The Startup CPG Podcast

Katie Lefkowitz
People don't really want to engage with a brand. Right. They want to engage with human beings, and the brand is the human beings that run the brand. And so I try to show that side of us. I'm hoping to actually do more and more of that because I find that's how people are really resonating with the product, with the brand and with the story and continuing to just kind of get that out there and get people excited about.

00:32
Grace Kennedy
Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the startup CPG podcast. This is Grace, and today I'm talking to Katie Lefkowitz, the founder of Harken Sweets. Harken Sweets transformed some of our favorite childhood treats into nutrient dense candy bars that use date fruit to infuse their products with natural sweetness. They're also only 150 calories per bar, and they are so delicious. Before launching Harken, Katie was actually the COO of Caulip Power. So she has tons of experience and some great advice for her fellow founders in this episode. I hope you enjoy listening and as always, let me know what you think. Hello, everyone, this is Grace, and today I'm so excited to be talking to Katie, the founder of Hark and Sweet. So welcome to the show, Katie.

01:26
Katie Lefkowitz
Thank you, thank you. I'm so excited to be here. Thank you for having me.

01:29
Grace Kennedy
Yes. I'm so excited you're here and I'm such a fan of Hearken Sweets and all of the delicious things you make. So I'd love for you to share with our listeners what it is Harken Sweets makes.

01:41
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. So we make a line of candy bars that allow you to hearken back, hence the name, to the good old days, and you could eat all the candy you wanted and not feel awful about it afterwards. So we take those candy bar classics that so many of us grew up eating and infuse them with superfoods, primarily dates, also oats to make them actually much better for you. Gut, healthy, plant based, no sugar added, and all for 150 calories or less.

02:19
Grace Kennedy
Amazing. Yeah, they're so good. And I. They remind me, I think it's the crunchy one. Reminds me of like a Snickers bar, which did used to be my favorite when I was growing up, you know, trick or treating. I always went for the Snickers bar. So it's so much fun to be able to enjoy that now and not, like you said, feel like you're going crazy after you have one. So I'd love to hear a little bit about why you decided to bring this product to the market. And what sort of led you to come up with this idea?

02:50
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. So I started this brand as a. It sounds like maybe similar to you. Former Snickers fanatic who unfortunately had to give up the stuff after a diagnosis related to colon cancer, which, as you can imagine, really flipped my world upside down. But it did introduce me to the universe of food as medicine and how what we eat has such an impact on. On our diets. And so I took that experience, I took the sort of trending date caramel, which seems to be coming back even today in different forms. If you've seen the date caramel apples and put those two things together, and, you know, really out came Harken, which has been an amazing journey to date.

03:44
Katie Lefkowitz
And I just love that now I can eat candy bars that taste just the same as those old school products from, you know, Mars and Hershey. But really in a way that provides a big benefit to your health and your gut health in particular, which has been, you know, a big topic of my own in my own health journey and, of course, more broadly as well.

04:04
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, it is so nice to. I brought one with me to work this week, and it's like, yeah, okay, I'm not going to have a sugar crash if I eat this candy bar at work, but now I get a nice, fun surprise in my afternoon. So as you were sort of dealing with your own health journey and having to, like, change the way you were eating, when did you start to think, okay, I actually want to turn this into a brand? And also, were you bringing any industry experience with you as you decided to create this brand, or were you kind of starting from zero?

04:39
Katie Lefkowitz
So I was very fortunate to have some experience in this space before launching Harken. Prior to this, I was actually with the brand Kali Power from the very early days. I served as our COO for the entirety of my time there. So everything, you know, product development, operations, manufacturing, that is squarely in my wheelhouse. And I was able to bring that experience to really creating a unique and differentiated product here with Harken.

05:12
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. Yeah. That's so useful to have that experience, I'm sure. And so did you leave Kali Power to create Harken?

05:21
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, absolutely.

05:22
Grace Kennedy
Cool. So what were those first steps like?

