# Founder Feature: Katie Lefkowitz of Harken Sweets

- Show: [The Startup CPG Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast)
- Published: 2024-12-06
- Length: 31m
- Episode: 100
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2024-12-06-founder-feature-katie-lefkowitz-of-harken-sweets
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/639b6ab9

## Summary

Katie Lefkowitz, founder of Harken Sweets, explains how her health journey inspired a line of nutrient-dense candy bars using dates and oats as natural sweeteners. She details the two-year product development process, the strategic decision to launch locally in New York City before scaling to over 4,000 stores including Walmart and Safeway, and the importance of being operationally ready for rapid growth. Lefkowitz discusses bootstrapping the business, managing cash flow in the low-margin CPG space, and leveraging social media and sampling to drive retail velocity.

## Outline

1. Introduction: Katie Lefkowitz and Harken Sweets
2. Product Development and Persistence
3. Launch Strategy and Retail Expansion
4. Trade Shows and Buyer Relationships
5. Operations, Cash Flow, and Bootstrapping
6. Marketing, Sampling, and Future Plans

## Topics

- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Harken Sweets (product)
- Caulipower (company)
- Walmart (company)
- Safeway (company)
- Expo West (other)
- Snacks and Sweets (other)
- Amazon (company)
- TikTok Shop (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [LÄRABAR: Lara Merriken](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-03-19-larabar-lara-merriken) (How I Built This)
- [Simple Mills: Katlin Smith](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-02-15-simple-mills-katlin-smith) (How I Built This)
- [Perfect Snacks: Bill and Leigh Keith](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-06-09-perfect-snacks-bill-and-leigh-keith) (How I Built This)
- [SmartSweets: Tara Bosch](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-08-05-smartsweets-tara-bosch) (How I Built This)
- [How I Built Resilience: Kara Goldin of Hint](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2021-04-01-how-i-built-resilience-kara-goldin-of-hint) (How I Built This)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2024-12-06-founder-feature-katie-lefkowitz-of-harken-sweets. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to The Startup CPG Podcast.