Jenni Falconer

I've been a keen runner since the age of 19 and eventually in 2009, I signed up for my first marathon. At this point, I was working on ITV daytime and was advised by a colleague, who happened to be a TV Doctor that as our bones take such a battering with excessive pavement pounding, it would be wise to start taking supplements containing collagen as it's hugely beneficial in aiding joint recovery. Who was I to argue?! I took heed of this advice and, after a while, progressed onto collagen powder.

Now in 2022, I have completed eight marathons and more than a dozen half marathons, 10Ks and other races. I’ve also used my journey to launch a weekly podcast, called ‘RunPod’. It’s the ‘Run Club of the Podcast world and every episode, I chat with a special guest who loves to run! They share their running journey, their top tips and we talk about the feelgood of getting up off the sofa and doing something so simple yet still hugely rewarding.

To this day, I truly value collagen for recovery after a run, it contributes to healthy joints, cartilage repair as well as good gut and cardiovascular health. However over the years I have discovered that there is so much more...

Alongside running, my work hours have always been fairly anti-social. I've worked as a presenter on breakfast TV and radio since 2000. Yes, for 2 decades my alarm has been waking me at a time when most people will still be asleep - you'd assume not ideal for dewy, radiant skin. For the last few years I have been hosting the breakfast slot on Smooth Radio on Monday to Friday and then mid-mornings on Saturday. That’s still a lot of early starts…nevertheless, in recent years, friends have started commenting on how fresh I look - which is always welcome feedback considering the lack of sleep!

My skin has certainly had its share of low points - in my 20s, I suffered from mild acne, which left me paranoid and lacking in confidence. I started taking collagen in my 30s, at which point my skin not only cleared but felt more hydrated and looked a lot more luminous. I always credited my skin clarity and radiance more to fresh air through my love of running than to the collagen supplement and didn’t actually connect the dots between the improvement in my skin’s appearance and the fact I was taking collagen for quite a while – not until the day I ran out! After a while, my skin truly felt less radiant and something was definitely different.

Once I restocked and started back on the collagen, some friends and makeup artists started commenting on my 'great skin', it was at that point I realised that collagen may be my little wonder product!

I'm a working mum who, for the last 10 years, has been getting up between 2 and 4 am to go to work and do the early shift. This lack of sleep should have definitely had a negative impact on my skin and health, however, that seems to not be the case. The collagen has indeed been working wonders - not just aiding recovery after running but also visibly on my skin, hair and nails.

If you said to me a few years ago that I would have my own collagen brand, I wouldn’t have believed you. However, after years of trying others, my husband proposed that we create our own formula and this way we could tailor it to tick all the boxes: collagen, vitamins, a great taste, and an all-in-one sachet that can be taken daily.

For me, it was imperative to find not only an ingredient that had clinical studies to prove it actually worked, but also to pack our daily sachet with as much of it as possible...and that is exactly what we have done. We put 10 grams of marine collagen in each sachet. After thorough research, we also realised that a liquid supplement has added benefits as it can penetrate the system quicker.

We cast the net far and wide to ensure that the collagen we used was premium and the one we found is the best on the market. We then mixed in added vitamins - B1, B5, B6, B12, and vitamin C - so you will feel fantastic! And, of course, we carefully developed the taste - whilst some brands are satisfied with being ‘palatable’, we wanted ours to be delicious whilst ultimately giving you that radical boost you’re after.

It has taken time but we have got there in the end and the result is a daily sachet crammed with the highest levels of premium marine collagen required to give you incredible benefits, whoever you are and whatever your age. In fact, since our launch in 2020, we have sold over 3 million doses, received more than 2,000 5-star reviews, achieved the elusive ‘informed sport approval’ certification, been featured on ITV This Morning and won a series of awards!

We have been awarded by Women’s Running, the Beauty Shortlist, the Global Makeup Awards, the Global Beauty and Wellness Awards and even the Bambini Baby Awards. Victories have included Best Nutrition Health Drink, Best Design and Packaging, Best Global Liquid Marine Collagen Supplements Manufacturer and, most importantly, Best Beauty Product for a New Mum! This kind of recognition is more than I could ever have dreamed of and I couldn’t be happier that so many people are getting something out of a collagen supplement that my team and I created.

On a personal note, ever since we have created our wonder product, Kollo, my skin, nails and hair feel like they have all been given a radical boost. What’s more, as a keen runner, I am still reliant on the benefits of collagen for my joints, cartilage and cardiovascular system. I love it! It is a part of my daily routine and the minute you try it, you will want it as a part of your daily routine too.