Craig Lai King CA(SA), 35

Finalist: Wellness Advocate | SAICA Top-35-Under-35 Awards 2025

Craig Lai King is the CEO and co-founder of SANRAE, a South African wellness brand dedicated to advancing women’s health through superfood and supplement self-care products, paired with education and advocacy. With a mission to make wellness sustainable, Craig has positioned SANRAE as both a product innovator and a platform for behavioural change, reaching hundreds of thousands of women nationwide through targeted campaigns, digital content and community engagement.

Informed by both of their personal health journeys, Craig co-founded SANRAE with his wife, Kylie, a holistic nutritionist, to support women through every season and cycle. Through his training as a Chartered accountant, Craig brings structure, credibility and financial sustainability to an industry that is often undervalued. He believes his core role in SANRAE is to create the enabling environment and platform for experts like Kylie to thrive and to ensure that through innovation, awareness, and advocacy.

Under his leadership, SANRAE became South Africa’s first bulk distributor of ceremonial-grade matcha, reshaping local caffeine habits by championing matcha’s “calm energy,” and introduced a magnesium-rich electrolyte mix designed with therapeutic mineral dosages to support energy, sleep and hydration beyond traditional sports positioning.

His advocacy extends beyond innovation and into awareness. Craig spearheaded the SANRAE Wellness Podcast, enabling stigma-free conversations around stress, hormonal health and sustainable routines. Craig’s leadership ensures SANRAE operates not just as a commercial venture, but as an educator, enabler and wellness accountability partner.

Craig balances purpose-led entrepreneurship with infrastructure-focused dealmaking as, in parallel, Craig drives large-scale impact in his role as an Investment Professional at the New Development Bank. Collectively, his work has mobilised over USD 1 billion toward initiatives aligned to the Sustainable Development Goals such as addressing water accessibility, sustainable infrastructure and universal healthcare.

Across both development finance and wellness advocacy, Craig is driven by a single conviction: systemic change is achieved when expertise is aligned with purpose. Whether building infrastructure or building a wellness platform, his leadership is rooted in evidence, empathy and long-term impact.

Craig leads with precision, purpose and global perspective. His work exemplifies the spirit of a Wellness Advocate, redefining success not by profit alone, but by the resilience, health and opportunity created in the lives of others.