Bear Naked

Bear Naked

Company type	Private
Industry	Consumer Goods
Founded	2002
Founder	Brendan Synnott and Kelly Flatley
Headquarters	La Jolla, California, United States
Key people	Keegan Sheridan (Natural food and lifestyle expert) Ryan Therriault (Ambassador of Goodwill)
Products	Granolas Cereals Snack foods
Parent	Kellogg Company
Website	http://www.bearnaked.com/
Footnotes / references

Bear Naked is an all natural food and lifestyle company that offers a full line of all natural granola, granola bars and ready to eat cereal. Bear Naked was founded in 2002 by Kelly Flatley and Brendan Synnott. In 2007, Bear Naked was purchased by Kashi Company, a subsidiary of Kellogg Company. Today, Bear Naked operates as an independent business in La Jolla, Calif. It has evolved into a nationally recognized consumer brand that is available in more than 10,000 retail stores across the U.S.

History

Bear Naked was founded in October 2002 as a two-person operated business. By the year's end, Bare Naked was selling its product in 25 stores in the Connecticut area.

In 2003, Bear Naked clinched their first 50 case deal with Stew Leonard, Jr. of Stew Leonard's Inc. (a dairy and grocery store chain in Norwalk, CT) by showing up unannounced at 7:30 a.m. with breakfast after countless unanswered phone calls. 2003 also marked the company's first hire as well as a growth in their sales distribution from 40 to 400 stores. Bear Naked has since grown to be distributed from coast to coast and is currently the #1 granola brand on the market.

Products

Bear Naked products are made with real whole grains and no artificial flavors, cholesterol, hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, preservatives and 0 trans fat. Vegetarian friendly and Kosher certified.

All-Natural Granola

• Apple Cinnamon
• Banana Nut
• Heavenly Chocolate
• Fruit & Nut
• Mango Agave Almond

Fit Granola

• Vanilla Almond Crunch
• Triple Berry Crunch

Peak Protein

• The Original

Cereal

• Cranberry Raisin
• Banana Nut

Grain-ola Bars

• Fruit & Nut
• Chocolaty Cherry
• Tropical Fruit

Hot Cereal

• Rolled Oats

Distribution

Bear Naked's first distribution methods were heavily based on the efforts of its founders Brendan Synott and Kelly Flatley. As the demand for the product increased, the founders decided to hire Chris Mears (their first full-time employee) to help out with the distribution before turning to major delivery company UPS after achieving a rapid 3-year growth spurt. After Bear Naked sold its operations to Kellogg in 2007, Kellogg immediately closed down the Bear Naked plant that employed 48 in order to inexpensively produce Bear Naked in its own manufacturing plants.

Team Bear Naked

Team Bear Naked is the group of 110 runners and triathletes that act as ambassadors for promoting the brand's healthy image by integrating the product with the active lifestyle. Team Bear Naked members represent major cities in California, Washington, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, Florida, Oregon and the D.C./Baltimore area. Athletes are given athletic gear with the Bear Naked logo, awarded discounts on company products and are individually promoted on the "Spotlight" portion of the Bear Naked homepage. Potential athletes for the annual team selection are required to have at least 4 events within the year in order to be eligible. Team members assist in managing events such as breakfast or training clubs in order to further promote the brand.

Controversy

Outbursts from critics came when Bear Naked Inc.'s original owners sold the company to Kellogg in 2007. Accused of abandoning the start-up's core values of community empowerment and of following an honest and sustainable "green" business model by "selling out to the man," both Kelly and Brendan argued in their defense. Both claimed that Bear Naked's accelerated growth left them without the capacity to produce to meet the full demand for the product and felt that Kellogg would be the best at taking the brand mainstream. The sale occurred in November 2007 when Bear Naked and Gardenburger was sold to Kashi, a subsidiary of Kellogg for a reported $122 million.

The controversy also has struck a chord at the macro level when it comes to the business of major companies that buy out organic brands. Kellogs has gone to great lengths to hide the 2007 sale from consumers in order to maintain the integrity of the organic roots of the brand.

"Nor will you find the Kellogg's name on a package of Bear Naked's granola, even though Kellogg's acquired Bear Naked when its Kashi division purchased the company. Indeed, Bear Naked's Web site provides reams of detail about the company's history, worldview and its commitment to the environment. Its timeline, though, omits the November 2007 buyout."

Peanut butter salmonella outbreak

February 17, 2009 Bear Naked announced a voluntary nationwide recall of packages of Bear Naked All-Natural Peanut Butter Granola and Bear Naked All-Natural Peanut Butter Granola with Heavenly Chocolate with a "Better If Used Before" date prior to Feb 01, 2010 and the following UPC bar codes on the package: 8-5641600100 and 8-5641600185.

These packages contained peanuts provided by the Plainview, Texas plant of Peanut Corporation- a company allegedly harboring contaminated product. After this incident, ties with Bear Naked and the Peanut Corporation of America have been discontinued and the PCA is no longer a supplier.

External links

• Company Website