CPG Anomaly: Justin Gold's Second Act

One of my favorite conversations at Expo West this year was with Justin Gold, the founder of Justin's.

Justin has been on my radar since Newtopia Now last year, where I got talking with the folks at Rudi's Bakery and tried their Sandos for the first time. A portable PB&J made with Justin's peanut butter. Only way I can describe it is the most delicious nostalgic bite in a long time.

And then I learned that Justin was serving as their Chief Innovation Officer after leaving his own brand.

Turns out that's not all he's been up to.

If you don't know the Justin's story: in 2004, a guy starts making nut butter in his Boulder apartment. Sells jars at the farmers market. Invents the squeeze pack on a mountain bike ride. Builds a full lineup, including those chocolate PB cups everyone loves, and sells the whole thing to Hormel Foods in 2016 for ~$286 million.

But not every story's end is... the end.

In December, Justin's became a standalone company again. Forward Consumer Partners took a majority stake, Hormel stayed in as a minority owner, and Justin came back to help lead the next chapter. And when the deal closed, much of the original leadership team came back too.

People who didn't have to come back. That tells you everything about the kind of leader Justin is and the vision he's put forward for this brand.

Talking to him at Expo West, you could feel it. He's fired up and full of gratitude. I left our conversation feeding off the good energy.

The booth had the same vibes. Nina Ungers, Director of Marketing, wasn't just handing out samples. She was interacting with every single person who tried something and asking for real feedback. Clearly a team that knows what they're building and is serious about doing it right.

Looking forward to watching this next chapter unfold. It's not a story you see every day in CPG.

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Didn't think to snap a photo with Justin. So here's a shot from a YT video I found from 2014 with his alma mater, Dickinson College.