05:25
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, honestly, the first two years or so were. I mean, product development. I mean, I worked on thousands and thousands of iterations of what this would, could, should look like. And it was really challenging because when you're doing something very different, there are so many More hoops to jump through than if you know you're doing something maybe more in line with expectations. And so honestly, the hardest part of this journey to date is still from before we even were launched into retail, which is really getting our product to a place where we felt really great about that, tasted just the same as those old school products, but really did have all of the health benefits that I mentioned.

06:15
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. And how did you work through some of those challenges and what sort of like skills and resources did you pull on?

06:21
Katie Lefkowitz
Honestly, it's persistence, persistence. Like never taking no for answer. I can't even tell you how many times I was told, no, you can't do this. And you know, I'm a big believer in where there's a will, there's a way. And if you really, like, you have to really care so much about the product you're creating and the value that it's bringing to the world or else, you know, there are so many barriers in the way of entrepreneurs in general, but specifically in the food world, if you are trying to do something really innovative and just kind of, you know, hunker down and power through as much as humanly possible.

06:58
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, absolutely. And were you working on this by yourself at this point or did you have anyone sort of supporting you?

07:05
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, honestly, I mean, we're still a very small team. It's just three full time people. We just brought on a new person as of about a month ago. So it's been very lean, very scrappy. You know, I wear every hat imaginable down to, you know, packing boxes, which I think has been actually a great reason why we've been able to be successful and yeah, it's been quite the adventure.

07:33
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. So once you got through those two years of sort of like getting no's and having to just persist and finally get this product right and where you felt you were happy with it, what was it like when you were finally able to launch and how did you approach, like, what was your strategy for your actual launch of the product?

07:50
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, so I mean, from the beginning, I'm just a believer in like, if you have a great product, people try it, they'll buy it again. So my strategy was let's go locally. So I'm based in New York City. We launched with Pop Up Grocer as well as Gourmet Garage Fairway, some of the Wake Fern banners in the area. And that was really amazing. Just to get our name out there, our brand out there, to get the consumer experience with the product and really just understand what the feedback was. And from there, I mean, honestly, things kind of went right to the races.

08:30
Katie Lefkowitz
I mean, now at the end of that kind of first year or so in market, we're in about 4,000 doors, so we are in Walmart, we're in Albertson Safeway, Fresh market, Hy vee, tons of, you know, 20 store chain throughout the country, which has been, you know, quite the roller coaster to be a part of, but very happy to say we've been able to fill all of the orders for the big uptick in demand that we've seen since launching.

09:00
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. I was looking at your store locator on your website and I was like, you're everywhere. Like, you look at the map of the country and it's like there's harken everywhere. So how do you make sense of, like, how quickly that happened? And, you know, so what sort of advice do you have for founders who might be launching their product and are like, whoa, how did you go from, you know, zero to a hundred like that?

09:25
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah. I think for me, again, it all comes back to the product. If you have the right product, you have the product market fit, like, just be ready for it. And I built this company to be able to scale quickly because I believe so much in the product, in the way that people had been resonating with it just in my own, you know, small focus groups. And so my advice would be, you know, when some of these bigger retailers do have conversations, like, be in a place where you're able to say yes. I mean, so many people aren't and that's fine. And I think you're better off saying no and then saying yes later if there ever is a decision point like that.

10:03
Katie Lefkowitz
But I got just really fortunate that the way we've built the business has been able to really keep up with the demand that's kind of increasing every day.

10:13
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. What have your conversations with retailers been like as you've been growing rapidly and has it been, you know, mostly inbound or outbound outreach on your end or how is that sort of like, how has that ball just kept rolling?

10:27
Katie Lefkowitz
You know, it's a bit of a combination. I'd say at this point probably a little bit more inbound than outbound, just because, you know, it's been. I think people see the numbers, people see the progress and the velocity of our product on the shelves that it's app. But I mean, especially in the early days, I was just, you know, calling, emailing anybody who would talk to me to kind of get the conversation started. What I also found is tasting is believing. And so if there is a way to get your product in front of folks, get them to actually try it, you know, if they love it, then their consumers will love it as well. And so just by any means necessary to get these different category managers to try the product has been really successful for us today.

11:13
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. I'm curious what some of those by any means necessary are or were there any by any means necessary that were, like, so crazy?

