The Ledger
Every statement that passed quotation and attribution checks. Mix any filter with any other: certainty 1/5, debate potential 5/5, or both at once.
why aren't all 11 resolved? a statement only gets an assessment when the public record can support or contradict it. opinions and what-ifs never can, and 0 checkable ones are still open, waiting for their date. predictions held up or didn't; assertions are supported or contradicted. on every card: ▮▮▮▮▮ certainty · ▮▮▮▮▮ debate potential. speakers are clickable
Taste of Nature Outsold KIND Snacks in Canada Until 2012
“Yes, we were in Canada, so it was not a big market for kind, and until 2012, Taste of Nature was much larger than kind in Canada.”
Lubetzky sold 100% of his KIND stake by December 2024
“I sold a hundred percent of my financial stake as of December, 20, 24, and the relationship is predominantly very informal. I think I consult with them three times a year.”
Building multi-billion dollar companies requires luck and is rarely replicable
“There's no question that luck played a gigantic role, because if I were wrong, if it was predominantly me that was a genius, And all the other entrepreneurs that you interview, you'd have many more entrepreneurs that have built many multi-billion dollar compan…”
Mars acquired the remainder of KIND Snacks in December 2024
“Well, they bought a controlling stake in 2020, and then they bought the rest of it in December 2024.”
Nine in ten consumers who sampled KIND became repeat buyers
“What we found out, guy, is that anytime somebody tried a kind bar, nine out of 10 would fall in love with the brand, would tell others about it, and within a month it would pay for itself because they would start buying the product.”
A social mission cannot drive sales without product quality and value
“What I discovered along the way is that if you're too mission forward consumers will give you one shot, but then they think they're doing you a favor. And what I discovered is you need to make sure that you're not trying to tell the consumer, do this because o…”
Retail buyer enthusiasm is dangerous if an emerging brand is unready
“One of the most significant dangers is when a buyer loves you because sometimes you're not ready and you couldn't say no to Walmart.”
VMG Partners valued KIND at $45 million in a 2009 investment
“This is VMG, the private equity firm, I believe, that bought a share. I mean, at that point, in 2009, they valued it at forty five million dollars, the business.”
KIND granted stock options to every employee after six months
“Every single team member had a stake from the beginning. If you were in the company six months or longer, you got stock options. Everybody was an owner.”