New Zealand-based BLIS Technologies Limited and Stratum Nutrition, St. Charles, MO, have reconfigured their relationship to better align with respective sales and marketing strategies. 
 
Stratum Nutrition has been distributing BLIS ingredients in North America, Europe and Asia since 2012. Following a recent business strategy review, a new arrangement has been signed where Stratum Nutrition will focus solely on North America — the U.S. and Canada — while BLIS Technologies will manage Europe, Asia and other markets.
 
BLIS Technologies chief executive Dr. Barry Richardson said the change in relationship between BLIS and Stratum Nutrition is a natural evolution as elements of the company’s strategy begin to fall into place.
 
“Both Stratum and ourselves are agreed it will be of greater benefit to BLIS Technologies if Stratum focuses solely on the U.S. and Canada to build ingredient sales there.  We have an exclusive arrangement with Stratum for at least the next five years and we believe we can greatly progress the business in that time. We have a good working relationship.”
 
Dr. Richardson said BLIS Technologies’ new Dunedin manufacturing plant is operational making lozenges and nutritional formulations for the local market under the BLIS brand as well as supplying finished products to overseas markets.
 
“Stratum is primarily an ingredient business whereas BLIS has been steadily adding a range of finished product.  We want to retain the expertise of Stratum in that North American ingredients market but become more directly involved in finished product markets in Europe and Asia. At this stage we have no intent to develop a North American presence in finished product.  We have enough to do in Europe and Asia.”
 
Working with Stratum, BLIS has been experiencing growth in ingredient sales, particularly in North America.  Dr. Richardson said the company’s increasing ingredient sales over the past 12 months is primarily due to consumer product sales with BLIS K12 although BLIS M18 is also starting to get greater attention.
 
Stratum Nutrition president Jeremy Moore said Stratum has always been committed to empowering manufacturers and marketers to innovate with confidence by providing progressive, safe and reliable ingredients like BLIS K12 and BLIS M18. 
“It is not within our strategic scope to be involved in finished products. We are pleased to continue offering these ground-breaking technologies to our customers throughout North America,” he said.