11:22
Katie Lefkowitz
Nothing. So, so crazy. But I do like Earl. When were at Expo west, for instance, I mean, and I'm sure every founder who has been there, I. You know, there were more than a few times where I was like, oh, my gosh, there's this green badge and chasing them down the aisle, because you just never know.

11:38
Grace Kennedy
Right?

11:38
Katie Lefkowitz
Like, maybe their heads are turned this way and your booth is on the other side. So I'm a big fan of, you know, that trade show in particular. There's a few others that I would definitely recommend. But, you know, just getting in front of the right people and telling your story, make sure. Making sure your packaging tells your story as well, because we're all consumers at the end of the day and having something that they can really get behind and believe in.

12:02
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, absolutely. And when you were at Expo west this past year, were you. Did you have a booth or were you just, like, backpacking?

12:09
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, no, we. We had a booth.

12:11
Grace Kennedy
Oh, nice. Okay. What was that decision like to kind of make that investment?

12:16
Katie Lefkowitz
You know, it's a tricky one because obviously they're not inexpensive, but at that point, I really felt like we had the scale to be able to meet the demand and honestly just start to have these conversations. And it is not an insignificant expense, but there's really nothing like it in terms of having all of those different buyers in one place and being able to really introduce them and frankly, the entire, like, shopping base. Right. Again, everybody's a consumer. And having the ability to sample our product so broadly, getting all of the positive feedback, like, it was really invigorating and absolutely worth it for us.

12:59
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, absolutely. There is truly nothing like Expo West. And I know you mentioned there were a few other trade shows you'd also recommend to founders. Could you name what a few of those are?

13:09
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, I mean, I'm a big believer, I should say, in backpacking. Like, I do that anytime I can. We're also, I mean, specifically in the world. We plan, like, we'll be at snacks and sweets this year indianapolis. Again, I Think for folks with products that are in those categories, that's another really good one. But even if it's just in the city that you live in, right, like in New York, it's fancy food, like, these folks are in town for these different events, and just trying to find a way to get in front of them, even if it's not investing in a full booth. Because obviously it can be cost prohibitive and a bit distracting to go to them all the time. But I've always found just being a part of it and being in the middle of things has been invaluable.

13:54
Grace Kennedy
Absolutely. And another thing I wanted to return to that you brought up was being ready to say yes to these larger retailers when they do come to you. And you mentioned that you felt like you had built the business in a way that enabled you to say yes when these big opportunities come. So could you speak a little bit to what you did to make sure you were ready to say yes?

14:17
Katie Lefkowitz
For me, it's. I mean, I'm an operations person through and through, like, making sure the scale was really there from a manufacturing standpoint, to be able to sustain orders. Because what we've seen is, you know, the initial orders are always big. It's the subsequent orders that are even more so, and they're a little bit less predictable just because, you know, it's not. It's not the set in some point in time. So I just wanted to make sure that we'd honestly be able to fulfill all of the demand. And that was my number one step before even having any conversations with, you know, bigger partners on the retailer side.

14:54
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, absolutely. And I'm curious, and maybe this is a dumb question because I'm not in operations, but I've heard founders be like, I made sure I was ready to fulfill the orders. And I'm like, how do you make sure you're ready to fulfill the orders?

15:09
Katie Lefkowitz
You know, it's running, like, running as much as you can at whatever clip you need to. You know, it's like, simple. How many days do we have? How many shifts will we need? It's just kind of the brass tacks of will these numbers work out? Which, again, there's always a little bit of a leap of faith, but the more testing and trials you can do, the better off you'll certainly be. That's not to say there's not things that go wrong. Just because it works on a spreadsheet or works in one trial doesn't mean it will work forever and ever. But you can de risk things I think a lot more than people realize.

15:44
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, that's a good piece of advice to run those trials and sort of try to be as prepared as possible. So once you have gotten into some of these, like huge major retailers, like a Walmart, for example, how have you sort of been working to make sure the product moves right? Because so many founders talk about, like, it's one thing to get into the store, it's another thing to stay there. So how have you been approaching that?

