WeightWatchers scraps business model to team up with anti-obesity drugs provider
WeightWatchers, which has promoted a non-medical, points-based approach to food intake since its creation in the 1960s, has announced a strategic partnership in the UK with CheqUp, a provider of GLP-1 weight-loss medication and accompanying clinical support and health coaching.
The partnership comes weeks after WeightWatchers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US, as it tries to cut its debt after the popularity of anti-obesity injections upended its model.
All CheqUp members will be able to access a WeightWatchers app, which has been specifically designed for people on weight-loss injections, with guidance from experts on food recommendations to minimise the side effects of the medication, such as nausea, while supporting healthy weight loss.
The two companies said the tie-up would help patients who are 'seeking sustainable weight loss through GLP-1 medication and behavioural support', with their 'complementary offerings' allowing patients to achieve better results than with medication alone.
Known for its trademark points-based programme, WeightWatchers – which rebranded as WW in 2018 – has had millions of followers worldwide, who bought branded cookbooks and ready meals, used its food-tracking app and attended local meetings with weekly weigh-ins.
But demand for its services has fallen in recent years, as people hoping to lose weight increasingly turning to injections such as Wegovy, which contains the drug semaglutide, and Mounjaro, which contains the drug tirzepatide. Trials showed the drugs can help people lose significant amounts of weight, with many seeking private prescriptions.
US-listed WeightWatchers, which once boasted TV talkshow host Oprah Winfrey as one of its top shareholders, has seen its shares lose 82% of their value so far this year.
Winfrey, who had been the public face for the diet company since 2015, announced in February last year she was leaving WW and giving away all her shares, shortly after she revealed that her recent weight-loss was due to taking anti-obesity drugs.
Obesity experts have called on the NHS to accelerate the use of weight-loss jabs to tackle the obesity crisis, which is linked to numerous long-term conditions including cancer, heart disease, dementia and diabetes, and also puts a huge strain on the health service.
Sign up to Business Today
Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning
after newsletter promotion
However, WeightWatchers may be banking on other recent findings that have shown that people taking weight-loss drugs regain all the weight they have lost within a year of stopping the medication if they do not make any changes to their lifestyle.
'The data is clear – we see in the US, that our members on obesity medications who also participate in our nutritional and behavioural lifestyle programme, lose 11% more weight on average than those using the medication alone,' said Scott Honken, chief commercial officer at WeightWatchers.
'At WeightWatchers, we recognise the demand for GLP-1 medications in the UK is growing as more people seek effective weight management solutions,' he added.
James Hunt, deputy chief executive of CheqUp said: 'There is no doubt that the addition of WeightWatchers' breakthrough GLP-1 companion programme will add enormously to our patients' ability to achieve sustainable weight loss through its science-backed and proven programmes, together with their global community of like-minded individuals.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
5 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Parents pay £500m to beat private school VAT raid
Parents at Britain's top private schools have defied Labour's VAT raid by paying fees in advance. Telegraph analysis shows the most expensive private schools received hundreds of millions of pounds in fees upfront last year as parents scrambled to avoid the 20 per cent tax raid, which came into force on Jan 1 2025. The scale of the advance payments has stunned tax experts, who warned it posed a challenge to Labour's revenue-raising plans. Sources suggested that the Chancellor would consider ways to claw back the lost VAT. The top 50 independent schools held £515m last year in advance fee schemes, which are used to pay school costs one or more years before they fall due. This was up from £121m in 2023, according to the latest annual accounts. It means the wealthiest parents alone may have avoided up to £103m in VAT, since they are thought to have handed over the fees before a government-imposed deadline when tax would start to be charged on advance fees. There are more than 2,600 private schools across the UK, meaning the total figure is expected to be significantly higher. The Treasury said that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) factored the use of prepayment schemes into its forecasts for how much money would be raised by the VAT raid. However, the vast sums poured into advance fee schemes are likely to eclipse expectations and will raise serious questions over official predictions. Brighton College, the most expensive private school in the UK, recorded total prepaid fees of £50.1m in last year's accounts – up from £4.1m in 2023. The number of pupils covered by the school's fees in advance scheme jumped from 86 in 2023 to 819 last year. At Eton College, where fees will reach more than £63,000 next year, the total money in its prepayment scheme rose from £16.6m in 2023 to £52.7m last year. Winchester College's fees in advance scheme leapt from £4.4m in 2023 to £19m in 2024, according to its latest accounts. The sums cover parents paying in advance for both one year of school fees and for multiple years. Telegraph analysis shows parents at many schools tried to cover the bill for as many as five years' fees upfront before last summer's deadline, meaning they may avoid Labour's tax raid altogether if it is cancelled by a future Reform or Tory government. Experts said the figures were 'extremely high' and the Government could face expensive legal battles if it tried to recoup the money. Labour confirmed concrete plans to charge VAT on private schools in its election manifesto, triggering a rush by families and schools to prepare. The Government was elected on July 4, but Rachel Reeves did not spell out plans for the policy until July 29. She said that all prepayments from that date would be subject to VAT. Mairéad Warren de Búrca, managing director at Alvarez and Marsal Tax, said: 'It's not surprising that schools would have done this type of thing with parents and maybe encouraged parents to jump on the prepayment bandwagon. 'Only the very rich can afford to make those advance payments, or those with extensive wealth … so I'm not entirely sure they [the Government] have managed to do what they intended to do.' Labour has repeatedly stated that its VAT raid on private schools will target the wealthiest families in Britain and raise more than £1.8bn a year for state schools by the end of the decade. But smaller private schools have said that the policy will hit them the hardest and leave the most prestigious institutions largely unaffected. More than 50 independent schools have shut or announced they are closing since the VAT raid came into effect, with the Government predicting that 100 schools will buckle over the next three years as a direct result of the policy. Most private schools offer pre-payment schemes for parents, which allow them to pay fees in advance and at a discount. Until now, these have typically been leant on by less well-off families, but Telegraph analysis shows an explosion in them being used as a potential loophole at top public schools in the run-up to the VAT raid. Private schools' latest annual accounts, most of which cover the 12 months up to July 31 2024, suggest hundreds of millions of pounds may have flooded into the schemes unscathed. HMRC could go after 'deposits' The Telegraph understands the Government will still try to reclaim VAT on some of these payments by trying to prove they were used illegitimately. For payments to be counted as genuine fees in advance, they must contractually apply to a specific service at a specific price. Dan Neidle, the founder of Tax Policy Associates, said: 'The level of prepaid fees identified by the Telegraph is extremely high. HMRC cannot apply VAT to fees prepaid before July 29 2024. There isn't a matter of discretion on the part of HMRC, and certainly not the Government. It's the law. 'However, we warned last May that many 'prepayment' schemes were not actually prepayments. They looked more like deposits… 'The question is whether HMRC are going to go after the 'deposit' schemes. If they do, it will be a huge financial headache for schools and parents.' Other tax experts said it was highly unlikely HMRC would be able to go down this route, meaning the wealthiest parents at the most expensive schools could avoid paying VAT on fees. North London Collegiate School recorded £19.4m in new contracts in its fees in advance scheme last year – up from £651,000 the year before. Seven in 10 of those payments – amounting to around £13.5m – were for multiple years' fees, according to the school's latest accounts. Paul Ridout, a solicitor at Moore Barlow law firm, said: 'My view is that it is really unlikely that HMRC would have any success in trying to get schools to account for VAT on money paid into these schemes before 29 July 2024. 'The schemes that have been operated by schools pre-date Labour's policy, so they can't really be described as tax avoidance schemes.' The Telegraph understands that many schools opened prepayment schemes when speculation over Labour's VAT policy mounted in the run-up to the general election, while others such as Eton College have had them in place for decades. Ms Warren de Búrca said it meant 'the more sophisticated schools' were more likely to have the right paperwork to fight off challenges from HMRC, while 'the middle ground private schools probably wouldn't have had the wherewithal of getting all of this set up' in time. A government spokesman said: 'The Office for Budget Responsibility has already factored in the increased use of prepayment schemes in its revenue forecasts. 'Removing tax breaks for private schools is expected to raise £1.8bn a year by 2029-30. 'This funding will help us recruit 6,500 new teachers and improve standards in state schools, which educate 94 per cent of children.'
