MuscleBlaze is part of Bright Lifecare, also the company behind India’s nutraceutical e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retailer HealthKart.
The brand is already present in overseas markets such as Singapore via its website and e-commerce marketplaces Shopee, Lazada, as well as gulf countries like Saudi Arabia.
However, it believes the US invention patent obtained just this month (February 11) would stand it in good stead in its international growth plans.
The patent, which can be assessed on US Patent Public Search, pertains to the invention of a blend of proteolytic enzymes that was also awarded with an Indian patent earlier on.
This blend of enzymes is of interest as it has been shown to improve the bioavailability of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) through the hydrolysis of whey proteins.
A study conducted on 24 men found that the blend could improve protein absorption rates by 50 per cent and 60 per cent more bioavailability of BCAAs.
According to the patent document, the enzymes are obtained from fruits such as kiwi, papaya, fig and pineapple.
They also come from microbial sources such as the fungi Rhizopus niveus and bacteria such as Bacillus subtilis.
The blend is incorporated into the product MuscleBlaze Biozyme Whey (MB EnzymePro).
Launched in 2019, the product was also recognised as Sports Nutrition Product of the Year in NutraIngredients-Asia Awards 2021.
Speaking to NutraIngredients-Asia, Kaustuv Paliwal, senior vice president, said that MuscleBlaze would embark on a “much more robust” international expansion now that the US patent has been secured.
One reason is because consumers tend to put in more trust and recognition in products backed by US patents.
“Now that we have a US patent in place, our voice would be more credibly heard when we talk about our product to a Singapore customer, to an Australia customer, or to a Dubai or a US customer,” he said.
The top priority for its international business would be the South East Asian (SEA) markets - partly because of the region’s vicinity to the company’s head office in India.
Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia are some of the SEA markets earmarked for expansion.
The Middle East is another region of great interest, especially Dubai and Saudi Arabia.
“These are mostly the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) and SEA countries because they are more in the vicinity of our reach.
“If they are our first priority, our second priority would be the Australian market and the US,” he said, adding that the focus would be on the West coast, such as California for its US expansion.
The brand was present in the US market pre-COVID but had to rejig its strategy due to the pandemic.
Kaustuv said the brand would also stick to its “digital-first” strategy for its international expansion.
Benefits for the domestic Indian business
The US patent would also benefit its domestic India business, with Indian consumers becoming even more concerned about counterfeits and adulterated products.
Kaustuv said that the situation of counterfeits has been exacerbated by rising costs of whey protein raw materials.
Prices of consumer products have in turn increased by 15 to 20 per cent. Cheap counterfeits have also surged in numbers as unscrupulous players attempt to lure unsuspecting consumers, he said.
“The more expensive a product becomes, the more counterfeiting and the higher the chances of somebody doing amino acid spiking and cheating becomes higher.
“We anticipate that consumers would become very, very careful and are looking for products with proper certifications before buying it,” he said.
Aside from the US patent, MuscleBlaze has also secured Informed Choice Program Certified from the UK, Informed Protein Certification from the US, and these accreditations are also printed on the product packaging.
It has also developed a test kit which consumers can use to detect the presence and amount of whey protein present in a protein powder product.
The launch of the test kit has also helped the brand gain 10 per cent increase in market share of its protein products within a year of its launch - as consumers have used the test kits to distinguish and identify quality products.
