Founder of health app Zoe which was backed by Dragon's Den star Steven Bartlett tells staff they will lose their jobs as it tries to slash costs by 20% after 'over-expanding' team

The co-founder of a popular health app backed by Dragon’s Den star Steve Bartlett has announced he is preparing to lay off staff after ‘over-expanding’ his team.

Zoe gives personalised advice on what users should eat, based on the results of gut health and blood fat tests and 14 days of blood sugar monitoring.

It’s now a fashionable option for health conscious Brits, with a waiting list to sign up for an initial £299.99 test followed by a one-year membership costing £299.88.

CEO Jonathan Wolf said Zoe had enjoyed ‘extraordinary’ growth since launching in the UK two years ago but had now overexpanded and needed to slash costs by 20 per cent.

Zoe – which Steven Bartlett has invested in – gives advice on what users should eat, based on the results of gut health and blood fat tests and 14 days of blood sugar monitoring

After downloading the app, users attach a continuous blood sugar sensor to your arm – made up of a small plastic tag, about the size of a 50p piece, with a small spike puncturing the skin

Announcing the ‘hardest news I’ve ever shared on LinkedIn’, he wrote: ‘We spent the last year desperately trying to catch up with demand, as we welcomed 100,000 new members.

‘Unfortunately, it’s now clear that in doing this, we over-expanded our team over the last six months. We now have to make difficult decisions to reduce our costs by around 20%, which will impact some of our team. I take full responsibility for this.’

Zoe was launched seven years ago by Mr Wolf and his business partner, the gut health guru Professor Tim Spector, and last year attracted a £2.1million investment from podcaster and investor Steven Bartlett.

Mr Wolf said losing members of his ‘close-knit’ team would be ‘very hard’ but insisted it was necessary for the future of the business.

He continued: ‘We must face this hard reality because our mission is important, and it’s clear that we can succeed at it. Building a startup isn’t easy, and success is rarely a straight line. It is often two steps forward and one step back.

‘This feels especially true right now, as despite this difficult decision, we are also far more confident in what we’re building than a year ago: from the members who tell us amazing stories of how ZOE has changed their lives, from the many thousands of new members joining each month and from the groundbreaking scientific discoveries our team is making.

‘I will always be grateful to every single member of our amazing team who have taken us so far, so fast. Each of them should feel immensely proud of how they have helped so many people transform their health.’

CEO Jonathan Wolf said Zoe had enjoyed ‘extraordinary’ growth since launching in the UK two years ago but had nonetheless overexpanded

Mr Wolf said losing members of his ‘close-knit’ team would be ‘very hard’ but insisted it was necessary for the future of the business

After downloading the Zoe app, users attach a continuous blood sugar sensor to your arm – made up of a small plastic tag, about the size of a 50p piece, with a small spike puncturing the skin.

This then measures how your blood sugar reacts to certain foods, before recommending changes in your diet to achieve  more constant blood sugar level.

This is said to have a range of benefits, including higher energy levels and improved sleep.

Zoe was also behind a Covid symptoms tracking app that was widely downloaded across the UK during the pandemic.

Bartlett has a wide range of investments in the health and nutrition industry, including Whoop, a smart watch which Boris Johnson wears, and Huel – a meal replacement drink.

He is now expected to launch a new podcast with his friend, Davina McCall.

The Masked Singer judge, 56, appeared on the entrepreneur’s famous podcast Diary Of A CEO, where she candidly opened up about her previous addiction – leading to the beginning of a friendship between the pair.

And it seems now that the pair hit off so well, sources are now telling The Mirror that the TV favourite has been signed up to be one of Steven’s ‘major partners’ in his successful podcast network.

It seems the 31-year-old will back Davina on her journey to build a brand-new wellness podcast, which will be launched on his network.

‘Davina is one of Steven’s first major signings for his network and they are working together on ideas for the podcast,’ a source told the publication.

Zoe was launched seven years ago by Mr Wolf and his business partner, the gut health guru Professor Tim Spector

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