CLIFBAR

Energy bars with taste

Many brands are born out of someone’s disaffection with what’s on the market and the idea they can do better. Such was the case with Clifbar. Founder Gary Erickson, a baker and cyclist, felt he could produce healthier and tastier bars than those on offer. He asked his first employee – his mum – to help him knock up a first batch in the kitchen of his California home. The company (named after his father, Clifford) was launched in 1992 and today Clifbars are among the bestselling energy bars in the US.

The company’s growth in the past six years has been particularly strong, in sync with the greater demand for more natural products – Clifbar’s strong USP is that it uses only organic, sustainable ingredients in its bars – which has seen it break out from the niche worlds of climbing, hiking and trail running into the mainstream. Staff are given the chance to do a minimum of 20 hours of paid community work per year (often linked to green causes) and Clifbar also runs a foundation that supports small-tomedium-sized businesses working in the fields of sustainability and the environment.

Clifbar products have been available in the UK for a few years but the company is now making a big push here, so getting your hands on one of its cool-mint chocolate bars (an RW office favourite) will be a lot easier.