This Nootropic Company is About to Explode | Natural Stacks Review
My cheat code to boosting mental performance that could turn into a 5x investment.
Poker: The Ultimate Mental Sport
Elite poker players are like mental gladiators. Days are long and arduous and players are expected to compete for 12+ hours with few breaks. When I lived in Macau, our high-stakes cash games regularly lasted 24 hours.
Poker is less forgiving than other forms of competition; a single error can cost your entire tournament life or stack. In tennis, players can repeatedly hit the ball into the net and still win the match. Basketball players often miss more shots than they make.
Poker is unique. A player can execute flawlessly for three days, lose focus for 30 seconds, and go broke in a single hand.
With such a rigorous competitive atmosphere, it’s unsurprising that top poker pros constantly seek mental advantages. Over my 20-year career, I have worked with various mental coaches, personal trainers, and functional medicine doctors and experimented with every biohacking protocol imaginable in my relentless pursuit of peak performance.
Hacking Peak Mental Performance
A critical part of my pregame preparation is nootropics, also known as ‘smart drugs’ or ‘cognitive enhancers.’
Over the years, I’ve tried every available product in search of the best. This includes not only what's available in local health stores but also exploring natural product expos, testing the latest formulas before they hit the market, and even having a holistic Chinese doctor prescribe local herbs and plants during high-stakes poker games in Macau. In short, I'm a human guinea pig.
Dave Asprey, “The father of Biohacking’ and I both spoke at the WarRoom Conference in Beverly Hills.
Regrettably, most things I've tried fall short. They either don't improve cognitive performance, compromise on ingredient quality, or are unsustainable due to the use of aggressive compounds.
At the 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event, Martin Jacobson, starting as the second shortest stack, stunned everyone by taking down the $10,000,000 first-place prize with what was called ‘the best final table performance in history.’
Martin Jacobson at the Final Table of the WSOP Main Event. He’s investing in this round of Natural Stacks.
Intrigued by his performance, I sought several interviews to understand how he performed at such an elite level. He wore a patch labeled “Powered by CILTEP”, crediting this nootropic for his ability to stay focused for hours.
Intrigued, I ordered some. Thirty minutes post my first dose, I noticed a light, caffeine-like buzz that lasted for hours.
I braced for the inevitable crash and headache that usually follow such heightened focus, as experienced with prescription amphetamines (Ritalin or Adderall), but it never came. This was expected given the 100% natural ingredients with zero side effects, making them suitable for daily use. They are aptly named, Natural Stacks.
Natural Stacks Product Review
I've been a consistent user of their products for nearly a decade, witnessing remarkable results. They offer multiple products for various times of the day, each engineered for a specific function.
The founder, Roy Krebs, struggled with focus and memory his entire adult life. After his grandfather's Alzheimer's diagnosis, he made it his personal mission to help people build better brains, and in 2013, Natural Stacks was born.
His mission resonated with me. My functional medicine doctor, using preemptive genetic screening, revealed my predisposition to Alzheimer's, prompting me to mitigate this risk through diet, lifestyle, and supplementation.
Roy, after examining the research, noted the lack of a one-size-fits-all approach to brain health and transparency in the industry. This observation led him to create targeted products, each with a unique purpose, that could be combined with others to enhance cognitive performance, hence the name, Natural Stacks.
Natural Stacks strives to provide transparency. They fully disclose their labels, share information about each ingredient provider, and ensure third-party lab testing on every ingredient in every batch. This approach gives me the confidence that I'm fueling my most crucial organ with sustainable ingredients that offer long-term benefits.
The team at Natural Stacks is also passionate about education. They aim to teach how their ingredients and formulas influence the brain. Their YouTube channel, for instance, boasts nearly 14,000 subscribers and features over 500 informative videos.
The Traction of Natural Stacks
Currently, Natural Stacks generates over $10,000,000 in annual revenue, with an exponential growth rate of 40%.
Since 2020, they have expanded from 1,000 to 5,000 retail stores, and you can now find their products in CVS, GNC, Sprouts, Bristol Farms, Whole Foods, Sam's Club, Vitamin Shoppe, and soon, Walmart.
