Hardware Podcasts

LÄRABAR: Lara Merriken (2018)

How I Built This · 28 Oct 2019 · 54m

What this episode covers

Lara Merriken, founder of LÄRABAR, explains how she developed a simple energy bar using only dates, nuts, and fruit in her Cuisinart after leaving a stressful social work career. She details the early struggles of finding manufacturing partners, securing $150,000 in funding from 66 friends and family, and launching in Whole Foods, where the product quickly became a top seller. Merriken describes the eventual sale of LÄRABAR to General Mills in 2008, which allowed her to step back from the daily grind while maintaining a role in the brand's growth.

Most relevant to

founders before launch, early-stage companies, companies scaling up and large enterprises

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
General Mills, Whole Foods, Multimorphic, Dave and Buster's
Products
LÄRABAR, Cuisinart, P3
Also
Gerry Stellenberg

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