Mainebiz

V O L . X X I I I N O. X X V I I I N OV E M B E R 2 7 , 2 0 1 7 12 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E Funding in hand, Redd bar expands its market B y M a u r e e n M i l l i k e n B R U N S W I C K — After tapping the venture capital market, Redd bar founder Alden Blease and CEO Peter Van Alstine are fi guring out how to meet demand for the vegan energy bars. Earlier this year, Redd announced that a $1.5 mil- lion investment goal had been exceeded by 30% in a second round of funding. The fi rst round, in 2016, had raised $1 million. The West Coast, in particular, is eating the bars up. In recent months, the company forged deals with Sprouts Farmers Market in the Phoenix area; Zupan's Markets in Portland, Ore.; New Seasons Market throughout the Pacifi c Northwest; and Whole Foods Markets in California — deals that amounted to hundreds of stores. Redd also recently became the on-campus nutrition bar for the Nike complex in Beaverton, Ore. Online sales and marketing has also taken off, including the company's website; Thrive, an internet co-op for healthy foods; and Amazon Vendor Central, which is "going like gangbusters," Van Alstine said. The marketing push is supported by an energetic online presence, including 7,000 newsletter followers and the company Instagram account's 11,000 follow- ers, the domain of early Blease partner Reed Allen, described on the company's website as chief ninja. Plans for 2018 include a yet-to-be revealed sixth fl avor and refurbishing a former military truck into a rolling Redd laboratory for West Coast events. Van Alstine also said that in 2018 "Redd is com- ing east." An idea and a 'big bag of dough' While still at University of Maine in Orono, Blease star ted by selling what he called a "big bag of dough"— raw, highly nutritious ingredients bought in bulk at a health food store, mixed in a bag. He named it Rawgasm. Then he left school to develop the product and sell it commercially. "I realized I should go from a bag to a bar," he said. He had one fl avor of the vegan protein bars — choco- late — when he contracted with Gagne Foods in Bath, which makes biscuits and baked goods. Along the way he followed the advice of Pine State Trading, which said it would distribute the bars, but only if he changed the name. In 2014, the bars became Redd, which stands for Research Enhanced Design and Development. When demand increased and he started adding fl avors, Blease had to move on from Gagne, and found a company in California that could produce the bars. Now, the majority of the company's retail business is on the West Coast. But Blease and Van Alstine said Maine served as a good launching pad and it's the company's home. "Maine is a great place to build a minimum value product," Blease said. "If you can test and sell it in Maine, you can anywhere." The investment community in the state and New England has been welcoming, and the support from Maine angels has been a part of the company's abil- ity to grow, Van Alstine said. Now that the company has a strong foothold and fi nancing, and a robust West Coast presence, focus is turning back home. The bar can be found in Hannaford as well as con- venience stores, coffee shops like Coffee By Design and L.L.Bean. "The Maine business community has been tremen- dously supportive," Van Alstine said. B R I E F P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y R E D D B A R Redd bar founder Alden Blease began by creating a "bag of dough" to provide himself with healthy food while he was in college. Now Redd bar is in more than 1,000 stores.

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