Daniel Lubetzky: The Visionary Behind Kind Healthy Snacks

Daniel Lubetzky is the 51-year-old founder of Kind Healthy Snacks. He never had any intention of getting into the food business. But then again, Kind Bars aren't really about food; they're about health and altruism. Social consciousness is at the core of Kind's business strategy. The company has sold two billion snack bars since its founding in 2004. With $800 million in sales and a valuation of about $2.9 billion, Lubetzky's role as the majority owner of Kind Healthy Snacks contributes to his impressive net worth of $1.5 billion. The company spearheads "the Kind Movement," aiming to make the world a little kinder by encouraging employees and customers to engage in random acts of kindness. Since 2004, Kind has facilitated 11 million acts of kindness!

There are 24 varieties of Kind bars made with nuts, dried fruit, chocolate, or honey. These bars are available in popular retailers like Whole Foods, convenience stores, REI, Target, and Starbucks, and even on Delta flights. Kind is among the top five bestselling snack bars on the market, alongside Clif Bars, Nature Valley granola bars, Quaker Chewy Granola Bars, and Nutri-Grain Bars. The brand's significant market presence caught the attention of Mars Inc., the maker of M&M's, who purchased a 40% stake in the company for an undisclosed amount in 2017.

Lubetzky was born in Mexico City in 1968, to a father who was a Holocaust survivor and a Mexican Jew. By the time Daniel was nine years old, his dad was sharing stories about his three years in the Dachau concentration camp, despite his mother's objections regarding the sensitivity of such topics for a child. The family moved to San Antonio, Texas, in 1984, where Lubetzky started his entrepreneurial journey in high school by buying wholesale watches and selling them at flea markets. He later attended Trinity University, renting kiosks in malls to grow his watch business.

In college, Lubetzky majored in economics and international relations, believing that business could be a force for social good. After graduating in 1990, he attended Stanford Law School with plans to work in diplomacy and contribute to peace efforts in the Middle East. His journey took him to Israel, where he attempted to develop a cross-cultural business, but after that venture failed, he discovered a sun-dried tomato spread from a local company that had recently gone out of business. Lubetzky realized he could help the owner reduce costs by sourcing ingredients closer to home.

In 1994, at the age of 25, Lubetzky invested $10,000 of his savings to establish PeaceWorks, a marketing, consulting, and distribution company aimed at fostering collaboration between conflicting groups, such as Israelis and Arabs. This venture gained traction, reaching $1 million in revenue by the late 1990s. During this period, Lubetzky was inspired to create Kind, driven by his frustration in finding wholesome and convenient snacks while traveling. He wanted to produce something he would personally enjoy eating.

He launched Kind in 2004, utilizing $100,000 of PeaceWorks' profits. Initially, he targeted small, high-end stores where he had existing relationships. His determination helped him secure a spot in Whole Foods by personally engaging with store managers and offering samples of his snack bars until they placed orders. By 2007, Kind had made its way onto Walmart's shelves, but a lack of effective tracking systems led to issues with shipments, and the retailer dropped Kind in 2008 at the onset of the financial crisis.

In December 2008, just three days after the birth of his son, Lubetzky sold a third of the company to Vitaminwater and private equity firm VMG Partners for $15 million, providing a much-needed boost. Since then, Kind has experienced significant growth. The company's free sampling program has played a crucial role in its success, expanding from an $800 budget in 2008 to a whopping $20 million today. With its return to Walmart in 2012 and its entrance into Target in 2013, Kind continues to thrive in the competitive snack bar market.

However, challenges arose in March 2015 when the FDA issued a warning letter to Kind about product labeling, stating that the bars could not be labeled as "healthy" due to their fat content. Responding promptly, Kind removed the term from its packaging and website. In April 2015, Lubetzky and his team filed a Citizen Petition with the FDA to change the definition of healthy. A year later, in May 2016, Kind received approval to use the term "healthy" once more.

Since its inception, the snack bar industry has grown from a $6 billion market in 2004 to $13.6 billion today. However, competition has intensified, and Kind's sales growth has slowed from 11.6% in 2016 to 5.4% in 2017. The acquisition of RXBar by Kellogg's for $600 million in 2017 has led industry analysts to speculate that a potential acquisition of Kind by Mars Inc. could be on the horizon.

What would Lubetzky do if he sold Kind? He expresses a desire to focus on his humanitarian passion, stating, "Now I just want to incubate great ideas, great people, and have maximum impact on the world."

Through his journey, Daniel Lubetzky exemplifies how a vision rooted in altruism can lead to significant success, inspiring others to incorporate social consciousness into their business endeavors.