37. Ashley Nickelsen | B.T.R. Bar (superfood protein bars)

Ashley Nickelsen is the Founder & CEO of B.T.R. Bar.
Ashley got her start at NYU with a background in biochemistry and public health nutrition. About 5 years ago, both of her parents were diagnosed with rare forms of cancer. As their primary caretaker while juggling a full-time job, she found herself eating dinners out of vending machines and hospital cafeterias more and more often. For someone who dedicated her life to nutrition and food science, she knew that she was letting her own health suffer and began to notice the effects in a big way. She wanted something with a truly clean label that could give her a functional boost throughout her busy days, but realized that even the healthiest bars on the market were full with things like natural flavors, emulsifiers and brown rice syrups. Unfortunately, both her parents passed away a few years later, but she took their life motto – be bold, be tenacious, be resilient – and started her company in their honor. That company is B.T.R. Bar.
Today at BTR Bar, Ashley and her team have a simple mission – end mindless snacking. Their protein bars are the first plant based, keto friendly bars with a purpose, meaning that they are filled with specific superfoods and adaptogens to give you energy, help you recharge or relax before bed. And when they say clean, they mean their bars are CLEAN with no gluten, dairy, soy, whey, added sugar, corn, rice, GMOs, flavors or stevia. They’re also incredibly proud to be a female-owned business that empowers others to be bold, tenacious and resilient every single day.
Use code "Kallaway" to get 15% off B.T.R. bars today.
Tune in to hear Ashley's story!
EPISODE TOPICS: 

• (2:51) B.T.R. Bar snapshot 
• (3:45) Superfoods & adaptogens
• (8:15) Consumer profile
• (10:24) Ashley’s background
• (15:54) Analyzing the market
• (17:55) How do you define success in the early days
• (19:40) Customer acquisition & growth
• (22:30) Prioritization
• (26:42) Distribution
• (29:43) Outside the box marketing
• (32:45) Influencer marketing
• (34:46) Food space trends/learnings
• (38:02) Healthy vs unhealthy mythbusters
• (42:15) Manifesting the future
• (45:12) Hiring (process)
• (50:09) Fundraising
• (53:25) Advice to high school self
• (56:15) Ashley’s wellness stack
• (1:01:52) Emerging trends
• (1:07:07) Ashley’s startup manifesto

Watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/Ve3Cpdsq7Kc

B.T.R. Bar - eatbtrbar.com

• Follow B.T.R. Bar (@btr.bar) on Instagram
• Ashley's content and learning recommendations 

The Founder - www.thefounderpod.com 

• Follow The Founder (@founderpodcast) on Instagram //  Twitter // LinkedIn // Newsletter

Don't have time to listen to the full episode? Read the 5-minute version here