69: Perfect Bar Founders On Overcoming Debt To Run A Thriving Family Business, The Future Of Snacking, And Eating Sugar Healthily

If you've ever had a Perfect Bar, you understand the hype. The protein-packed snack stuffed with superfoods has picked up a serious cult following, thanks to its simple filling ingredients and downright addicting flavor (a box of the dark chocolate peanut butter bars has been known to disappear from the mbg office fridge in about three seconds flat).

Co-founded by siblings Bill and Leigh Keith in 2005, the initial idea for the brand actually dates back to long road trips their large family took decades ago. In this podcast episode, the duo recounts how their father, Bud Keith, would use his background in nutrition and mind-body medicine to make a healthy snack product his (thirteen!) children would actually want to eat. Bud would ground up whole-foods supplements, mix them with peanut butter, honey, and protein, and the results were a sweet, hearty treat that he deemed "perfect."

Nowadays, there are still at least 20 superfoods—like kale, spinach, alfalfa, and celery—slyly packed into every refrigerated bar, and the Keith children are managing the business in their late dad's honor. Bill is the acting CEO, Leigh is President, and sister Charisse handles quality control, but everyone in the family has pitched in to turn the product into a success story. More than just a feel-good family brand, Perfect Bar is also trying to do right by its employees and the planet with a variety of social and environmental responsibility programs.

Bill and Leigh dive into all of that and more over the course of the hour. Along the way, they recount how they overcame periods of intense debt to create one of the fastest-growing bar brands in the world, describe the key to eating sugar more healthily, and predict the future of snacking. We hope you enjoy it.

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