Their "Serotonin Brain Food" product is ranked #1 on Amazon for "serotonin," and "Dopamine Brain Food" is ranked #2 for "dopamine." Apart from their brain supplements, they have recently introduced a range of products such as magnesium gummies for calming and sleep.
Six new products, including Lion's Mane and Ginkgo Biloba, custom formulated for superior results at a competitive price, are in the pipeline.
Most notably, Natural Stacks expects to generate $50,000,000 in revenue in just five years – a 5x increase from their current earnings. As the fastest-growing cognitive health brand in the Natural Channel, with growth more than triple the category, Natural Stacks supports their projections with a proven track record.
As of this year, they have already generated $4M in revenue and are profitable.
Finally, Natural Stacks is launching the Better Brain App this summer which will feature cognitive assessments, brain training games, mobile shopping, and a customized experience to help the user achieve their mental health goals.
Investment Opportunity in Natural Stacks
I had the pleasure of meeting Roy at the Natural Expo West, and we bonded over our shared passion for peak performance and brain health. They are currently raising their first-ever round of capital, having been bootstrapped since launch.
I’ve secured an allocation of $100,000 to syndicate to my network of investors and poker players.
Addressing the Market
Just as it's wise to count your opponent's stack in a poker hand to gauge potential winnings, one of the first steps I take when evaluating an investment is determining market potential. Interest in brain health is rapidly growing.
The Nutrition Business Journal estimates that Mood and Mental Health Support Supplement sales will exceed $1.8 billion by 2024. Grand View Research reports that the total U.S. Brain Health Supplement Market, valued at $7.68 billion in 2021, is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 8.3% from 2022 to 2030.
Just 5% of this market is worth $384 million.
Next, I weigh the potential rewards against the risks to determine the opportunity's value. Natural Stacks is currently raising funds at a $31M valuation (3x annual revenue), which means if they capture a mere 5% of the total addressable market, their valuation has the potential to increase by 12x.
Natural Stacks is on pace to grow to $30M in revenue by 2025, with $20M in gross profit. Even a modest 5x multiple could potentially justify a $100M valuation. That would be a 3.3x return in 3 years for investors or roughly a 50% annualized ROI.
Cap Table
Notable investors for this round include:
AIDP Inc - $200M/yr branded ingredients co.
Magtein® supplier PLT Health - 70 yr old branded ingredient co.
Zembrin® supplier Tom Aarts - Founder of the Nutrition Business Journal
Martin Jacobson - 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion
Katie Wells - The Wellness Mama
I am genuinely grateful to be included on the cap table with such an exceptional team of industry experts, advisors, and brand ambassadors.
Why I’m Betting on Natural Stacks
When seeking investments, I prioritize those that are asymmetric, make a positive impact in the world, possess excellent leadership, align with my beliefs, and operate in areas I comprehend. Natural Stacks checks all of the boxes.
Not only do I plan on syndicating this deal for Natural Stacks, but I want to stay on board as an ambassador to raise awareness about the benefits of their product. In full disclosure, I am currently a paid advisor for Natural Stacks, although I am personally investing my own capital on the same terms as everyone else.
Roy and I share a vision of assembling a team of ambassadors from various niches to represent the brand. We are targeting industries where mental performance is essential for success, such as poker, chess, gaming, trading, and entrepreneurship.
By harnessing existing relationships and influencers within these sectors, we aim to exponentially expand our reach to the audiences of the most influential individuals in each niche.
How to Invest in Natural Stacks
I am syndicating this deal on AngelList through my syndicate, WHealthier. To participate, you must be an accredited investor. Setting up an account is a quick process, and they take care of all the paperwork for us.
Once you join the syndicate, you can download the deck which has more information about Natural Stacks’ marketing efforts, use of funds, growth projections, and more.
To get started, create an account, provide your accreditation documents, connect your bank account, and you're set to go with just a few clicks.
Join the syndicate here. Once you do, reach out with any questions.
Here's to a better brain!
Alec