1. Patient Experience

Sensitive Topics: Hims started by offering treatments for sexual health, mental health (anxiety, depression), and hair loss—topics people may be uncomfortable discussing in person.

Process Overview:

• Patient Onboarding: Patients log in, mention concerns (e.g., erectile dysfunction), and provide basic information.
• Medical Intake: A thorough questionnaire collects info similar to a traditional doctor's visit.
• Consultation: Chat-based interaction with doctors/nurse practitioners who review the case.
• Prescription: Doctors create prescriptions, processed by Hims’ partner or in-house pharmacies, delivered in discreet packaging.

2. Business Model Comparison:

Direct-to-Consumer vs. Hims:

Not like Nike or Allbirds (products) but rather a combination of healthcare services delivered digitally.

Comparison to urgent care or primary care, more than traditional e-commerce.

3. Hims & SaaS Comparison:

Key Metrics:

• Net Retention Rate (NRR): Measures how much a customer cohort spends year-over-year. Example: $10 spent in Year 1 increases to $12 in Year 2 (NRR = 120%).
• Gross Retention Rate: How many customers stay year-over-year.

Hims doesn't function like SaaS; retention varies by product (e.g., lifelong use of finasteride vs. acute treatment like ED meds).

4. Churn & Product Lifespan:

Churn is critical for SaaS or Netflix but less so for Hims due to the varied nature of treatments:

• Lifelong products (e.g., finasteride/minoxidil for hair loss) resemble Netflix's recurring revenue.
• Acute treatments (e.g., ED, weight loss, psychiatric meds) may only be needed short-term.

5. Urgent Care vs. Hims:

Hims tested urgent care-style visits (e.g., minor infections, cuts) but it didn't succeed. Focus has shifted to other areas like weight loss management.

6. Revenue Structure:

• Recurring Revenue: Hims' $1.4 billion in 2024 sales includes lifelong prescriptions like finasteride.
• Innovation in Products: Hims expands product offerings, leading to revenue growth and longer-term customer retention.

7. Technology & Innovation:

Tech-Driven Business: Hims is evolving into a technology company with digital healthcare offerings.

Product Innovations:

• Example: A combination of ED medication and a low-dose statin to address both ED and heart health.
• Use of AI in the future could further enhance Hims’ diagnostic capabilities (e.g., image-based dermatology analysis).

8. Future Considerations:

• Comparison to Teladoc: Hims has stronger financial performance and tech capabilities than Teladoc, which struggled with poor unit economics.
• AI’s Role: Technology will enable new offerings, such as AI-driven diagnostics and treatment recommendations.