Daniel Lubetzky Made Mistakes Building Kind Into a $5 Billion Brand. He Talks With Kendra Scott and Other Founders So You Can Learn From Their Missteps

Daniel Lubetsky learned important business lessons the hard way. Now he’s uncovering other failures and pivots behind success stories.

Daniel Lubetzky. Illustration: Inc; Photo:

Investor and serial entrepreneur Daniel Lubetzky knows about business success—and failure. In 2004, he launched Kind, a category defining healthy snack that launched with all-natural bars and expanded to granola and other snacks. It sold to Mars in a deal reportedly worth $5 billion in 2020.  

His first major venture, PeaceWorks, which he started in 1994, sold packaged spreads made by business partners on opposing sides of conflicts, including Israel-Palestine. But never gained real traction in the market, a result, he now says, of a confusing business model and product lineup.  

With his new podcast Build or Break, Lubetzky sits down

With his new podcast “Build or Break,” Lubetzky sits down with other entrepreneurs, artists, and celebrities to discuss just those kinds of highs and lows. “We’re really trying to create these seminal interviews with each of these icons,” says Lubetzky, whose guests include Kendra Scott, Jamie Siminoff, and actor Matthew McConaughey. And he promises that the chats will go deep. In one sit-down, his fellow Shark Tank judge Kevin O’Leary “cries like a baby,” Lubetzky says. 

The podcast will be available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify starting September 3. Ahead of the launch, Lubetzky sat down with Inc. to discuss why he’s launching a podcast now and his own build-or-break moments. 

Refreshed leadership advice from CEO Stephanie Mehta

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This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

It’s a crowded market. Why launch a business podcast now? 

I realized that the specific traits and values that helped me build Kind from nothing into a multi-billion-dollar company were the same traits that can make you a better parent and a better citizen. We wanted to help identify the common denominators that make a builder. We go very, very high level to philosophical models, but also into very practical to day-to-day tools. 

Source: www.inc.com