Kailo

0:00Welcome to the Emerging Brands Podcast with Kelly Bennett. This is the podcast to discover stories behind your new favorite CPG brands. Each episode brings you behind the scenes of the brand and founder story, learn what sets them apart in the marketplace, and their strategy going to market. We talk about plans for growth, practical advice for an emerging brand founder, and where to shop products that are making waves in food, beverage, wellness, beauty, and beyond. You'll also hear from industry experts, brand builders, investors, and operators you should absolutely have on your radar if you're building a CPG brand today.

0:44I'm your host, Kelly Bennett, a Brooklyn-based brand strategist with a front row seat of what makes an emerging CPG brand stand out. Whether you're building a brand of your own or love supporting what's next, you're in the right place. This podcast is brought to you by Hummingbirds. Hummingbirds is the go-to platform built for creator-powered retail activations. They are connecting everyday creators with CPG brands to generate shelf-level awareness, drive in-store momentum, and generate authentic content in markets that matter the most. Go to hummingbirds.com for all the details and let them know I sent you.

1:30Now, let's dive into the new episode.

1:33Sri Kalapala:Hi, everyone. Welcome back to a new episode of Emerging Brands Podcast with Kelly Bennett. Today, I have Sri Kalapala. He is the founder of Kylo, which is a new protein bar on the market with really good branding. I just have to say that right off the top. This is something that really caught my attention. I was like, ooh, this looks like just a very cool product. So Shreet, thank you so much for coming on the podcast today and talking all behind the scenes about your brand. Thanks for having me, Kelly. You're so welcome. So first, let's just cut right to the chase. Protein bars, protein in general, such a hot space, a crowded space.

2:18What did you want to do different? What was the space that you were like, wait, no one's really hitting on this that made you want to create a protein bar?

2:27Sri Kalapala:Yeah. And it's funny to say it's a really hot space. I did not know that was going to happen. That's just pure coincidence. I'm not smart enough to be like, hey, this is going to be trending in 2025. Let's plan for that. I just ate a lot of protein bars. And one day I was like, wait, what am I eating? And so I was like, oh, I don't recognize a lot of these ingredients. So that's kind of what made me try to make my own. And this is kind of going back pre-AI, like 2018, where I was just making these for myself. And I just wanted something with like high protein and very clean organic ingredients.

3:03And what I was seeing at the stores were they may have high protein, but there was artificial ingredients.

3:08Sri Kalapala:And if I had clean ingredients, it was low protein. So I just didn't really see that gap being filled, which is kind of what led me to try to make my own. And I was also a little naive. I thought I could make one in like two weeks, but it took me like a whole year to figure it out. And that is, of course, when you're making it in your kitchen, you're like, oh, my gosh, I'm just going to bag these up. I could sell them. Right. Yeah. It's a big process to really get a commercialized CPG product. Yeah, it was it was a cool process, I think, because I was really very picky on the ingredients that I used.

3:43Sri Kalapala:I wanted it to be all organic. I want it to be plant based. And I wanted it to be naturally sweetened. So I didn't want to use any kind of like agave, sugar, any brown syrup, anything like that. I wanted to use like a natural fruit and I landed on dates. So just pureed dates is our natural sweetener and all our bars. And yeah, it was just me mixing up stuff in a little bowl in my kitchen. So cool. Also, dates are having a moment. Also a coincidence that I did not plan for. You're hitting on some really good things right out of the gate. So let me ask you this. What was your life prior to starting the brand?

4:20Why were you eating so many protein bars? And what were you doing career-wise prior to becoming a CPG founder?

4:28Sri Kalapala:I was tracking my macros like crazy. I was very into health and fitness. And that's kind of where a protein bar was an easy way to get my protein count up every day. And that's kind of what led me to kind of understanding this whole space a lot more because I ate every single one on the market. During that time, professionally, I actually had just started a healthcare company called Evolutus Health. And we connect patients with virtual psychologists for psych evals. That's all we kind of do day in and day out. We started here in Illinois and Indiana. And then now we've scaled that out to about 15 other states.

5:04Sri Kalapala:But it was just really good timing. Again, I didn't plan this, but when COVID happened, it really kind of became a big need across the country. And so my attention kind of all went towards that business. And, you know, I was still eating protein bars and still making them for myself. But at that time, I hadn't like really thought about launching this into an actual company yet. So what made you want to do that? I mean, it's such a wild ride. You talked about just from an idea from the kitchen to a year in the making, right, to have a viable product. But what made you want to take that leap? to saying, wait, this is something.

