MEET THE MAKER: ENERGY IN, ENERGY OUT

It’s no surprise that the creator of ViaBars, a healthy snack for people on the move, has a certain zip herself.

It’s no surprise that the creator of Via Bars, a healthy snack for people on the move, has a certain zip herself.

christiane Gossen’s culinary career started small—the size of a seed, in fact. “Seeds, raw seeds, are one of the things that I believe to be super food, these dynamic little packages,” she says. “They’re not trend-driven. They’re healthy and they’re delicious.”

Seeds are also a primary ingredient in many of Gossen’s recipes at ViaBar, her gluten-free, non-GMO, vegan health-bar business. In her professional-grade kitchen in her High River home, she—plus a staff of three—makes 10 different bars (Coconut Crave, Berry Lemon, Mucho Mocha and Chia Chocolate are the most popular).

ViaBars are available at stores across Alberta, including Amaranth Foods, Bite Groceteria, Blush Lane Organic Market, Community Natural Foods, Planet Organic, Sunterra Market and Save-On Foods. With a list of retailers like that, you’d assume Gossen had been working in the province’s food scene for years, or at least been a kid captivated by the kitchen. But Gossen says she had no great passion for all things edible when she was younger. “I wasn’t a baking kid. To be honest, what drove me into health was vanity,” she says. “I did not want to gain weight so I worked hard to find ways to be lean and healthy.”

She began making her bars as nutritious snacks for her family, but friends liked them, too. “I use good stuff to make them: Himalayan salt, organic vanilla, chia,” she says. When her husband was laid off from his oilpatch job in 2011, her family encouraged her to turn the bars into a business. Gossen already knew what it would take to get a new gig off the ground. Born in Germany, she came to Canada as a little girl with her parents. “My dad was such an adventurer and a real entrepreneur. That’s where I get it from,” Gossen says. “He came to Canada with three very young children and no specific reason to move—no job offer. He didn’t speak the language. But he’s multi-talented, a hard-working and strong guy.”

Gossen is no stranger to hard work herself. Gossen’s mom taught her to sew on an antique treadle sewing machine and, after Gossen’s children were born, she began sewing clothing for premature babies. Initially, these were sold at a local boutique, but within two months, Gossen’s creations were for sale across the country.

She built that business up and then sold it. And then she started another company, this time focusing on branded giftware for hospital gift shops across Canada. Then she worked in real estate, flipping houses. And, now, ViaBar.

“I have too much energy,” she says with a laugh. “But I don’t have as much as I used to.”

That’s part of the reason she says she doesn’t want to see her company grow bigger than it is. If she branches out to another province, she’ll have less control over how her bars are displayed and sold, and she doesn’t want that to happen. “We’re up against some very big names in this business,” she says. “But my ‘local-ness’ gives me a real advantage and allows me to compete successfully.”

She has, one could say, planted the seeds of success.