St. Louis digital health startup Sparo has marked an exit, inking a deal to join forces with a venture-backed company headquartered in Connecticut.
New Haven, Connecticut-based digital health firm Wellinks, which has developed a virtual program to manage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), has acquired the business assets of Sparo. Financial terms of the deal, announced earlier this month, were not disclosed.
The acquisition brings together two digital health companies that have developed programming aimed at helping individuals manage COPD. With its acquisition, Wellinks said it will integrate Sparo’s pulmonary rehabilitation program into its own to help treat COPD. Sparo’s rehabilitation program, called Lift, is online-based and includes a “variety of classes led by a multidisciplinary team of instructors and is designed to improve access to care.”
“Joining Wellinks enables us to apply our years of research and development to improving the health of a broader network of members. We are thrilled to embark on the next part of this journey together as part of the Wellinks team,” said Andrew Brimer, co-founder of Sparo.
Brimer and co-founder Abby Cohen launched Sparo while students at Washington University. Their startup won a $50,000 grant in 2013 from local nonprofit Arch Grants and has raised capital from investors. As part of the acquisition, Brimer and Cohen have joined Wellinks. Cohen is senior program manager and Brimer has taken on the role of senior product designer.
“As part of the Wellinks product team, Abby and Andrew can continue developing innovative content and programming for our members, building on the strong foundation they created with Sparo,” said Ellen Su, chief product officer at Wellinks. “We are proud to welcome them to Wellinks, and look forward to empowering more people to take control of their COPD and improve their health through virtual-first care.”
In November, Wellinks announced it raised $25 million from investors in a Series C funding round. It said it would use the capital to expand its patient base, add to its headcount and advance research. Wellinks formed in 2019 through a merger of ConvexityScientific Inc. and Wellinks.
