Bloom Diagnostics Update: How We Grew Revenue +300% YoY
This is a follow up story for Bloom Diagnostics. If you're interested in reading how they got started, published almost 5 years ago, check it out here.
Hello again! Remind us who you are and what business you started.
Hi! We are Angelica & Tom - a mother and son duo that started Bloom Diagnostics. Tom is a pretty tech nerd with an MsSc Finance and I am an MD PhD. Mother and son may be very unusual as founders, but our thoughts are truly complementary and we agree on most things (despite some fierce discussions sometimes!).
We started Bloom as it bothered us that healthcare is the least digital space of all when it comes to the customer/ user/ patient. Who that is? All of us!
Over the past 4 years, our strongest focus was the customer: To develop the best, most intuitive product for users offering huge value/ health insights to them. Despite regulatory and other challenges, we succeeded to build a great team of 70 people from over 30 nations, and today have 6 products that are approved.
Revenue is growing steadily, presently at a +300% YoY. So far, this was achieved without a major sales organization, which is the next step ahead of us.
Tell us about what you’ve been up to. Has the business been growing?
Bloom Diagnostics is creating a completely new market, which is a challenge per se. As mentioned, because so far little was invested in sales, Bloom did very well already having sold/ performed thousands of tests. The small commercial team has done an amazing job organizing big events e.g. at marathons and alike.
Additionally, every test performed brings new, anonymous insights to the benefit of our customers. Our learnings are fed into the system and users can see trends and what can be done to improve their health. The test pipeline is growing fast. Presently, Bloom has a Ferritin, Thyroid, Inflammation, and Kidney test on the market. Many others, such as a Vitamin D test, will follow, as well as multiple tests in one. Also, new software features are underway to further help users understand their condition.
Bloom is approved in 40 countries in Europe and is selling in 6. We plan to expand, next to Spain and France. For 2023, we are preparing the US market entry. The US is our strongest market due to the weak healthcare coverage and an openness towards new technologies. Large corporations already confirmed a partnership after FDA approval.
Due to our digital nature, we have real-time feedback for marketing activities, but also for other parameters such as tracking which tests are mostly being used, in real-time, or if there is any issue. This is of major value to keep our customers happy. We implemented a strong Customer Support Team, who has been doing a fantastic job. The customer is at the center of our attention and their feedback is always considered.
Bloom’s social media presence has grown up to 300% and continues to do so.
What have been your biggest challenges in the last year?
Bloom is 4 startups in one: We build hardware/ electronics, and software, develop biotech products and have analytics flowing into real-time reports for customers. Even for a large company such as Roche or Abbott, this alone would be a challenge.
Covid certainly has had a positive impact on awareness about the self-testing option, but in the end, as said, we are building a new market and this is not trivial. In the medical space, building trust takes a while. For a few weeks, we are seeing the interest grow steeply - as now we have been around for a bit and people recognize the brand.
Trust in your team is very important to be able to operate and grow, and to win the trust of your customers.
For a startup, with limited funding, this is huge. We solved all challenges very successfully. The biggest challenge ahead now is to achieve the same success with sales - and we are on an excellent way, with our graph showing a line from the left bottom to the right top!
What have been your biggest lessons learned in the last year?
The greatest lesson learned, again and again, is to make the right decisions regarding people (and partners). Talented, engaged, curious, and kind people are the key to the success of any company.
You make mistakes along the way, e.g. trying not to follow your principles as mentioned above - to realize that it doesn’t work. Trust in your team is very important to be able to operate and grow, and to win the trust of your customers. Transparency needs to be part of the culture. Today, I would say that Bloom has the best company culture I have encountered in decades.
Also, very quickly you learn that there are no shortcuts.
What’s in the plans for the upcoming year, and the next 5 years?
In the next step, the focus, next to continue strengthening R&D and growing our offers to the public, will be around sales growth. We have a clear plan of how to reach that. In our team, together with the COO, Philipp Rovina, who became an interim CCO due to his extensive experience in the field, our path shows further growth in Europe (as mentioned, today Bloom sells in 6 countries: DE, AT, CH, UK, IT and HU).
Geographies: The upcoming year will take us to the US. Over the next 5 years, we will expand to all continents.
Products: We have unseen developments in the pipeline, such as multiplexing, data intelligence, and much more - wait for surprises.
Bloom intends to become a global leader in healthcare and health analytics.
What’s the best thing you read in the last year?
All biographies of successful entrepreneurs, such as Stev Job’s or Warren Buffett’s (also to find mistakes…).
Advice for other entrepreneurs who might be struggling to grow their business?
What takes you to succeed is courage and perseverance, next to a healthy judgment, of course.
Are you looking to hire for certain positions right now?
Many, but most importantly, a CCO. All open positions can be found on our website.
Where can we go to learn more?
Bloom is present on almost all major social media platforms - join us!
