Young Filipino entrepreneur builds a wellness brand around better breathing and smarter sleep

Leandre Kiu turned a personal breathing struggle into Nasalite, a growing wellness brand focused on sleep, nasal health, and innovation.

Most startup founders dream of changing the world. Some do it by building the next app or fintech platform. Others, like one 28-year-old entrepreneur from Manila, start by tackling something far simpler—but just as vital: how people breathe.

In 2023, what began as a personal experiment to fix a lifetime of nasal congestion has evolved into Nasalite, a growing wellness startup redefining the often overlooked world of nasal care. 

From a few trial runs of nasal strips ordered online, the business now sells thousands of units monthly across Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop—proof that small, specific solutions can quietly scale when backed by clear systems, smart testing, and a founder who listens closely to his market.

Unlike many wellness brands that lead with hype or lifestyle imagery, Nasalite built its footing on credibility. Every product—from its FDA-approved nasal strips to its bamboo-silk mouth tape—targets practical, science-based improvements in sleep and breathing. 

The goal, according to founder Leandre Kiu, is simple: “We want to make nasal health as normal to talk about as skincare.”

That clarity in focus came from experience. Kiu’s lifelong struggle with allergic rhinitis and a deviated septum made him his own test subject. After discovering how nasal strips improved his breathing, he saw an opportunity to turn personal relief into a business model. The challenge was convincing others the product worked.

“When we started, people were skeptical. They’d say, ‘Why would a piece of tape help me sleep?’” Kiu said. Instead of pushing harder, he educated—posting videos that explained the science, sharing authentic user reactions, and emphasizing that Nasalite’s products weren’t medical substitutes but wellness tools. “We’re not here to cure sleep apnea,” he added. “We’re here to make breathing—and resting—a little easier.”

Learning by doing

Kiu often says Nasalite has been his “real-world MBA.” Bootstrapping forced him to think critically about cash flow, hiring, and pricing. “You learn to separate what’s urgent from what’s just noise,” he said. Early on, he relied on feedback loops—testing small batches, iterating fast, and using customer data to guide product changes.

That approach extended to operations. Instead of expanding too fast, Kiu focused on building systems: written SOPs, templated processes, and AI-powered documentation tools that made every experiment repeatable. “Most founders romanticize chaos,” he said. “I wanted predictability. I wanted to know that if we grew tomorrow, nothing would break.”

Today, Nasalite is part of a rising consumer-health wave in the Philippines, where wellness products are becoming status symbols for practicality and performance. Around 85% of its early sales came from TikTok Shop, but the company now sees a more balanced mix across major e-commerce platforms—evidence that curiosity is translating into trust.

Kiu’s strategy centers on education as marketing. Each order ships with detailed usage guides, and the brand’s online content often focuses on explaining nasal health rather than simply selling products. “People don’t know they have nasal problems until you tell them what to look for,” he said. “Once they understand, the sale happens naturally.”

That emphasis on education is also shaping the brand’s next chapter. Kiu plans to expand Nasalite into a “one-stop shop for nasal wellness” and collaborations with ENT specialists to reinforce credibility. A podcast and bite-sized learning series are also on the drawing board, aiming to turn medical information into digestible, social-first content.

A growing brand built on small wins

Despite early success, Kiu keeps expectations grounded. “We’re still very small,” he said. “But I’d rather have a strong system and a clear market fit than chase numbers.”

His pragmatic view reflects how many next-generation founders are reshaping what success looks like in local startups. Instead of massive funding rounds, they focus on unit economics, customer feedback, and long-term brand equity.

As Nasalite moves toward potential retail partnerships and international expansion, Kiu remains guided by the same philosophy that started it all: progress over perfection. “Building Nasalite taught me that growth doesn’t come from big leaps,” he said. “It comes from learning fast and fixing faster.”

And in an increasingly crowded startup space, that might just be the kind of breathing room every founder needs.

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