Who this is
Jürgen Mehrtens and Dr. med. Jan K. Hennigs run YEARS, a longevity clinic founded in 2023 in Berlin-Charlottenburg, close to the Kurfürstendamm. Jürgen is a lawyer by training, spent more than a decade building businesses at the intersection of technology, health and growth, and got a call from investor Nils Regge (Apollo Health Ventures) asking whether he wanted to run the clinic; he has been co-founder and CEO for about a year and a half. Jan is a physician and molecular biologist, board-certified in internal medicine and pulmonology, with more than 20 years in research and academic medicine in Germany and the US; as Founding Head of Medicine & Science he is responsible for the medical side of YEARS. The clinic offers one-day check-ups in three packages, Core, Evolve and Ultimate, priced on the website at 1,990, 7,600 and 16,900 euros. They include a 3D body scan, extensive lab work, an oral glucose tolerance test, ultrasound, a 45-minute cognitive test battery, VO2max testing and, depending on the package, a whole-body MRI. The site cost just under 1.5 million euros to build, last quarter's revenue was just under 450,000 euros, and a second location in Munich is planned.
Episodes
Numbers from the episode
FAQ
What is YEARS?
YEARS is a longevity clinic in Berlin-Charlottenburg that offers one-day preventive check-ups. You get your own suite and a medical assistant for the day, followed by a 3D body scan, lung function test, skin photos for cancer screening, ultrasound of the carotid arteries, heart, abdomen and leg vessels, extensive lab work, an oral glucose tolerance test, a 45-minute neurocognitive test, heart rate variability, VO2max on the bike and, depending on the package, a whole-body MRI. A physician discusses the results with you and follows up afterwards. To the episode →
How much does a YEARS check-up cost and does insurance pay?
In the episode Feliks quotes 1,900 euros for the smallest package, 7,600 euros for Evolve and 16,900 euros for the top package; the website lists 1,990, 7,600 and 16,900 euros. About two thirds of that is YEARS revenue; the lab, genetics and MRI providers bill you directly. Billing follows the German fee schedule for physicians; privately insured patients can submit the invoices and, according to Jan, get around 80 percent reimbursed. Statutory health insurers are not allowed to pay for prevention, so it remains an out-of-pocket service. Discounts on medical services are prohibited. To the episode →
What does YEARS find in seemingly healthy founders?
In at least half of all patients YEARS discovers findings that need treatment but cause no symptoms: lipid disorders, prediabetes, fatty liver and high cholesterol, even in young, lean people. Twenty to thirty percent of patients are founders. Among them, Jan and Jürgen typically see sleep deprivation, high stress scores, anxiety and signs of depression in the questionnaires, plus the attempt to compensate for a stressful lifestyle with a lot of exercise. To the episode →
According to Jan Hennigs, what is the biggest lever for a long, healthy life?
Sleep. Jan calls it the biggest lever and the biggest hack, and the one almost everyone gets wrong. Then come the classic basics: 150 minutes of moderate endurance training plus two strength sessions a week cut cardiovascular mortality to 60 percent, alongside a Mediterranean diet, 1.6 to 2 grams of protein per kilo of body weight, fibre and as little ultra-processed food as possible. Alcohol has no medical upside; one or two glasses a week are considered reasonably tolerable. To the episode →
How much revenue does the YEARS clinic make and what is the second business model?
The Berlin site cost just under 1.5 million euros; last quarter's revenue was just under 450,000 euros, so just under 2 million annualised. From June, Jürgen expects 150 to 160 patients a month and 2.5 to 3 million euros in annual revenue for a well-run clinic. The second business model is a longitudinal dataset of aging biomarkers from patients who take the same tests every year. 75 to 80 percent consent to data use; there is no revenue from it yet. A second location in Munich is planned for the end of this year or early next year. To the episode →
Quotes
„Und der aller aller allergrößte Hebel und der allergrößte Hack … ist Schlaf. Das ist das Allerwichtigste.““The very, very biggest lever and the biggest hack is sleep. That's the most important thing of all.”
„Rieseneffekt, das schafft kein Medikament, das schafft kein Supplement sowieso nicht.““A huge effect. No drug can do that, and certainly no supplement.”
„Die gesamte Longevity-Szene ertrinkt in Anekdoten. Jeder hat seinen Stack, jeder hat seine Wunderwaffe. Aber wir brauchen wirklich harte Daten.““The entire longevity scene is drowning in anecdotes. Everyone has their stack, everyone has their miracle weapon. But what we really need is hard data.”