Who this is
Dr. Sarah Bechstein is a dermatologist from a family of doctors. She studied in Heidelberg and worked in Frankfurt, Zurich and at Berlin's Charité before ending up in a large practice seeing a patient every five minutes. In December 2019 she co-founded Formel Skin with Flo and Anton: telemedicine treatment for blemishes, acne and perioral dermatitis with prescription formulas made individually by partner pharmacies and delivered as a subscription. Formel Skin raised three venture rounds, became profitable after layoffs and has been part of UK-based Manual since autumn 2025. Together with Manual, Sarah is now bringing the weight loss telehealth service Voy to Germany.
Episodes
Numbers from the episode
FAQ
What is Formel Skin?
Formel Skin offers telemedicine treatment for blemishes, acne and perioral dermatitis. Patients fill in a questionnaire and upload photos of their skin, a doctor picks the right prescription formula, and a partner pharmacy makes it individually and ships it every month. Formel Skin's own cosmetic products come on top. The subscription costs 50 euros a month; according to Sarah, Formel Skin has around 45,000 active subscribers and almost two million treatments. To the episode →
How was Formel Skin funded?
Formel Skin raised venture capital: 1.5 million in the pre-seed from Cherry and Heartcore, about a year later 5 million with Vorwerk Ventures and the existing investors, and finally a Series A of more than 30 million led by France's Singular, with Heal Capital as co-investor. A Series B never happened after the market downturn in 2022. To the episode →
How did Formel Skin become profitable?
After the Series A the burn peaked at 800,000 a month, and the expansion to Brazil didn't work out. In 2022 the founders cut the burn sharply, stopped Brazil and made layoffs. Because Formel Skin is a subscription business with loyal customers, the company could still carry itself, and it became profitable at the end of 2024. To the episode →
Why did Formel Skin sell to Manual?
Manual is a UK telehealth company that started in 2019 with hair loss treatments for men. Both companies share the same investor, Cherry, and the founders had known each other for years. Formel Skin was profitable but no longer growing fast and had limited funds to invest. Together, Sarah and Flo see far more potential: Formel Skin contributes its skincare know-how and its setup for the German market. To the episode →
How does weight loss treatment with Voy work?
Under the Voy brand, the team offers weight loss drugs such as Wegovy and Mounjaro via telemedicine in Germany. Patients upload a full-body photo, doctors check that it matches the stated BMI and only prescribe within the approved indication: a BMI of 27 or more with a related condition, or a BMI of 30 or more. During treatment patients can contact their doctor at any time, for example about nausea or feeling full. In a Manual study of 50,000 patients, people with digital support lost almost 4.7 percentage points more weight on average. To the episode →
How does Sarah Bechstein combine her company and her child?
Sarah's daughter was born at the end of March 2025, and she was back at work after eight weeks. Because her husband lives in Düsseldorf, she has had a live-in nanny from the start. She leaves the office at half past five, does the evening routine without her phone, works from home on Wednesdays and Fridays, and blocks out important moments such as her daughter's physiotherapy. To the episode →
Quotes
„Was wir schon gesehen haben, ist ja, dass die Community total wichtig ist. Also es kommt eigentlich überhaupt nicht an auf die Followerzahl.““What we did see is that the community is hugely important. The follower count really doesn't matter at all.”
„… dieses Coaching, was so teilweise wie so eine Paartherapie war, war echt gut …““That coaching, which at times was like couples therapy, was really good.”
„Die Series B kam nicht. Aber die Profitabilität kam.““The Series B never came. But profitability did.”
„… eigentlich das Potenzial, was wir gemeinsam haben, ist so viel größer, als dass wir alleine weitermachen.““The potential we have together is so much bigger than if we carried on alone.”
„Ich glaube, es wird immer Momente geben, indem du deinem Unternehmen nicht gerecht wirst, und es wird Momente geben, indem du deinem Kind irgendwie auch nicht gerecht wirst.““I think there will always be moments when you can't do justice to your company, and there will be moments when you can't do justice to your child either.”