Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

David Arapakos knows the over-the-counter and prescription medicine business pretty well, thanks to nearly 18 years working in senior-level positions at Johnson City’s Crown Laboratories. The company adopted a new name – Revance – after acquiring Revance Therapeutics Inc. earlier this year.

David Arapakos is giving entrepreneurship a try with a new endeavor to bring a better heartburn/acid reflux solution to help improve the lives of people in need. The start-up is named Spartan Health Science.

Over the next few years, his goals are to:

1. Build a new brand of fast-acting, effective antacid medicine for acid reflux and other stomach conditions with true health benefits better than the main legacy competition.
2. Promote and educate better habits, so consumers won’t need Spartan’s products over a lifetime; and
3. Disrupt the retail aisles of the legacy big brands while also focusing on the new shopping trends on digital platforms.

“Our offerings will be multi-faceted just like the stomach ailments of our customer base,” Arapakos says.

It is a fairly large market with the global antacids, acid reflux, and heartburn market reaching $6.7 billion  (USD) in 2022 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.1 percent. More significantly, it is expected to grow to $9.1 billion (USD) by 2032.

Focusing just on the United States, the antacids market size was estimated at $2.57 billion (USD) in 2024, with projections indicating growth to approximately $3.58 billion (USD) by 2034.

Arapakos also touts the benefits of the Spartan Health antacid. They include:

1. Relief speed that is instantaneous with either a chewable or liquid formulation;
2. An opportunity to promote gut health; and
3. Natural ingredients that not only reduce gut inflammation, but with pro-gut ingredients that help repair gut lining.

He is raising an $850,000 round currently. To learn more about his plans, you can email Arapakos at darapakos@spartan-hs.com.

 

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