5:46Sri Kalapala:I think I'm a tinkerer by heart. I like to just play around with ideas. And, you know, healthcare is not the most exciting industry to be in. And I could just tell I felt really unfulfilled. And the cool part about making protein bars is you're able to hand it directly to somebody and get their feedback. And I was pretty surprised that people liked it. I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would make a protein bar in my kitchen where people are like, hey, I want some more of that. So my life, like the light bulb went off. And I'm like, okay, like, let me like, take this a little bit more seriously.

6:18Sri Kalapala:But I was focused solely on Evolutus Health up until like 2024. And I just had this nagging feeling. I'm like, I want to do something different. But I want to do something fun. I want to do something a little bit outside of my comfort zone. I want to be out on the streets. I want to go talk to people. And, and I always like could not shake the protein bar idea. It was just something that I wanted for myself. But then also like, just the endless opportunities for creativity are possible with food, I felt like so. Totally. And then I'm sure is also more satisfying of like, people can instantly say like, oh, this is delicious, or this feels where I'm sure the time it takes for people to really see the impact of doing more of the internal work or the mental health work.

7:07It takes a long time. So I could see how this was also probably like a nice way to be like, oh, wait, these ideas are working and it's helping people and they're feeling good. Like that is a cool part of food. I love that too.

7:22Sri Kalapala:Yeah. And, you know, I don't have a background in food. So a lot of what I do every day, I'm guessing. So, and I think that kind of keeps the excitement alive a little bit. I would say so. Yes, absolutely. So what were some of the early stages that you took coming from health tech to protein bars, CBD space? What was that? You talked about the year of creating the product and really landing on something. Like I said, your visual branding is really beautiful. You're really mindful of sourcing the ingredients. Could you walk us through what were those first early stages that you took to bring this product to life?

8:01Yeah, and actually, this was a really fun stage because I knew when I wanted to do a protein bar, and as you mentioned, it is a very crowded space.

8:10Sri Kalapala:There is no shortage of protein bars out in the market. So we had to kind of be very careful about what we put out there because I just didn't want to be forgotten. I think, you know, I didn't want to put a brand out there that people would just completely walk past. And also, I wanted this to be almost a reflection of my personality. I think that was also important for me that that's what kept it fun. And like with the packaging, for example, I wanted it to kind of, I took inspiration from streetwear brands that I really liked, Kith, Stussy, M &L and D 'Or, like those are the brands that I really like a lot.

8:45Sri Kalapala:And I think that really reflected well on the packaging. And then also music like psychedelic hip hop, like ASAP Rocky, Mac Miller, St. John. Like I kind of took a lot of the influences and put that all into the mood board. And I think that was important for me because it's not just the product in the rapper. I wanted people to also have an emotion when they picked up the bar itself. And I also have a little bit about like a retro feel too, which is cool. Yeah. I really love it. It came out great. And I think like, to me, I wanted the experience to start before you even ate the bar. Like the second you picked it up off the shelf, I wanted to kind of give people that, oh, I'm part of something cool.

9:27Sri Kalapala:Like, this is interesting. Like, what is this? And I think it's actually what helped get the name out there a little bit more. And people are now excited to try it just because of the packaging and the branding. Well, well done. What has been part of your strategy to actually get it into people's hands? because I feel like there's people who love protein bars, don't like protein bars, maybe have their favorite. I mean, it really, I would say it's pretty much in every vertical, right? You could say coffee or tea or whatever sauce you like. It's always challenging for someone to get it, get their product into consumers' hands and having them willing to try.

10:09I would love to hear your strategy of just how you're doing it.

10:15Sri Kalapala:Yeah, I think you kind of just have to hit the streets and hand it out to people. I have a clear backpack, so I just fill it up with bars and I'll walk around my neighborhood and I'll hand it out to people. And I think because it's clear, people can see inside of it. And it's like, oh, what does this guy have? I kind of want to, you know, see what he's holding in there. So that helped me a lot. And then just sampling events, any opportunity where there's going to be a group of people that are interested in trying food products. Like I try to accept every single one because it honestly starts with the first bite because it looks cool.

