Cover Tamara Lamunière, Chris Bosh and David Beckham at Upper House Hong Kong on October 12 (Photo: courtesy of Billy Chan/Tatler Hong Kong)
Tamara Lamunière, Chris Bosh and David Beckham at Upper House Hong Kong on October 12 (Photo: courtesy of Billy Chan/Tatler Hong Kong)
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As the wellness brand IM8 is named Official Nutrition Partner of the NBA for Southeast Asia and Australia, a fireside chat at The Upper House explores sport, science and the long game of staying well
On October 12, IM8 unveiled what it calls its next chapter at the Sky Lounge at The Upper House. The company used an invitation-only fireside chat and VIP reception to announce its appointment as Official Nutrition Partner of the NBA for Southeast Asia and Australia, a milestone that takes it into the heart of basketball in two of the region’s most dynamic markets.
It is a fitting step for a brand built on sporting credentials. Launched in December 2024 by Hong Kong entrepreneur Danny Yeung, chief executive of health sciences company Prenetics, with David Beckham as co-founding partner, IM8 is an all-in-one daily supplement. Its flagship Daily Ultimate Essentials product packs 90 ingredients at clinical doses into a single serving. By August this year, the brand had reached US$250 million in annualised revenue and more than 750,000 customers across 31 countries and territories. Its roster of athlete owners now includes NBA two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, tennis ace Aryna Sabalenka and Formula One driver Ollie Bearman.
Hosted by Tamara Lamunière, president of Tatler Asia Group, the conversation brought together Beckham, NBA champion, Hall of Famer Chris Bosh, and Dawn Mussallem, IM8’s founding chief scientific officer and a specialist at the Mayo Clinic Integrative Breast Oncology Programme. Guests including Alain Li, Amanda Strang, Li Xiaopeng and Zac Purton were among the hundreds that attended.
David Beckham (Photo: courtesy of Billy Chan/Tatler Hong Kong)
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The panel kept returning to one idea: good habits last only when they are easy. Beckham traced IM8’s origins to his frustration with the supplement aisle, recalling store visits where he had no idea what he was buying. “I want simplicity in the morning, I want something that is really convenient, and that’s what we created,” he said. Convenience, he added, was only half the brief—he also wanted people to feel the effects quickly. He said the feedback he hears most is that people feel clearer, healthier and more energised. His wife, Victoria, and their kids take it every morning, he said.
While IM8’s owners include some very famous individuals, Beckham says that is not enough to be involved. “The name will only get you in the room; it doesn’t keep you in.” So how does he choose his partners? “It’s a gut feeling, it’s instinct, it’s the people,” he said, singling out Yeung’s drive and the scientists around him.
Beckham shares a similar level of ambition. He credited his work ethic to his family, a hairdresser mother who still cuts hair at 76, a father who has only just retired at 77, and a grandfather who worked until he was 81. “The foundation of everything that I’ve been able to achieve in my career and in business is down to hard work,” he said. That mindset, he explained, was drilled into him on the training pitch as much as in the stadium, and it once led him to play the final game of his Real Madrid career, a title decider, on an injured Achilles. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s a practice match, it doesn’t matter whether it’s a friendly game—there are no friendly games—you play every game like it’s a World Cup final.” Even now, he said, he wants his children to see that a career means showing up and working hard—the same principle on which IM8 is built.
Utah Lee (Photo: courtesy of Billy Chan/Tatler Hong Kong)
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Later, Beckham and Bosh spoke candidly about what a career in sport takes from the body. Bosh recalled watching Gordon Hayward, best known for his time with the Utah Jazz, suffer a gruesome ankle injury, and realising the same could happen to him. “I did not want my children to see something like that,” the now 42-year-old said. “Right then, I made the decision … that I had to move on.” He retired in 2019, aged 35. These days, he said with a smile, “I don’t play basketball, I rebound for my sons.” His days now begin with the school run, and he has found a new sense of purpose in coaching and his children’s routines.
Beckham, who played until he was 38, described the toll in similarly frank terms. He still feels he could play, he said, “but then I’d be in bed for two weeks”. However, he also said that he recovers more quickly now than in his playing days. “Even at 51 years old, when I’m working out as hard as I am, [my recovery] is a lot better than it was even when I was playing.”
While Mussallem said that no supplement can replace the need for movement, sleep and good food—“You can’t [IM8] your way out of a poor diet,” she said—it is IM8’s facilitation of faster recovery that separates it from the rest.
Inside the IM8 event (Photo: courtesy of Billy Chan/Tatler Hong Kong)
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The most resonant moments of the evening went beyond product. Mussallem, a stage 4 cancer survivor and heart transplant recipient who ran a marathon a year after her transplant, spoke about what it means to feel well. “It’s one thing to be alive. It’s something entirely different to feel it,” she told the room. “Resilience isn’t about bouncing back—it’s really about moving forward.” Citing a Harvard study, she said the quality of our relationships at 50 is a bigger predictor of what our health will be at 85 than DNA or cholesterol, and that a positive outlook may be equally important. “Optimism and social connection are actually much bigger levers than we realise.” Beckham agreed: “To be positive every day doesn’t cost anything.”
Bosh offered a simple filter for everyday choices. “Think of your future self,” he said, adding that change need not be dramatic. “[Make] small decisions. It doesn’t always have to be big.” As for those facing a health challenge, Mussallem’s advice was even gentler: lose the expectations, show up for yourself, and take one day at a time.
As Content Director at Tatler Hong Kong, Tara shapes the brand's editorial vision across social, digital and print. She also drives the planning and execution of Tatler's flagship IPs. In her dual role as Head of VIP, she reports on Asia's most influential figures — from CEOs and leaders across business, style and the arts — curates star-studded events, and builds the relationships and communities that define the brand. Born and raised in the Middle East, she honed her craft in Dubai, crafting communication strategies for luxury brands across the Gulf. Follow her on Instagram @tarasobti.
