Although peter Rahal is 31 years old now when he started his protein bar company he was only 21 years old. Peter Rahal founded rxBar which is a protein bar made with all natural ingredients and no preservatives. He started making rxBars in his mother’s basement because he couldn’t find a protein bar that was natural and made with clean ingredients. He started the company back in 2017 with 10,000 dollars to spend and the bars became a big hit. What really makes rxBar and Peter Rahal so special is that he just recently sold his company to Kellogg’s for 600 million dollars. when asked how all the major protein bar companies missed the wave that is crossing America for all natural foods Rahal responded by saying, “within the consumer packaged food industry trends move fast so it is hard for major companies to move supply chains, so the entrepreneur is able to move fast and be agile to supply the consumer with what they want.” I believe that this is true across all industries and is where the entrepreneur is at the advantage over the big corporations and companies. The speed at which entrepreneurs can give the consumer what they want is truly their edge on their competitors because as the first rule of marketing stats if you are not first you are last.
Archive for Food – Page 11
Protein bar company RXBAR created by two friends Peter Rahal and Jared Smith began with a $10,000 influx and continues with a $600 million buyout by Kellogg. Rahal and Smith began with an idea to innovate the existing protein bar market. They marketed RXBAR on simple ingredients. But how can you market just a protein bar with simple ingredients? You don’t normally just pick up an item at the grocery store and start reading the ingredients. So Rahal and Smith used Microsoft PowerPoint to create a simple label. RXBAR labels on four, maybe five lines boldly list the ingredients. You’ve likely seen them on most store shelves. But this idea of taking a relatively uneventful market and adding some flare to it is one to be recognized. Sometimes just a simple pivot of preexisting products can make some serious money. Read more about RXBAR’s story on FOX Business .
Fraser Doherty was just 14 years old when he first started his own business. After being taught how to make jam by his grandmother, Doherty came up with a way to make jam using only fruit. Doherty continued to develop his jam and eventually sold it under the name SuperJam. At the age of 16 he presented his company to Waitrose, a major supermarket chain in the United Kingdom. Becoming a supplier to Waitrose made him the youngest ever supplier to a major supermarket chain. SuperJam has since sold millions of jars of jam all around the world. In addition to its commercial success, SuperJam has invested in multiple charitable projects ranging from care for the elderly, to community beekeeping projects. Doherty has received commendation from high ranking individuals such as the British Prime Minister, and Prince Charles.
Doherty’s story shows that something simple like jam can be turned into a successful business venture. His passion and hard work lead to something that has affected many lives through the charitable work of his company. A simple idea that started in his grandmother’s kitchen, was nurtured into the company it is today.
Fraser Doherty is a young entrepreneur who has found his niche in making jams from his grandmother’s recipes and selling them for profit. When he was 14, he decided to start making and selling his grandmothers recipes and improved upon them by discovering how to make his jams 100% out of fruit. At 16, he presented his company by the name of SuperJam. Soon his orders became more than he could fulfill so he decided to rent out a factory for a few days each month in order to produce his monthly quota. Soon enough he was making close to $750,000 in sales and had shelf space in 184 different stores. Since 2007 when his company was founded, it has proven to keep growing not only in the UK but also all over Europe. Fraser is also a well-accomplished author and is the co-founder of Beer52, the world’s largest craft beer club. Fraser exemplifies the ability to listen to the market and provide them with what they want, whether it be through his jams or craft beer, Fraser has an eye for spotting an emerging market opportunity. He also has shown a great sense of commitment to his cause by choosing to drop out of school and pursue his businesses full time.
You scream, I scream, we all scream for ice cream; except, its not ice cream this time. Its Al Ice!
Al Ice is an almond milk based frozen dessert that was founded by three millennial entrepreneurs: Buster Milani, Marion Noovao-McCamish, and Matt Billington. Since launching the product in 2015 the group of students, who call themselves Olelei, new flavors such as chocolate, vanilla, and berry have been added. The product sells in local food stores and they produce 150-200 units per month but they have plans to expand to meet demand.
