Boyband member turned commando used military skills to launch £5million CBD oil venture

A FORMER boyband star-turned-army soldier who was injured in Afghanistan has built up a company worth £5 million selling a formula which helps with pain.

Farard Darver (45) suffered a leg injury after his vehicle went over an explosive while he was serving on the frontline.

The injury left him in constant pain, and it was only when he tried CBD – cannabidiol derived from cannabis but without the intoxicating effects – that he finally found something that eased it.

He was so impressed with the results that he decided to leave the army and use his army pension to set up his own business.

Farard, from Lymington, revealed: “My best friend suggested trying CBD oil. It actually worked. I’d tried everything else.

“Before I left the army, I did my research and prepared as much as I could. Then, after leaving, I invested everything I had.

“I even sold a ring and bracelet my father had given me for my 18th and 21st birthdays.”

Farard launched Healthcare International Research Ltd in 2019 selling two brands: Hempe for health and wellness and MotherSage, for beauty and skincare.

Since then, he has gained investment from businessman Sir Ian Prosser and ex-Ruffer Investment director and partner Tim Youngman.

The son of an Indian airline pilot, Farard grew up in Ireland after his father joined Ryanair.

The entrepreneur became a member of boyband Men2B and Area4, and even supported Westlife and had a chart-topping hit.

After moving back to England, he decided to join the army and went to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

He was commissioned into the Royal Logistic Corps and became a Commando.

Farard undertook two tours of Afghanistan during one of which he suffered the leg injury. He needed three operations including a hip replacement.

He gambled everything to launch his own business saying: “My house was at risk, and I had a wife and two children, and then just as I launched the business Covid came.

“It was hard, but the products became really popular because they are entirely natural and, unlike other CBD oils, you don’t ingest them.

“They are topically absorbed through the skin, this is what makes them unique.”

Over the past 18 months Farard has raised £1.3m in investment and has turned down offers for his company.

He said: “Getting injured in Afghanistan thwarted my ambition of joining the special forces but I used the tools the army gave me to plan the business and launch it.

“Already I am selling it right around the world.”