16:10
Katie Lefkowitz
Absolutely. I mean, for us it really comes down to, you know, what can you do in store, what can you do on different platforms, like, you know, different online platforms and search and then in social media. Like, honestly, most of our marketing comes from social media and we've had been able to really build an amazing community on that platform with different influencers that frankly, like, they find us not the other way around, which I think makes a really big difference. Like they're really bought in to the product and using that and activating them and sharing all of the information with them when we wind up in new retailers has been a huge way that we've been able to have success on shelf.

16:52
Grace Kennedy
Yeah. I'd love to hear a little bit more about your approach to social media. I mean, it sounds like you do some influencer marketing, but that it's mostly like they've already loved your product and come to you. But yeah, I'd love to hear a little bit more about your approach to social media because I think it can feel kind of overwhelming for a lot of founders. Like, how do I even start doing this?

17:10
Katie Lefkowitz
Definitely. No, it is. I mean, honestly, it's about being on there every single day. And like this isn't going to sound great, but like being on, like, I truly still read every single DM that we get and engaging people and, you know, being a person. At the end of the day, people don't really want to engage with a brand. Right. They want to engage with human beings. And the brand is the human beings that run the brand. And so I try to show that side of us. I'm hoping to actually do more and more of that because I find that's how people are really resonating with the product, with the brand and with the story and continuing to just kind of get that out there and get people excited about it.

17:53
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, definitely. It's always about the story and the person and nobody's like dying to besties with a brand.

18:02
Katie Lefkowitz
Totally.

18:03
Grace Kennedy
Another thing you mentioned that was some of the, like, in store stuff you're doing, like, are you guys doing sampling? Are you working with brokers? Like, what's your approach to kind of more of the, like, in store activations?

18:13
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think sampling, like, tasting is believing for us. So anytime we've been able to do sampling, whether it's, you know, through demo programs or other, you know, offline sort of means, we jump at it. Because as soon as someone tries it, they love it and they're kind of customers for life. So that's where we've really been focusing from an in store standpoint.

18:39
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, definitely. And how are you managing that? Since you are in so many stores now? How are you managing getting that sampling out there? Because obviously you cannot be at every single store sampling.

18:51
Katie Lefkowitz
Right? Yeah. I mean, and it depends on the retailers. You know, some are. Some are better than others in the demoing department. But typically, again, because it's candy and who doesn't want a little sweet snack when they are, you know, have crying kids with them in the grocery store? And really, like, even if it's not necessarily somebody, if it's not me, if it's not somebody from the team doing the demoing, it's almost always pays off to get as many people trying this as possible.

19:21
Grace Kennedy
And do you work with like a specific. I mean, yeah, every store is different, but do you just, like, hire, you know, like freelance salespeople or who do you get to like, run those samplings when you can't be there?

19:35
Katie Lefkowitz
It depends. Like, there is certain retailers that, you know, they have programs you have to go through there. And sometimes we do just right. Hire someone, one off that we kind of have in our broader network to help with it. But again, there's not all are the same, but for us, they're all very valuable.

19:53
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, it's definitely. The tasting is believing is a great way to say it because, you know, especially in the world of a kind of new product where it's like a healthier or a better for you version, it can be. I feel like I'm always a little bit wary sometimes of the better for you candy things. So I'm like, is it really gonna taste good or is it gonna just, you know, taste like a better for you version? And, you know, your product genuinely tastes good. And so I feel like that's a huge selling point. So that makes a lot of sense to me.

20:25
Grace Kennedy
So now that you have expanded so rapidly in this first year, you know, this episode is going to be coming out as we're wrapping up 2024 and heading into 2025, what's on the pipeline or what's coming down the pipeline for you guys? Or what are kind of your, you know, next steps for this brand? Now that you've reached, you know, and continue to expand in retail, what are like your next steps?