The idea was launched when CEO Matt Billington noticed many milk and soy based ice cream-like products on the market but no products with almond milk. With so many dairy and soy allergies popping up these days this product fits right in with the needs of the market. The success of Al Ice has garnered several awards in addition to their sales. Al Ice took third place in the 2015 Young Enterprise Awards and second place in the 2016 Young Enterprise Awards as well as the group Olelei receiving the Pacific Peoples Excellence in Business Award.
With the market demand for sweet treats and allergen conscious alternatives, Al Ice could have a promising future and that is only helped by the youthful vision and determination of its founders.
By Daniel Hagan, 2018
Ice cream is fantastic. There’s no questioning that. But what is the biggest problem facing ice cream consumers around the world? Melted ice cream! Ice cream melts so quickly on a hot summer day and millions of people struggle to deal with the mess. Children get absolutely covered in their ice cream and parents all over have to clean their kids’ hands, face, or maybe even feet. Two young high school entrepreneurs saw this problem, acted on it, and created “The Drip Drop.”
Sam Nassif and Oliver Greenwald joined forces in fifth grade to enter their idea into an invention competition. Their solution to dripping ice cream was simple: create an edible ring that slides up the ice cream cone and catches the running ice cream. The young entrepreneurs hit a major milestone in 2016 with Barbara Corcoran investing $50,000 into their company. After working on prototyping and manufacturing in 2017, they now set their sights on getting their product into stores with the help of a Kickstarter campaign.
Sam and Oliver began with empathy. They saw a mother using tons of napkins to clean her messy child and remembered the times they’ve dealt with melting ice cream. This was a simple problem with no solution. The two acquired a patent and are now on their way to helping people enjoy the greatest dessert of all time: ice cream.
Alina Morse, Founder and CEO of Zollipops
Alina Morse and her brand Zollipops may just be the next big name in the candy industry. This 13 year old and 6 other full time employees have worked to grow this little girl’s idea into a multi-million dollar company. Located Northwest of Detroit, Zollipops has been whipping up tasty sugar free lollipops since 2012. Alina first had the idea for a sugar free lollipop business when she was told she could not have a lollipop while leaving the bank because it would rot her teeth.
This prompted the then seven-year old to ask if there was any way to enjoy a lollipop without jeopardizing her dental health. With this question in mind, her father and she went to the kitchen, concocting various sugar free lollipop recipes in their oven. After further developing their product and bringing it to mass production, Alina and her father set up a meeting with the popular retailer Wholefoods. Wholefoods loved the idea and began to carry their product.
Soon enough, Zollipops expanded online using Amazon as a way to get their product to an even wider audience. This summer it was reported that Zollipops was Amazon’s second highest selling sugar free hard candy and its overall bestselling lollipop. With such success, they decided to pitch their product to Kroger. They too loved it, and have decided to begin to carry their product. Zollipops has a projected sales revenue of $5-6 million this coming year, a large figure for a company started by a little girl.
What is most amazing about Alina is her fearlessness in chasing an idea. Unafraid of failure she has taken a simple idea and shaken up a sleeping industry. Capitalizing on a market of health conscious consumers, Alina has given people the option to have both a sweet snack and a healthy mouth. This ingenuity and childish creativity is what gives Alina the edge in her market. Proving that with dedication and the right idea, anything is possible no matter how old you are.
For those who are not yet fortunate enough to know the rush of being a first responder, let me give you a short glimpse of it.
It’s two in the morning, tones* drop. The piercing scream of high pitched wails rip through your sleepy paradise and alert you that someone needs your help. While still half asleep you dress yourself and gear up as you hear the call come through on the radio, “Station 53, EMS 17, Station 50 for a working dwelling fire*…” Those last three words seal the deal. It’s go time. You and your crew jump into the fire engine and pull out into the night. Lights flash in the darkness and the howling sirens shatter the stillness that once was all around. After a long nights work the fire is finally out and you and your crew are back home at the station, exhausted. Good thing your shift only has another eight more hours left to go! Now if only you had some better coffee to drink than stale “donut shop” k-cups.
