Written by Max Marion | Founder of AquaOmega

Stepping into a saturated market

When we first started to explore the omega-3 category, it was clear that it was a very saturated space. Everyone seemed to have an omega-3 product, and they all claimed to be the best, have the best flavour or be the most efficient. Being new to the category, we decided to surround ourselves with industry experts, Ph.D.'s in omega-3s, Naturopathic Doctors, and Nutritionists. While working closely with experts, we began to see a clear picture, even though there was a significant amount of omega-3s available in the market, the vast majority of these were being built for HUGE profit and disregarded efficacy. Any omega-3 supplement we did find that our experts listed as good quality would fall under a professional brand and retail at an extremely high price. In our opinion, this was fundamentally wrong.

We were left asking ourselves, how could companies stand behind inferior quality products, while making bold health claims? How could they justify the quality of raw materials, that in some cases, could be harmful or detrimental to a person's health? How could companies feel ethically justified about charging ridiculously inflated prices?

It was clear that even in this utterly saturated market, there was a distinct opportunity to step in and set a new standard for what omega-3s should be.

The more we learned about the importance of supplementing with this essential fatty acid, the more passionate we became and our commitment to do better only grew stronger. With our experts' help, we examined all aspects and began to ideate the perfect omega-3 supplement.

How do you create a quality health product?

All of this was done without any cost consideration whatsoever. From this point, we then set out to see if it is possible to build the product, and learn what it would cost. As newcomers to this space, we started to reach out to everyone and anyone that could help us. We spoke with raw material distributors, contract manufacturers and distillation plants, to name a few. We quickly picked up on a pattern. They were changing our formulas, adjusting our ratios and suggesting a blended fish source, otherwise, the product was being quoted to us at close to our current retail price point of around $40, just to make the product. This wasn't acceptable to us at all, the product no longer resembled what we had ideated, and with the quotes we were being sent, it would not be affordable for the end consumer.

Sometimes, the product you envisioned hits a roadblock

We were left with a serious decision, like all others in the omega-3 space who wanted a superior product, we had to either abandon the project or drastically reduce the quality of the product in order to achieve a fair market price. We did something different…

We chose a third option as we were not going to sacrifice the integrity or quality of the product, which meant we had to do the work ourselves.

We cut out every single middle man and went direct to source on everything.

Having identified anchovy as the best possible source of fish, we took a trip to South America, determined to find the best possible supplier and then develop a direct relationship. We toured the coast of Peru and Chile, visited every crude oil facility, fisherie, and distillation plant. This was incredibly enlightening, and the knowledge we gained was invaluable, we’ll touch on this in a separate article.

Through our perseverance, we managed to establish a direct relationship and found a source of omega-3s that finally met and even exceeded our stringent criteria. We went through this process with every other component of the product and were now able to produce an omega-3 supplement that was exactly as ideated, without compromise.

We continue to use this unique method in the formation of our product ideas and concepts in all of our products. Our goal is simple; provide the best possible finished product at the best price without compromising integrity or quality. We then combine that with third-party certifications which show full transparency to our valued retail partners, Naturopathic Doctors, and end consumers.

AquaOmega has set a new standard in the omega-3 category. We will continue to do so with an unwaverable commitment to quality, value, innovation, and transparency. We are winning on these values, and the incredible impact our products have on the consumer's overall health and well being. We put in the work because we care, and in an industry that often lacks ethics, we want to lead the way with actions, and set a new standard for where the bar should be.

We are proof that if you are willing to put in the work and work on a reasonable margin, you don't have to sacrifice quality to deliver a premium product at fair prices.

We are AquaOmega, and we are the new standard in omega-3s.