After seven years of operation, Sarah Wilson has today announced the shock closure of I Quit Sugar. Quashing speculations of a failing business or deteriorating state of mental health, Wilson has cited personal reasons for the decision to close the business.

“As many of you know, the IQS journey started at a time in my life that had given me cause to re-evaluate what mattered in life,” she said in a revealing blog post.

“So I decided a little over 12 months ago that it was time for me to go. I’m an educator, a communicator. Not a money-spinner. It was best for everyone and for the message.”

Wilson wrote she had initially intended to sell the business once the main motivator had become one of money.

“We arrived at the point where “scale” – growing the existing structure exponentially – was required, I realised the motivator now was money,” she said. “My motivator had not been money previously, a freedom that enabled me to make bold decisions that at times startled peers and the industry, but ultimately, and ironically, saw my message and product spread further.”

The business, which will close in the coming months, saw a number of prospective buyers coming close to closing a deal.

“After 12 months of a protracted set of discussions with various parties, some who came within millimetres of purchase, I have had to make what I believe is the best entrepreneurial decision I can: I’m closing, not selling,” Wilson stated.

“I set out, initially, to sell the business to a respectful soul to whom I could hand over the baton.

“Indeed, at one point I floated the idea that I’d give it away, but the psychology and logistics of this proved impossible, too. Perhaps selfishly, I knew I couldn’t watch as a new owner steered my name and brand and values in directions I didn’t agree wholly with. I couldn’t be part of this scaling process. It wasn’t me,” she said.

Helping more than 1.5 million people quit sugar worldwide through her cookbook, website and health programs, Wilson already has her eyes on her next project.

“I believe I have a lot more to create and a lot more education campaigns to ignite,” she revealed.

“The anxiety discussion, the food-waste movement…this is where I need to be.”