Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Bartlett.
Mark, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My story, perhaps aptly titled: Redbacks to Research: A Scientist’s Unexpected Journey
I was born in a tiny country town in Australia. Real country. Think: outhouse (“dunny” in Aussie slang), with the occasional Redback spider lurking under the seat and yesterday’s newspaper as toilet paper. You get the picture.
My family eventually moved to the “big smoke” of Sydney, and I was completely out of my depth—part bush kid, part nerd. I buried myself in books, obsessed with science, and quietly fascinated by my dad’s work as a chemist.
By the time I hit my late teens, I had not only found science—I’d found religion. At 19, in the most uncharacteristically bold move of my shy life, I left Australia for the first time to volunteer as a missionary in the U.S.
And that’s when a watershed moment happened.
I asked my American roommate, “So, what are you gonna do when you grow up?”
He said, “I’m planning on being a surgeon.”
And I said, “Wait… what? Are you kidding me?”
I was floored. In my world, that kind of answer was reserved for people who lived in TV shows. Me? I figured I’d go home and maybe fix cars, toilets, or sell furniture. My upbringing hadn’t taught me about ambition—my grandmother couldn’t even read or write. As far as I knew, nobody in my entire family tree had ever earned a college degree.
But something shifted. Maybe the world was my oyster. Maybe I could dream a little bigger.
So I did.
I returned to Australia and took a shot—applied to the Australian National University, one of the top universities in the world. I got in. Studied chemistry. Got a master’s in plant natural products chemistry. Then a PhD in immunology. Why not?
Then I hopped a plane back to the U.S. with just one suitcase, $500 in my pocket, and a postdoc fellowship waiting for me at the National Cancer Institute.
But life had another twist. While my head was buried in research papers and pipettes, my marriage unraveled. I found myself a single dad with full custody of five young kids and barely two coins to rub together. No way to even fly the kids back to Australia.
Then came the call. A personal care and supplement company in Utah needed someone to head up R&D. I figured, how hard could soap be after cancer immunology?
Turns out—it was just what I needed.
Thirty years later, I’ve led the development of products that have touched lives around the world. I’ve stood on stages in front of tens of thousands, spoken in over 40 countries, and helped shape a movement around science-backed wellness.
From Redback spiders to the Redox signaling pathway…
From the dunny to the data…
It’s been one wild, meaningful ride—and I wouldn’t change a thing.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Was it easy? Not exactly.
The science part I could handle. But life? That threw in some plot twists.
The hardest by far was going through a divorce while juggling full-time research and becoming a single dad to five kids in a new city, new state, and still technically a “legal alien.” I didn’t just have to pivot my career—I had to rebuild my entire life.
I went from being a lab rat in a world-class research institute to learning how to create products real people would use. That meant figuring out ingredient safety, dosage, and regulatory requirements. Navigating FDA and FTC compliance. Designing clinical studies. Learning manufacturing inside and out—SOPs, GMPs, quality systems—the works.
Oh, and public speaking. Cross-functional teams. Global travel. Corporate politics. You know… just the basics.
There was one unforgettable trip—two weeks in Japan, nine cities in 14 days. I came back exhausted, dying to hug my kids and release the babysitter. But immigration flagged an issue with my visa and nearly sent me right back to Tokyo. I somehow sweet-talked my way through it, paid a fine, and was never so relieved to be home.
So no, it wasn’t easy. But looking back, every curveball taught me something. And I wouldn’t trade a second of it.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
What do I do? What am I known for?
Well, I pivoted from pure research into the business world surprisingly well—turns out, I like my science with a side of hustle.
After years in cancer research, I found real joy in creating products that didn’t take decades to make an impact. I loved being on the prevention side of the health story—harnessing nature’s intelligence to keep people well before disease strikes.
Professionally, I’m probably best known for two things:
First, I wasn’t interested in copying what everyone else was doing. Not their formulas, not their methods. With my mixed background in plant chemistry, biochemistry, immunology, and cell biology, I led my (ever-growing) teams of scientists to carve out new paths—new paradigms in wellness and healthy aging. We explored novel approaches like gene expression models and used them to validate traditional wisdom, like the insights buried in ancient Chinese medicine.
Second, and this became my secret sauce—I learned to tell the story. Because what’s the point of brilliant science if no one understands it, or worse, no one uses it? So, I became a kind of science storyteller—translating complex research into messages that inspire. I worked hard to make sure customers, marketers, and partners could not only understand the science, but feel it—get excited by it, share it, and most importantly, use it to improve their lives.
That, honestly, is what I’m most proud of. The science matters, but so does the story. When you get both right? That’s when lives change.
How do you think about happiness?
What makes me happy?
Honestly, it’s that magical moment of discovery. After weeks—or sometimes months—of studying, digging through scientific literature, tracing pathways, and chasing down paradigms, there comes a moment when everything clicks. It’s like a lightbulb goes off in your head. I once spent nearly a year investigating the biochemical pathways of carbon during photosynthesis. I traced every reaction, every step—and eventually uncovered an error that led to the discovery of a new enzyme. It was like waking up from a dream. That moment of clarity, of breakthrough, makes me truly happy.
But there’s something equally fulfilling: telling the science story. Translating complex science into something people can feel, not just understand. I love watching the lights turn on in my audience—their own “aha” moment. That’s when I know they not only get it, but they’re ready to make changes, to improve their health, and to become passionate advocates for the people they care about. That connection—that shared understanding and sense of purpose—is pure joy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://makewellness.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/markbartlettphd
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Mark.Bartlett.Auss
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-bartlett-ph-d-3b261b4/
