Longevity hope: Doctor’s Best new NMN product hits US$1m mark in China
Over 5,000 bottles have been sold on its Tmall flagship store, its parent company Xiamen Kingdomway Group said.
Following the sold-out of the initial batch of 1,406 bottles, subsequent pre-orders of 3,605 bottles were received within three days between July 16 and 19.
Together, the product has brought in sales amounted to RMB$7.68m (US$1m).
NMN has occupied the headlines in China recently due to its anti-ageing and longevity claims.
NMN is an intermediate compound of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+). A low NAD+ level is linked to the onset of age-related diseases, such as the Alzheimer’s Disease.
A couple of Chinese media, including Sina Finance, ran the headline news “China’s own longevity, anti-ageing medicine launched” in the recent week, singling out the NMN ingredient suppliers and brand owners of NMN supplements.
Following the media hype, Xiamen Kingdomway Group saw its share price on Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SSE) shot up by over 20% for two consecutive days on July 14 and 15.
The unusual share price movement has led SSE to issue a letter of concern to the company.
In its response to SSE’s letter of concern, the company clarified on July 21 that the product was only produced in small numbers and was not yet a major influence on the company’s operating sales.
It said its US subsidiary ‘Doctor’s Best’ launched the NMN product on its Tmall flagship store on July 8.
While the initial batch of 1,406 bottles was sold out and pre-orders for 3,605 bottles were received, the company maintains that the future production figure remains uncertain and is subjected to the market’s response.
The product is sold at RMB$2999 (US$429) per bottle on Tmall. Made in the US, each capsule contains 160mg of NMN.
“The company is uncertain about the market forecast of Doctor’s Best’s new NMN product. Also, (the company) is uncertain about the extent of market sales that the product can achieve.
“The product will not affect the company’s operating sales at present,” the company said.
User indications
The Doctor’s Best NMN product claims to “support healthy ageing and NAD+ production” and “support energy production” on its labelling.
To which, Xiamen Kingdomway also said in its announcement that Doctor’s Best did not make guarantees on the effectiveness of the product and has stated that the product is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any diseases.
It added that the factory manufacturing the product was FDA and National Science Foundation certified Good Manufacturing Processes (NSF cGMP) approved.
Notable NMN brands
Other notable NMN supplement brands in China includes Hong Kong-based GeneHarbor. Its NMN ingredient has received a self-affirmed Generally Recognised as Safe (GRAS) status.
Each bottle containing 60 capsules of NMN (150mg) is sold on JD.com at RMB$1,500 (US$214).
Other NMN finished product companies in APAC include Vitacell International from Hong Kong and Japanese pharma firm Teijin.
