership team
We need to be more ambitious if we want to make any kind of dent in the obesity epidemic. So to help us usher in our next phase of growth, I’m thrilled to announce that Sarah Jones Simmer is joining Found as Chief Executive Officer. Sarah was previously the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Strategy Officer at Bumble, a company that destigmatized online dating and challenged our assumptions and redefined societal standards, which will be crucial to our success at Found. Sarah played a pivotal role in the company's success and its journey to IPO. If you want to learn more about the inspiring personal and professional journey that led her to us, this post by Sarah is a must-read.
We’re also announcing Alexandre Linares has joined as Chief Product Officer. Alex previously served as the VP of Product at Headspace, where he oversaw Product and Growth for an app that serves 70 million people. Alex has deep experience building tech platforms that support positive behavior change, which is a key pillar of Found. He is an incredible technologist with a track record of building companies that rethink industries.
As Found’s co-founder and Chief Operating Officer, I’ll continue to focus on scaling our business operations and leading our growth strategy so that Found can make a difference in more people’s lives. Having spent the last decade building and scaling iconic multibillion-dollar marketplaces at Uber and Opendoor, I know what it takes to build a massive global business with long term value and a product that consumers love….and that’s what we’re doing here at Found.
The Found difference
With hundreds of weight loss solutions on the market, each with their own set of promises, celebrity spokespeople, and approaches, it’s fair to ask, “What makes Found different?”
We’re building the most comprehensive and integrated solution for lasting weight care, with access to support that extends far beyond nutrition and exercise, when it makes sense, to doctor support, comprehensive prescription interventions, specific expertise on stress, emotional regulation or sleep as part of this integrated toolkit.
Access is core to our mission. At a high level, the program we offer was previously only attainable to a select few that could pay thousands to receive care from specialized weight loss clinics.
"I've dedicated the last twenty years of my career to weight management medicine, with a particular focus on patients at risk of weight-related diseases. While we help as many people as we can in our practices, Found has the potential to bring evidence-based care to the millions of Americans who need treatment and in turn improve healthcare outcomes in the US,” said Dr. Judith Korner, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Advisor is the founding director at Columbia University Weight Control Center and the Vice Chair of The Obesity Medical Board.
Funding to fuel our growth
Earlier this year we raised $24M Series A funding from GV and venture studio Atomic, with support from Define Ventures. This is in addition to (previously unannounced) $8M in seed funding. GV Partner Frederique Dame, Found board member and investor adds, “Found's mission to provide patients with more options for long-term weight care is critical to advance human health. The company takes a fresh approach to bring the weight clinic model online with personalized, evidence-based coaching designed to improve patient outcomes. We're thrilled to work with Sarah, Swathy, and the entire Found team as they modernize weight care and continue scaling as the largest medically guided weight care solution in the U.S.”
If you’re interested in connecting with us or learning more about Found, we’d love to hear from you! Reporters can reach out at press@joinfound.com. If you’re also passionate about our mission and want to join our growing team, check out our careers page.