Maximuscle

The sports nutrition brand created by experts that disrupted the market with its focus on protein, fitness and results.

Invested in 2004, exited 2007

Maximuscle was founded in 1995 by Zef Eisenberg. Following a career as a highly successful bodybuilder, he published an exposé of the industry’s marketing hype based on his research into which products would work to build muscle and burn fat. On the back of a sell-out print run of his book, Zef started to offer specific products he trusted through a small mail order catalogue, which eventually grew into a brand selling its own products.

In 2002 Zef won the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. By 2004 turnover at Maximuscle was £8m, but growth had stalled. This prompted the decision to bring in a partner and help the business with the next stage of growth. As an expert in growth and taking businesses out of the entrepreneurial stage, Piper enabled its founder to realise some value from the business and to use additional funding to develop a professional management team and build the brand.

The business was able to rapidly grow using our experience of direct retailing to drive up customer recruitment and retention and using customer insight to plug into the growing trend in healthy eating, exercise and looking good. The benefits of its high protein products were being sold direct to consumers, reaching a dedicated consumer base through its online platform as well as a wider market through high street chains such as Argos, Tesco and JJB sports, gyms and specialist sports stores. This strategy led to a 3x increase in sales.

In 2007 we sold Maximuscle to Darwin Private Equity for £75m, providing Piper with a 10x multiple on its investment in just over three years. After exit, Maximuscle continued its incredible growth and into 2010 it was sold to GSK for £162M.