20:49
Katie Lefkowitz
So it's been interesting actually over the last few months we have pushed a bit more and launched on a few online channels, which has been really fun. Actually. Something in my previous life I was never able to do because I worked in Frozen and with a little extra bandwidth, we've launched on Amazon, on TikTok shop, some of the more E commerce type platforms. And that's been really fun. Again, just like having that direct relationship with the customer I think is also just so invaluable. So I would say a lot more of that, A lot more. You know, retailers hopefully will be announcing some new ones as well. And last but not least, innovation is at the core of everything that we do.

21:35
Katie Lefkowitz
I am constantly tinkering around with different things, so hopefully some new products as well to announce probably in Q2 or so of next year.

21:46
Grace Kennedy
Wow. Is it still, I mean, I know you probably can't say what exactly it is, but it's. Is it still in the sweets candy realm?

21:54
Katie Lefkowitz
Yes, yes, we are. There's plenty to do in the sweets world for now.

21:57
Grace Kennedy
Yes, plenty more sweets to be had. So. Wow, I can't wait to see what those are. So a question I often like to ask founders too is how are you managing? And I know this comes in with that scale piece you were talking about, but how are you kind of managing your cash flow with this growth you've had while also being a new lean, you know, founding team? How are you managing? Like having enough cash to just place the next order or fulfill the next order. And have you done any sort of like raising or funding rounds or anything like that?

22:33
Katie Lefkowitz
So I've completely bootstrapped the business to date. I'm not sure that will always be the case, but we've been very fortunate with the way that, you know, things have worked out cash flow wise, that we haven't had to raise any outside capital, any. I mean, really, it's just being on top of all of the different pieces of the business where, you know, money might be getting stuck, for lack of a better word. That's something that's just always been on my mind. I think honestly, one of the benefits of bootstrapping your business is I think you're just that much more cognizant and aware of Every single penny that goes in and out. I mean, I always say, like, we're. We're in the penny business. This is not. These are not huge margin products. Right? No food product is.

23:23
Katie Lefkowitz
And because of that, like, every single bit really does make a huge difference. And I think that's just the culture that I have set for day one. And, you know, my team very much believes in that as well. And I would recommend. I mean, I think gone are the days where businesses were just, you know, losing money hand over fist and constantly raising money. That's also just not something I want to be spending my time doing, quite honestly. Like, I like creating products, I like being with our customers. Like, I like building and growing. And so to the extent that can be kind of a lower priority for us, has been really lovely.

24:05
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, definitely. Fundraising doesn't seem that fun as a. As a founder. It seems kind of hard. I'm curious who said, are there any common areas you see either, you know, in this business or past business where money does get stuck that maybe other founders might want to look out for or keep their eyes peeled for?

24:25
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, I mean, I would say, like, all the distributors, like, chargebacks galore. It's crazy town. Just, like staying on top of everything, making sure that the retailers you are going into, like, it's very clear what the terms are on slotting and promo and all of the costs associated with launching in. In certain retailers. So it's a process. It's really difficult to manage all of it, but I think it's worth its weight in gold to really have a deep understanding with every customer, like, where all of the pennies are going. So.

25:03
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, absolutely. I imagine there might be a lot of spreadsheets and things like that.

25:09
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, endless.

25:10
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, Endless spreadsheets.

25:12
Katie Lefkowitz
Yes, endless. Endless. I just had to get a new computer because it was like, I did not have the RAM or memory to manage all of them. So that is one investment I'm happy to be making.

25:24
Grace Kennedy
Yes, absolutely. Yeah, I'm thinking about too, all the things you do have to manage as a founder, and I'm curious how you have been managing that as you've spent, you know, the two years developing this product and also the last, you know, year or so running it. How have you been managing? And I know you have, you know, two people on your team as well, but that's obviously still quite a small team. So how have you been managing that kind of founder? Life is like having to wear all the hats and always needing to be aware of kind of everything. At all times.

25:54
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, I mean, the team is amazing. Like, shout out to Megan and Whitney. They make all of the difference. I don't know, I'm like, we take it day by day. Like, let's get as much as we possibly can done and, you know, leave the rest and I don't know, I don't sleep that much. I also have a six month old. So like, that just, you know, throws everything into even more complication. Just to make things a little more.

26:21
Grace Kennedy
Difficult, I was like, let's throw Ruby on top of this.