10:48Sri Kalapala:But until you actually try it yourself, you don't know if you like it. So I try to take advantage of every sampling opportunity I can get and try to just really give it out to people. And I'm not even worried about necessarily selling every single bar. I just want you to try it and just see what you think about it. And if you like it, that's great. And if not, you know, I'm always open to feedback and have it to make improvements in new iterations. What use cases of people's lifestyles do you find are resonating the most with your bars? The fitness community, I would say. You know, in the beginning, I wasn't really sure.

11:22Sri Kalapala:I knew I wanted like a cool lifestyle bar. But what I've really noticed in the last few months is the fitness community has really welcomed us. They like the macros. They like the clean ingredients. and they like to use it right after their workout or if they're going on a run, they usually eat it like a little bit before their run. But I think the fitness community has definitely kind of become what I would say like our main target audience right now, just because they seem to resonate with what the bar actually is about, what the foundation of clean ingredients. On mornings where I have been in a real time crunch and I'm going to your bar, I've had one of your bars on my walk and I was like okay this is good stuff I feel like I'm not just going to pure bar workout just with coffee in my system like I felt better I was like okay that's a smart move yeah so I was literally like one of those use cases of eating it on my walk in Brooklyn to a workout class and it didn't feel too heavy and it felt like a nice something good in my body for that class.

12:27Sri Kalapala:I love it. Yeah. So I was a living example of that. And I shared it on my Instagram and I got quite a few messages of people saying like, oh, that branding is really good. Which is always nice to hear too. For you, what is the vision for your product? Like where would you love to take it because it's still fairly new which is awesome you've done a great job but where do you really want to take this yeah i'm i'm trying to be very intentional on where the product is like right now we're in like specialty retailers uh like i like foxtrot and especially in new york like pop-up grocery i feel like those are the places where people come to see what's next so i like kind of living in that space right now i think as we grow we add new like new flavors I think like it would be nice to continue growing in the retail space I also want to kind of think about as soon as I figure out TikTok I would love to kind of use that as a protocol own thing yeah which is its own thing so really is but that I could totally see this as a product doing well there too yeah I I think I kind of go back and forth like yes it would be a dream to kind of be across the country and all the big big box stores and And then I can also see us just being like a product that, you know, this is kind of the question mark part is like, we have a couple of different avenues we can go.

13:59Sri Kalapala:What is what makes the most sense? Do we want to be accessible in every single location? Do we want to stick to the specialty retailers? Do we want to just be online? But I think for me, it's building a brand that is just more than protein bars. It's actually building maybe a lifestyle. It's building something that people really like get a great emotional feel from it. And I think that part, it's like to be determined. But I think it's really exciting because I can go a couple of different directions. I could totally see this going a few different directions, even if it was apparel at a moment or, you know, just other ways that you could connect the dots.

14:36But that's what's really fun. I personally think about emerging brands. And when you're starting off knowing, okay, this is my first intention with the brand, but then also being open to see how it could grow and evolve and how it's resonating with consumers and different opportunities that you may have not even thought about when you first started. That's like part of the fun and magics. It sounds kind of corny, but it's true. Like entrepreneurship, that's what makes it interesting in my opinion. Yeah. Seeing kind of where a brand could go.

15:12Sri Kalapala:Yeah, we have a loose roadmap, but we remain flexible to see what comes at us and we'll kind of just see where it takes us. very cool is there any advice that you wish you knew sooner I mean you went from health tech to protein bars and learning the CPG space has there been one or two things that you're like man I wish I wouldn't have known this sooner or and or things that you would really emphasize to someone who's in the very early stages, R &D, you know, making something in their kitchen thinking this can maybe be something, what would you share with them? I would say that, especially if you're making a food product, get as many people to try it and give you feedback as possible.

16:02Sri Kalapala:But don't take the negative feedback personally. Food is kind of subjective. Not everybody is going to love what you're making. And that's totally fine. That's a good point. Right. And but I think like getting good feedback from as many people is always as as beneficial as it can be. And but perfection also does not exist. So don't drive yourself crazy. And I think also a very good point. A really important part of this, because as founders, we tend to be the type A people who like things down a certain way and we do it right. and this is a very humbling space too and a journey of becoming a founder.

16:43So thank you for saying that. I think that's important.

