LDC Top 50 2025
Dr Steven Compton
Founder and Director
DSC Nutrition
After four years of running a direct-to-consumer nutrition brand, Dr Steven Compton was ready to throw in the towel. “It was too competitive. I couldn’t see a way forward,” he says. Then came the pivot.
He switched to manufacturing vitamins and supplements for other brands and the business took off. Based in Waterlooville, DSC Nutrition produces 20 million tablets and capsules and fills 40,000 pouches and bottles every day. “We’re known for quality and scientific accuracy. My PhD credentials give me an edge.” Turnover has more than doubled in the last 12 months. Steven’s goal? “To become one of the UK’s top three nutraceutical manufacturers.”
We’re known for quality and scientific accuracy. My PhD credentials give me an edge in this market.”
Q&A
What was the idea behind DSC Nutrition?
I’ve always loved science and did a PhD in pharmacology at Southampton University; my professor told me you don’t need to be a genius, you just need perseverance – and I’ve got that in spades. The idea for DSC Nutrition started at the gym. I got curious about supplements, began mixing powders at my kitchen sink and launched my first product, Top Fuel. I ran the business for four years but selling direct to consumers was draining. I couldn’t compete with the big players and ended up in a bad place mentally. Then I had a lightbulb moment: the money was in tablets, not powders. I flipped to a B2B model and that’s when things really started to move.
How have you grown the business?
I’ve kept prices fair and have reinvested everything back into the business; buying more kit, expanding steadily. We outgrew our old industrial park, where we had four small units and lorries queuing outside. Last year, we moved into a 13,000 sq ft site. We had nine staff then. Now we have 45 and we’ve just taken on another site across the road. I stay grounded. No egos. I’ll still put the bins out.
How do you switch off?
I love what I do and that’s what gets me up in the morning. I’m usually in by 6am to check the factory floor and don’t leave until 6pm. I switch off by driving really fast! I’ve got a Nissan GTR and in 2023 I set the standing mile record at Race Wars UK: I hit 228.6mph.