26:24
Katie Lefkowitz
But no, it's been, it's crazy. But like, for me, I can't imagine doing anything else with my days.

26:31
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, that's. Well, I'm so glad you enjoy it so much because, you know, it'd be a huge bummer if you don't. And congrats on your little baby. That's so sweet.

26:40
Katie Lefkowitz
Thank you.

26:41
Grace Kennedy
Hopefully they'll be, you know, huge Harkin Sweets fans once they're a bit older.

26:45
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, he better be or else we're gonna have a real problem.

26:48
Grace Kennedy
Absolutely. So thinking about maybe earlier version of yourself, Katie, before you started Hearken or even before maybe you entered the CPG world, like, is there anything you wish someone had told you who maybe now has the experience that you have? You know, if someone's listening to this who wants to start their own brand but doesn't really know how or has just started their brand and is feeling overwhelmed by information overload, do you have any advice of things you wish you'd known before entering this space?

27:22
Katie Lefkowitz
You know, this comes from an old professor of mine actually from business school. And I literally, it's the background of my computer screen which is the essence of strategy is choosing what not to do. And I just, it's like something that I always try to keep top of mind as a person. Like so many entrepreneurs who just wants to say yes to everything is a bit of an optimist, a bit of a, you know, I get excited about new opportunities, but I think the more you can really hone in on like not even so much who you are, but who you aren't and where you're going to put your brand, put your products. The more critically you can think about that and the earlier you can do that, the better off you'll be.

28:11
Grace Kennedy
Yeah, that's a great line. The essence of strategy is deciding what not to do.

28:16
Katie Lefkowitz
There you go.

28:17
Grace Kennedy
Good professor. Yes. Yeah. So also just looking back, what's something you're most proud of? Having launched this brand and Run it now for, you know, a year.

28:28
Katie Lefkowitz
Oh, gosh. I mean, honestly, just like, still to this day, seeing my product on shelves is like, I still can't believe it. Yeah, it's really cool. And just the feedback, like, the emails that we get are like, unbelievable. And like, people take time out of their day. Like, they look at our package, they eat the product, they go to our website. The email, like, it's. Takes time and it's everything like those. That is the reason that I get up and do what I do every day.

28:59
Grace Kennedy
Oh, yeah, that's so special. And it is amazing when someone sends an email just to say thank you, I love your product because like you said, it's genuinely taking time out of their day just to say thank you. And that's so beautiful and meaningful.

29:12
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, it means the world. So if anybody loves any products, please reach out. I mean, I literally still read everything that comes into our, you know, hello, @harkensuites.com I always say, like, it's literally on the package. My email is on the package. So you want to talk to me, you can find me.

29:27
Grace Kennedy
Yes, absolutely. So where can people who are listening learn more about Harken Suites and follow along on your journey as you launch into more retailers and, you know, new products, where can they follow along?

29:41
Katie Lefkowitz
Yeah, so we, I mean, the best place is, like I was saying earlier, social media. So at harkensuites, that's YouTube, that is Instagram, that is TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn, all of the channels we're constantly on there. So would love to share more and answer any questions that people might have.

29:59
Grace Kennedy
Yes, absolutely. Well, everyone should check out Arkansas on any platform they're on and also go to a retailer near you and buy some. Because I'm pretty sure if you're listening to this, you probably live near a retailer that now stocks Harken Sweets. So go check them out. And it was such a pleasure to chat with you, Katie, and have you on the show.

30:20
Katie Lefkowitz
You too. You too.

30:21
Grace Kennedy
I really appreciate it all. All right, everyone, thank you so much for listening. If you enjoy this episode, it would help us out so much if you left a 5 star review on ratethispodcast.com startupcpg I am Grace Kennedy, the host of the Founder Feature series. So feel free to add me on LinkedIn or reach out to me on Slack. I'm always on the hunt for new and exciting brands to feature. And if you're a potential sponsor who would like to appear on the podcast, please. Email partnershipsartupcpg.com and finally, as a reminder for anyone listening, if you haven't already, we would love for you to join our community on Slack. You can sign up via our website startupcpg.com.