When Lindsay’s mother faced a severe diverticulitis flare-up, her doctor’s advice was simple: take probiotics. But despite Lindsay’s 12 years of expertise in probiotic research and clinical trials, she couldn’t find a product that addressed her mother’s specific combination of needs. This frustrating gap in the market sparked an idea that would become GoodBac – a Surrey-based business crafting bespoke probiotic solutions.
Lindsay Rose, a Cambridge-educated scientist with a background in veterinary medicine and probiotic research, recognised a fundamental problem in the gut health industry. While awareness of the microbiome has exploded in recent years, the market offers predominantly one-size-fits-all solutions.
“When I started working with probiotics 15 years ago, no one knew what they were,” Lindsay said. “Awareness is growing so much – everyone is aware of their microbiome now.”
Turning cutting-edge research into personalised solutions
Operating from her laboratory in Tilford, near Farnham, Lindsay developed a platform that links customer health information to the latest probiotic research, creating truly bespoke blends tailored to individual needs. Customers can go on the website and fill out an assessment to create their own blends for their own personal needs.
“If a new study comes out, we can change the algorithm and then everyone is getting that in the mix,” Lindsay explained. “It makes us a lot more flexible – you can respond to the science.”
Funding support helps accelerate growth plans
The business, which launched in 2025, has been a success but has been entirely bootstrapped until now. A grant from the Economic Growth Fund means the business can now expand and respond to market demands.
“We’ve had a lot of interest from nutritionists,” Lindsay said. “We realised there was a need for a health professional service so they can go on the website and make products for their customers. They can design it themselves.”
The grant funding will support laboratory expansion and the development of a portal for health professionals to create evidence-based probiotic blends for their clients.
As a female-founded, science-led business manufacturing in Surrey, GoodBac represents the kind of innovative enterprise that strengthens the local economy. The laboratory expansion will eventually create jobs in advanced manufacturing and support the growing health technology sector in the region.
On receiving the funding, Lindsay said: “I think it is going to be game-changing for the business.”
The Surrey Economic Growth Fund
To date almost £2 million has been awarded to dozens of recipients across the county via the Surrey Economic Growth Fund. This funding has helped to unlock significant match funding and private investment, growing Surrey’s economy by £9 million.
Although the Growth Fund is now closed to new applications, any Surrey business looking for funding or help to grow can receive fully-funded support from Business Surrey. Get in touch to find out more via our Contact us form.