With stakes as high as life and death and work hours up to and exceeding 24 hour shifts firefighters, police officers, and EMT/Paramedics all need a coffee that works as hard as they do. That’s where Luke Schneider comes in with Fire Department Coffee.
Luke is a firefighter and paramedic for the city of Rockford and also a former Navy serviceman. He and his fellow firefighters set out less than two years ago to make a coffee suitable for the early mornings and late nights of a first responder. Luke and his team are, no doubt, very familiar with the anecdote I began this post with and they did something about it. Their coffee is roasted to order and shipped all over the country from fire houses to people’s houses. However, Fire Department Coffee doesn’t just make great coffee, they give back in a big way.
Fire Department Coffee has this to say on their website about their charitable efforts toward first responders and vets alike, “A portion of every order goes towards supporting firefighter and military charities.” As well as Schneider saying that Fire Department Coffee was, “built around the concept of giving back.”
Fire Department Coffee’s unique position of being a “works as hard as you work” coffee that tastes great and gives back has blown away the competition. Even in the short amount of time that they have been roasting and distributing coffee, they have seen success across the nation. Schneider and his team have truly set a fire that no one can put out!
By Daniel Hagan, 2018
Links:
- https://www.firedeptcoffee.com/
Terms:
- *tones are the unique set of rings that alert a specific station or agency that their services are needed
- *a working dwelling fire is a house or other structure that is on fire.
Daniel Katz is an entrepreneur who launched the business “No Cow” when he was 18 years old. Less than three years later, the company has grown into a ten million dollar company. Daniel says “I’ve always been the curious, entrepreneurial, obsessive there’s-got-to-be-a-better-way type.” Daniel had his own little business at nearly 12 years old. Growing up he sold electronics, cars, snakes, and energy drinks and even a house. Daniels passion for fitness and his obsession for solving problems came to
No Cow was started in 2015 after Daniel’s solution to stomach aching protein bars that contained dairy. He created low-sugar, dairy-free protein bars, cookies, and a variety of nut butters. Last year they received an investment from General Mills and 2X Partners in which the company changed its name, reconfigured packaging, and hired a CEO. Before hiring the CEO, it was a one man operation, Daniel was working 18 hour days, 7 days a week and living at the office. He has come a long way since and Daniel’s No Cow is now projected to book $20 million in sales in 2018.
Daniel’s story is very inspiring and really shows what kind of person he is. This entrepreneur is driven by his desire to solve problems and help others. By creating his products in No Cow he started by simply creating the products for himself and then moved to selling them to others with similar issues. This is a great idea because he has come up with a solution for a huge market, fitness is becoming increasingly popular and I’m sure other people had been looking for products like this. He is an extremely hard worker and is seriously committed to his job. Not many other people would live in their work office off of an air mattress and 10 for $10 cans of vegetables. As an aspiring entrepreneur it is reassuring to see teenagers are able to effect the world of business just as much as anyone else can.
https://www.inc.com/profile/no-cow
A lot of people are worried about germs eat. You might find your self eating on a surface that has not been cleaned recently or making dinner in the kitchen and your roommate did not wipe the counter after making his or her meal. Now with the new silverware called the iFork Flatware, your forks, knives, and spoons will no longer touch the dirty surfaces you are using. The stainless steel line has a metal ball attached to the utensils to prevent it from touching the table. This way you will not have to worry about germs any more. There is also a line of plastic utensils with the same technology that are easy to dispose.
This innovation was developed by Kyle Donovan, who group up in New York and sometimes found that he was eating on surfaces that birds had recently been perched on. This is a great innovation that will save people from contracting various sickness from dirty silverware.
For more information go to https://allsharktankproducts.com/shark-tank-products-home/ifork-flatware-never-touches-table/