Daily Mail
5 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
My bulimia was a 'necessary evil', says ex Formula One ace David Coulthard
Scots Formula One star David Coulthard has revealed he saw bulimia as a 'necessary evil' as a young driver. The former McLaren, Williams and Red Bull driver said he weighed himself twice a day to make sure he was the perfect size for racing. He said just saw it as what was required for young drivers to make their way through the ranks. But eating disorder charities have warned that bulimia can cause serious health problems. Speaking to Jake Humphrey on the High Performance Podcast, Coulthard, who has worked as a pundit since retiring in 2008, said: I didn't see it as a pressure. I saw it as a necessary thing to make weight. 'Jockeys, we're familiar with jockeys having to do saunas and whatever to lose the body weight to do the event they're doing. Boxers, I'm sure there's others. Gymnasts I assume. 'Just dysmorphia. They don't see in the mirror what they feel is a reflection of them as an individual. 'I would step on the scales and I was a pound overweight. That was going to affect my performance. So I weighed myself twice a day as a teenager. 'Morning when I got up, completely dry. And evening before I went to bed. Then that gave me my average weight. 'And I could tell a few days out whether I was in the right area for the race weekend. 'It was more of a compromise. It was a necessary evil of which I didn't discuss with anyone. 'I just knew that if I was overweight, then whatever dinner I'd had that night was not going to stay inside me. 'When I went into cars, suddenly I was relatively light for a 17-year-old because I'd kind of starved myself through my late teens. 'And therefore I had room to grow into my body. 'It was making sure I didn't have a disadvantage, because if I was overweight, I had a disadvantage. 'An edge would have been if they didn't include a weight and I could have got even lighter. But of course you're always looking for every advantage you can.' Daniel Magson, CEO of the charity First Steps ED, said: 'It is positive to see David talk so bravely about his experience of bulimia. 'We know that every eating disorder journey is unique, and that is why it is so important to share stories and break stigma, so more people who are impacted by bulimia can reach services like First Steps ED. 'Bulimia can cause serious damage to the body. Long-term effects include damage to teeth, throat, vocal cords and gut, and it may also increase the risk of heart problems. 'That is why early intervention is so important for anyone struggling with an eating disorder or with weight concerns. Our team offers support tailored to where you are on your recovery journey.' Mr Coulthard won 13 F1 races in his career and finished second in the drivers' standings in 2001, behind Michael Schumacher.
Reuters
5 minutes ago
- Reuters
Hims and Hers misses revenue estimates on decreasing wholesale demand
NEW YORK, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Hims and Hers Health (HIMS.N), opens new tab missed Wall Street estimates for second-quarter revenue on Monday, hit by weakness in its wholesale business, sending its shares down 9% in extended trading. The results follow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's sunset deadline for telehealth companies to end mass compounding. Hims and rival telehealth companies have launched programs that offer "personalized" versions of semaglutide, the active ingredient in weight-loss drug Wegovy, at doses not accessible through the branded manufacturers. Wegovy maker Novo Nordisk (NVOH.P), opens new tab has characterized mass personalization as illegal, and analysts have questioned whether Hims will be able to sustain its growth following the crackdown. Hims and Hers reported quarterly revenue of $544.8 million, missing analysts' average expectation of $551.6 million. The company's wholesale unit, which represents non-prescription product sales to retailers through wholesale purchasing agreements, posted quarterly sales of $7.95 million, down 10% from a year ago. On a year-over-year basis, subscribers increased 31% to 2.44 million in the second quarter. Subscribers rose 38% in the first three months of the year. The company reported a quarterly profit of 17 cents per share, higher than the average analyst estimate of 15 cents, according to LSEG data.
