Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JUNE 26, 2023 15 Washington Trust Wealth Management® is a registered trademark of The Washington Trust Company, which has licensed its use to its parent, affiliates, and subsidiaries, including Washington Trust Advisors, Inc. Investment products are offered through Washington Trust Wealth Management. Non-deposit investment products are: not deposits; not FDIC insured; not insured by any federal government agency; not guaranteed by the Bank; may go down in value. Long-term planning for you. For them. For everyone to come. 800.582.1076 factured off-site, but Coristine is bringing that production in-house. He said LesserEvil is also working to create a new product that is similar to the onion-flavored Funyun, but healthier. 'Good fat' Coristine said he differenti- ates LesserEvil's products from competitors based on the ingredi- ents used and flavor profiles. "If the taste isn't good enough, people won't buy the product," he said. "Because at some point, you'd just say, 'Screw it.' I'm going to eat a french fry." LesserEvil doesn't fry any of its products. In the factory, twin-screw extruders use pressure and heat to expand its goods into puffy, bite-sized snacks. The popcorn is air popped with coconut oil. The oils used, including avocado and ghee, are not only relatively healthy, but add a dimension of taste. "They are somewhat decadent and people actually really enjoy the flavor," Coristine said. "I think many people, when they try our popcorn, they've probably never tried extra virgin coconut oil raw. But for some reason, it goes really well on popcorn. And it kind of tastes as good as something that's fried, and maybe even better." One of his favorite LesserEvil products is Oh My Ghee popcorn, made with clarified butter and Himalayan salt. LesserEvil produces ghee in-house by boiling butter and skimming off the impuri- ties as they rise to the top. "What you end up left with is just good fat," Coristine said. "And it's easy to digest because the impurities are all taken off of it." Healthy value proposition In addition to the importance of taste, Coristine said people increasingly recognize the bene- fits of eating healthy, and the idea of eating healthier snacks is becoming more mainstream. Consumers, he said, typically won't spend more than an addi- tional 20% to 25% on organic products, compared to their nonor- ganic counterparts — even though organic crops can cost twice as much to buy. That means LesserEvil tries to price its products at about the same level as nonorganic compet- itors. When people see an organic and nonorganic product at the same price point, many will choose the healthier option, he said. "We're trying to sell our products at basically the exact same price as conventional snacks, and offer all the bells and whistles and hope- fully, by offering that value propo- sition, we will convert consumers away from those unhealthier brands," Coristine said. Vertical integration, strong company culture helped LesserEvil conquer pandemic By Andrew Larson alarson@hartfordbusiness.com L esserEvil survived the COVID-19 pandemic in better shape than many competitors because it's a vertically integrated company, according to CEO Charles Coristine. "During COVID, a lot of production disappeared because bigger retailers like Costco, for instance, came in and ordered a lot of stuff, and the smaller guys weren't able to necessarily get all the production they needed," Coristine said. "By having our own facility, we were able to come in and fill the gaps and pick up, but we also innovated a lot, and we came up with a lot of new flavors when other people weren't doing that." Also, being together throughout the pandemic — as a food manufacturer, they were exempt from mandatory business closures — helped solidify the company culture, Coristine explained. LesserEvil's Danbury headquar- ters, at 41 Eagle Road, has a fitness center, ping-pong room, and a machine that dispenses water infused with flavors such as watermelon, coconut and cucumber. The office is filled with bright colors and wall murals that match the compa- ny's health-minded themes. CEO Charles Coristine stands outside LesserEvil's office building at 41 Eagle Road in Danbury. The building is adorned with murals. HBJ PHOTO | ANDREW LARSON

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