The Daily Guide Winter 2023 - 24

Bread + Butter
BRAND IDENTITY
of bars, " she said. " But what's the
purpose? No one can argue with
these pillars. "
For authenticity, Maxwell
leans on her backstory.
" We created this industry 38
years ago. I've been doing this a
long time, " she said. " There's a lot
of credibility to that. "
For quality, Maxwell points
PowerBar Founder Back in the
Game with Jambar Energy Bars
Jennifer Maxwell is tapping into past experience for her new endeavor, but
building a brand and an energy bar in today's market requires a more innovative
approach. By Bart Schaneman
J
ennifer Maxwell is
returning to the energy
bar world with one of
the most impressive
pedigrees in the market. She and
her husband, Brian, founded
PowerBar about 40 years ago,
and later sold the company to
Nestle in 2000.
Now she's back with Jambar,
which are organic, naturally
sweetened energy bars that are
inspired by her love of music.
The new brand launched in
September 2021.
The only problem: The market
she helped pioneer is now highly
competitive and saturated.
" There's a lot of competition, "
Maxwell said. " You have to
decide, 'what's the brand
identity?' I know what I'm doing.
I created the category. "
The San Rafael, Californiabased
entrepreneur talked about
the experience she's bringing
with her on this new endeavor,
what's different about today's
market, and where she sees the
company going.
STAYING TRUE
Maxwell began formulating
recipes for Jambar in 2016 on the
same KitchenAid mixer she used
to start PowerBar.
" Thirty-eight years have gone
by. The industry has changed
quite a bit, " she said. " People ask
me all the time. 'Why did you get
back into the energy bar industry
that you and Brian created?' "
Maxwell's answer is that she
wanted a high-quality product
made with real food.
" I'm a food scientist, a lifelong
athlete and musician, and I
thought I could combine my
passions, " she said.
When asked if she would be
taking a different approach to
building her new brand and
learning from her experience at
PowerBar, Maxwell said, " We've
learned that people matter, that
relationships matter. But we
also have to use our tools and
resources efficiently so that we
continue to grow and innovate
with the industry. "
She noted that the speed of
information and communication
24
GUIDE / OUTDOOR RETAILER WINTER 2023
in today's world is much quicker
than in the 1980s and 1990s,
and her company culture is
to avoid relying too much on
technology and instead focus on
relationships.
" It's really more about how we
stay true to our roots, " she said.
" We're a very person-to-person
oriented company. We like to
speak to people rather than
through machines if we can. "
As far as product formulation,
nutrition and food science
has evolved substantially
since the early PowerBar days.
Maxwell can get her hands on
more ingredients that provide
possibilities for innovation.
" The quality of ingredients we
can use is really high compared
to what we had available in the
'80s, " she said.
THREE PILLARS
In defining her approach
to the business, Maxwell said
the company is built on three
pillars: authenticity, quality, and
community.
" There are dozens and dozens
to the ingredients, which don't
include manufactured sugars
and use what she calls " real
food. "
" The nutritional composition
of Jambar is pretty high in terms
of providing an athlete or active
person with more nutrition, " she
said.
For community and
philanthropy, Jambar sponsors
hundreds of events a year, about
25 events a month, according to
Maxwell.
BRAND IDENTITY
Maxwell sees Jambar as an
energy bar for athletes, which
she views as a specific category
that's less common in the market
today.
The other part of the brand
identity she's highlighting is
Jambar's affiliation with sports
and music.
Maxwell plays drums in a
band, and she uses her own
product to help provide the
energy she needs to load her
drum kit, unload it, play a set,
then load everything again.
" An energy bar can come in
really handy, " she said. " You're
not eating a sandwich behind
the kit. "
Maxwell is distributing the
bars in specialty running stores
and outdoor specialty retailers as
well as grocery stores. Jambars
are also available on Amazon
and on the company's website.
COURTESY JAMBAR
The Daily Guide Winter 2023

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