drtbear1967
Musclechemistry Board Certified Member
by Matt Weik
Being a business owner myself, I always enjoy a good story about how businesses first got started – the struggles, the triumphs, the growth. Being that I live in Pennsylvania, which just happens to be the home of Bakery Barn (Pittsburgh, PA), I thought it would be cool to share their story being that they are one of the largest protein bar manufacturing facilities in the US. Bakery Barn caters to many different demographics, industries, and produces bars for many of the top supplement companies in existence today.
COOKIE CRUMB BEGINNINGS
Owner and Founder, Sean Perich, started his business from literally nothing more than an idea that solved a problem he was facing (which is normally how most businesses are started). Sean was always active and an avid weightlifter in need of something quick to eat like a meal replacement due to his busy travel schedule as a CPA, but didn’t like what was currently on the market. He gathered some ingredients and formulated his very own high-protein chocolate chip cookie.
One day, Sean was eating one of his cookies in the gym when he caught the attention of American Body Building Products (a local sports nutrition distributor). They inquired about what Sean was eating and soon after finding out the contents, asked him to make 200 dozen of his cookies that they could sell to their various accounts. Long story short, Sean hustled like a madman for three weeks and with the help of his family made all 200 dozen. With a sense of accomplishment, Sean delivered the bars to the distributor. To his surprise, it took less than a week for the entire 200 dozen bars to be sold. The distributor reached back out to Sean and placed another order – this time doubling it to 400 dozen. Feeling overwhelmed, yet excited, Sean decided to quit his job as a CPA and Bakery Barn was born.
AN INDUSTRY GAME CHANGER
With a simple idea of a high-protein meal replacement cookie, Bakery Barn grew exponentially and quickly found themselves in nearly 1,400 locations. Soon, supplement companies across the nation were blowing up Sean’s phone one after the other about private label opportunities. That’s where things started to get interesting.
The technology used by Bakery Barn was unlike anything seen at the time on the market. They utilize a special heating process to “bake” their bars versus a very simple and less complicated slab-and-slit process as they call it. Such technology used by Bakery Barn set their high-protein products to a new industry standard for not only flavor and texture, but also, it’s shelf stability. By now, everyone wanted bars produced by Bakery Barn. And they did not disappoint.
Bakery Barn has been the bar manufacturer for brands like MET-Rx, Pure Protein, MHP, MusclePharm, ProSupps, Redcon1, FortiFx, and many more. You can find bars baked by Bakery Barn at retail locations such as GNC, Target, Costco, LA Fitness, Sheetz, Gold’s Gym, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Sam’s Club, Kroger, 7-Eleven, Walmart, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and the e-commerce giants Amazon.com and Bodybuilding.com.
WHO ARE THE BARS MADE FOR?
It’s pretty simple, anyone who is looking for a delicious and convenient high-protein snack or meal replacement. This can include professional athletes, high school students who need a snack in between classes, a busy professional who needs a mid-afternoon snack to energize them to finish the day strong, bodybuilders looking to put on quality lean muscle, or all the way to the elderly individual who simply needs more protein in their diet to maintain their muscle mass and strength.
What Products Make Up Their Current Portfolio?
At the time of writing this article, the current catalog contains:
• 8 baked bars
• 6-layer, enrobed, double enrobed, double layer, fiber, oatmeal, striped, triple layer
• 12 total high-protein bars
• Additional from above: fruit & nut, non-GMO Vegan, Granola, Paleo
• 2 cookies
• Cookie, protein cup
• 2 squares
• Breakfast squares, brownies
If you haven’t tried any of the delicious high-protein products from Bakery Barn, I’m not sure what you’re waiting for. With so much variety, you are bound to fall in love with many of the products they offer. Try one for yourself today and let me know what you think!
