Protein is often linked to "gym bros" pursuing their quest to bulk up. Yet the ingredient has recently surfaced everywhere — from Khloe Kardashian’s Khloud Protein Popcorn to Parmalat’s launch of protein yoghurts. Building on this growing mainstream interest, a South African brand is transforming protein from a gym essential into a pantry staple.
"That’s really the goal, not to force protein into the home, but to make it belong there," says the founder of South African protein brand MetaLab, Jake Axelrod. Image supplied.
Continuing this pantry revolution, protein brand MetaLab offers exciting protein products, making them enticing to Gen X and Gen Alpha alike with gourmet flavours and milkshake-like textures.
Checkers was among the first retailers to carry the brand, and MetaLab collaborated with Rooibos tea brand Bos on a protein powder, breaking into South Africa’s health and wellness market.
MetaLab founder Jake Axelrod paused his pursuit to lead the protein market to talk to Bizcommunity about standing out in a crowded field, the rise of clear protein, and attracting Gen Alpha consumers.
What do you think makes MetaLab unique in the South African protein market?
I think what’s made MetaLab resonate is that we’ve never really seen ourselves as a “supplement brand” in the traditional sense.
From day one, the goal was to take protein out of the gym bag and put it into the pantry.
Something that feels like a normal part of everyday life, not something reserved for a niche audience.
We’ve focused a lot on the customer experience: how the product tastes, how it looks, how it fits into someone’s routine, not just the macros.
And I think that’s been a big shift locally. Consumers don’t just want functional anymore; they want something that feels premium, considered, and enjoyable.
But at the same time, that only works if the product itself stands up to it.
We’ve been very intentional about using high-quality ingredients, building a clean and transparent supply chain, and ensuring proper third-party testing and consistency across our products.
It’s not just about creating something that looks and tastes good; it’s about delivering something people can trust and use every day.
That balance between experience and integrity ultimately justifies a premium position.
Why should more South African beauty and wellness brands pay attention to protein?
I think the opportunity with protein is much bigger than it’s been traditionally positioned.
At MetaLab, we’ve been very intentional about not pushing a hard “protein narrative” in the typical fitness sense.
Instead, we’ve focused on making it feel like a natural part of the household, something that fits easily and enjoyably into your daily routine.
As a result, we’ve seen a very different consumer emerge.
The primary customer is often the female figure in the household, someone who’s thinking about overall wellness, energy, skin health, and how she feels day to day, not just performance or recovery.
When protein is positioned that way, it starts unlocking a lot more value.
It becomes something that supports how you look, how you feel, and how you show up, and that naturally extends into the rest of the family as well.
I think for beauty and wellness brands, that’s where the real opportunity lies.
It’s not about forcing protein into the conversation, but about integrating it in a way that feels relevant, intuitive, and aligned with a more holistic view of health.
Gut health has become a concern for health-conscious consumers. How can protein brands incorporate fibre in their protein products?
Gut health is definitely becoming a much bigger consideration, and rightly so.
Many traditional protein products haven’t always been the easiest to digest.
There are a few ways brands can approach it.
Adding functional fibres is one, but I think the more important shift is to look at formulation holistically.
At MetaLab, we’ve focused on building products that are inherently easier to digest from the ground up.
That starts with the quality of the protein itself: a high-grade whey isolate that’s very low in lactose, which already reduces many common digestive issues.
From there, it’s about what you don’t include.
We avoid fillers, starches, and unnecessary bulking agents that can often cause discomfort.
We also avoid overly complex sweetener systems and instead use well-studied sweeteners at considered doses, along with high-quality flavour systems that are less likely to irritate the gut.
We also include a patented digestive enzyme blend to support absorption and overall gut comfort, especially for people who regularly use protein.
While fibre can play a role, for us it’s really about creating a product people can use consistently without digestive issues, because that’s where the real benefit lies.
MetaLab wants the whole family to enjoy protein. How do you create formulations and flavours that appeal to Gen Alpha?
I think this one is quite personal for me.
I’ve always believed that protein is one of the most important nutrients across every stage of life, not just for performance, but for general health, development, and how you feel day to day.
The problem is, it’s historically been positioned very narrowly, mostly around gym and fitness culture.
What we’ve tried to do at MetaLab is break that mould.
At the end of the day, protein is protein.
Yes, there are differences in quality, and we’ll always focus on using the best possible ingredients, but fundamentally, it’s a macronutrient that should be accessible and relevant to everyone.
Instead of forcing a “family product” narrative, we’ve focused on building a brand and product experience that naturally has broad appeal from how it looks, to how it tastes, to how it fits into everyday life.
Flavour plays a big role in that.
It needs to feel familiar, simple, and genuinely enjoyable, especially for younger consumers.
If it doesn’t taste good, nothing else matters.
But more than anything, it’s about how the product is positioned.
When protein feels approachable, non-intimidating, and part of a normal routine, it naturally becomes something that the whole household can use.
And that’s really the goal, not to force protein into the home, but to make it belong there.
How can South African beauty and wellness brands tap into the growing popularity of clear protein?
Clear protein is one of the most exciting shifts in the category right now because it completely changes how people experience protein.
Instead of a heavy, milky shake, you’re getting something that feels more like a juice or flavoured water, lighter, more refreshing, and easier to incorporate throughout the day.
For beauty and wellness brands, this opens up many possibilities.
You can start to position protein in formats that feel closer to skincare or lifestyle products: clean, light, and for daily use.
The key is not to treat it like traditional protein. It’s a different use case, a different moment, and a different consumer mindset.
Brands that understand that will win.
MetaLab has previously collaborated with Checkers. What other collaborations are in the pipeline?
Collaboration is actually a big part of our ethos as a brand; it’s even in the name.
“Meta” speaks to evolution, and “Lab” is really about experimentation and collaboration.
We’ve always believed in moving industries forward together, and more importantly, merging categories that wouldn’t traditionally be put together.
Our partnership with Checkers is a great example of that. It aligns really well with our pantry positioning and gives us a physical canvas to bring the brand to life at scale.
Together, we’ve been able to start reshaping what the protein category can look and feel like in a retail environment, making it more accessible, more elevated, and more relevant to everyday consumers.
Looking ahead, we’ve got some exciting collaborations in the pipeline across food, lifestyle, and retail, many of which haven’t really been done before in the South African market.
The focus is always the same: create something genuinely new, bring energy into the category, and ultimately attract new consumers to protein.
For us, collaboration isn’t just a marketing tool; it’s how we grow the category.
Finally, what's your go-to MetaLab choice?
This one’s actually quite hard to answer, because many of our products were developed from personal and household needs, so I end up using most of them.
From a protein perspective, I’d say our whey protein range is probably my go-to.
It’s just very versatile, and I genuinely enjoy the variety of flavours, so it fits easily into my routine.
I also use our EAA and electrolyte formula every day.
It’s probably one of the most comprehensive amino hydration products on the market, so it’s become a staple for me.
Then I’ll rotate in things like our clear protein when I want something lighter and more refreshing during the day.
So to be honest, I’m not very loyal to just one product; I use them all depending on the moment.
To check the brand, head over to MetaLab website.