16:45Sri Kalapala:Of course, mental health's important. So like - There you go. Yeah. Okay, full circle, right? Mental health being a really important piece of this. Yeah, definitely take care of yourself first. There's plenty of time to work, but don't forget to take care of yourself. And I think more than the logo and packaging, think about the emotion you want the people that eat your food to feel when you give it to them. I think that's equally as important as the product itself is that emotion that the person who's eating the food is receiving. I love that. And it's really an important piece of the puzzle of what that feeling a consumer gets, even if they don't remember everything exactly about your product, but they'll remember that feeling of eating it and how that supported them.

17:33One other quick question, because I feel like you're a really good person to ask this, is just for yourself the mental toll of being a founder and getting no's and then getting really highs of like a big yes or not knowing maybe what path you want to do. Do you have any advice just how to keep a good head on your shoulders as a founder as you're navigating all of this?

18:00Sri Kalapala:Yeah. One problem at a time, I think is the best thing you can do. Like there's no shortage of problems. So one problem at a time, one day at a time and, you know, just remain flexible. I think there are going to be days that you're down. I remember I got like four rejections in a row and I'm like, oh my God, this company is going to go bankrupt now. And, but it's, it's going to ebb and flow. And then some days you're going to land a lot of retailers. You're going to get a lot of online sales. And I think if you're down, just remember the good days are coming. And I think I try to just stay as steady as possible, but I'm human.

18:35Sri Kalapala:So it's hard not to kind of let emotions take over, but just regrounding myself and just being like, okay, just focus on today. Focus at this particular minute. We'll focus on tomorrow's problems tomorrow. And that's what's helped me a lot. I really appreciate you saying that. I personally need those reminders. So this was good timing also. Yeah, I'm glad. Yeah, it's, you know, you're in the trenches and then the small things can feel really big and then you get a really great positive moment, but it feels small because you're so fixated on that. And I always tell founders because I work with them pre-launch of just trying to find their own balance with it all so that once they even get to launch, they have that energy to take it to the next level and everywhere it could go because it's so much work just getting to that point.

19:30But then it's just that's day one, essentially, right?

19:34Sri Kalapala:Yeah. So I appreciate you saying that. Okay, last question before I let you go. Where can people shop Kylo? On our website, kylobar.com. If you're in the Chicago area, we're in about 14 locations here in the city, Foxtrot, Leyland Ringo's, Fairgrounds. If you're in New York, we're a pop-up grocer. And then we actually through fair, we got into stores in Reno, Nevada, Seattle, Washington, and Pittsburgh. So if you're in those areas. Thank you. Well, I love pop-up grocer. I mean, that's one of my places I go at least maybe every other week. That was actually my favorite sampling opportunity. I think the energy of all the people that came in, it was actually a lot of fun.

20:20Sri Kalapala:I would love to go back and do that. I've sampled for a client at pop up grocer, and it was my favorite sampling I've ever done too. And you can go across the street and get Joe's pizza right afterwards, which is like, I think a win, win. Not a bad deal.

20:37Well, thank you so much. And congratulations on everything you've built so far. And also knowing You're running a health technology company. Also, while doing this, just congratulations on everything you're doing.

20:51Sri Kalapala:Thank you so much. I can feel your genuine passion for what you're building and wanting to help people feel good. And I think we need more of that. I appreciate it. Thank you so much for having me on. This was fun. You're welcome. Thank you, everyone, for listening. And I'll see you on the next episode. This podcast is brought to you by Hummingbirds. hummingbirds is the go-to platform built for creator powered retail activations they are connecting everyday creators with cpg brands to generate shelf level awareness drive in-store momentum and generate authentic content in markets that matter the most go to hummingbirds.com for all the details and let them know i sent you if you're new here hi i'm kelly bennett a brooklyn based brand strategist working with first time CPG food and beverage founders.

21:45I have a front row seat of what makes an emerging CPG brand stand out because you're not just building a product, you are building a brand. And you want to make sure that is one that consumers love and retailers remember. That's where I come in. I've recently advised brands like Frankly Good Coffee, She's sauce, a new non-alcoholic cocktail line that's coming to market soon, and a hormone-conscious deodorant because food-adjacent brands count too. If you are bringing a new product to market, please reach out at withkellybennett.com. Thank you so much for listening and sharing. You can follow me on Instagram at withkellybennett, and you can follow the show at Emerging Brands Podcast.