Vital Proteins, the Chicago-based maker of popular collagen products, has brought on a new high-profile team member.
Jennifer Aniston, the actress, producer and “Friends” star, is joining Vital Proteins as its chief creative officer, the company said Wednesday.
As a formal part of Vital Proteins, Aniston will give the company input on future products and advertise the brand. Aniston, who says she has used Vital Proteins products since 2016, plans to use her platform to evangelize others on the benefits, which the company says include improving the health of joints, ligaments and tendons, as well as hair, skin and nails.
The company’s products, which aim to replicate the natural collagen found in the body, are made from varieties of bovine hide collagen peptides, marine collagen and beef gelatins. Vital Proteins, headquartered in the West Loop, was founded in 2013 by Kurt Seidensticker.
Now, the company sells supplements, beverages and food products, like protein bars, across 35,000 retail locations in North America and Europe. Vital Proteins products can be found at retailers like Whole Foods, Target, Costco and Sephora.
"Collagen is the glue that holds everything together. I've always been an advocate for nourishing your wellness from within, which is why I started using Vital Proteins so many years ago," said Aniston in a statement. "Now to have the opportunity to be a part of the brand in a bigger way, as chief creative officer, is very exciting to me."
In December, Vital Proteins will launch a new ad campaign starring Aniston that will appear on television, social media and streaming platforms.
"We're really excited to welcome Jen and her valued perspective to the Vital team," said Seidensticker in a statement. "We've all watched Jen live a life that prioritizes wellness from the inside-out, which she attributes in part to her belief in Vital Proteins, making this partnership so unique and, more importantly, authentic.”
This isn’t the first celebrity Vital Proteins has worked with. The company established a partnership with Kourtney Kardashian after she approached the startup to make exclusive products based on its collagen blend.
The company has also received anecdotal endorsements on social media from celebs like Carrie Underwood and Jennifer Lopez. Even the Chicago Cubs took Vital Proteins during their 2017-2018 baseball season.
Earlier this year, Vital Proteins sold a majority stake to Nestlé Health Science, the nutritional science subsidiary of Switzerland-based Nestlé. The acquisition was meant to help Vital Proteins expand its reach globally with the help of Nestlé’s expansive network. NHSc has other vitamin, mineral, supplement and wellness brands in its portfolio, including Atrium Innovations, Garden of Life, Pure Encapsulations and Persona.
In 2017, Vital Proteins raised $19 million in venture capital funding from CAVU Venture Partners. As of June, Vital Proteins employed more than 330 people.
