Tej Lalvani, 52, the company's chief executive and a former investor on the BBC's Dragons' Den, said the deal represented "a defining moment" in the company's history. Vitabiotics, which makes popular supplements including Pregnacare, Wellman and Wellwoman, was founded in 1971 by Prof Lalvani, now 94. Mr Lalvani joined the business after university and said he began by sticking labels on boxes in the warehouse before working in every department. He has rejected suggestions he simply inherited the business, saying his father expected more of him than other employees. After becoming chief executive in 2015, Mr Lalvani oversaw Vitabiotics' international expansion while becoming a familiar face to television audiences as one of the investors on Dragons' Den.