Lola Snacks

Here's some real talk – according to the National Institute of Health 60 million to 70 million Americans deal with gut health issues every single year.* That's a whole lot of tummy trouble, right?

And here's the kicker: over 50 million visits to the hospital happen every year because people's gut issues just get out of control. We are in a gut crisis!**

The US Department of Agriculture says that the main culprit behind all these gut problems is our choices – poor diet, too much partying, stress and not-so-great lifestyle decisions. That leads to saying goodbye to the good bacteria and hello tummy troubles.

Inside each and every one of us, there's this mind-bogglingly diverse community of bacteria living in our gut. Seriously, there are billions of these little guys, and that's more than the entire population of our planet.

Now, here's the crazy part – even though these microorganisms have this massive impact on our health and well-being, most of us don't really realize how important they are. It's like this hidden world of gut bacteria, full of complexity and unreal potential, just waiting for us to dive in and use it to boost our collective health. It's, like, the final frontier of wellness, and we've got to explore it!

*https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statistics/digestive-diseases

**https://www.ars.usda.gov/oc/utm/keeping-a-healthy-gut/

Gut Health Products Are on the Rise

Everything from yogurt, to fermented foods, digestive supplements, and kombucha. These gut health type products are all on the rise with little sign of slowing down. The annual growth (CAGR) for gut related products are over 8 %*

The market value in the digestive health category, (the one with product including prebiotics and probiotics), is a whopping $12 billion. 

What this tells us is that people are seriously tuned in to their digestive health these days and it’s always on their minds, whether they're sitting down for a meal or grabbing a snack. We are making choices that are all about keeping our tummy happy.

The growth in the gut health market is, off the charts! Right now, we're sitting at nearly $45 billion, but here's the kicker: by 2030, it's projected to be close to $90 billion.

The market for gut health products is set to DOUBLE by the end of the decade.*

*https://guthealthimprovement.com/gut-health-statistics/

The awareness around taking care of our gut and boosting those good bacteria is through the roof right now. People are totally getting it – a happy gut equals a happy life, and they're all in for making it happen. Gut health is the name of the game, and we're getting a piece of the market.

In the year alone 2022, there was a staggering 52% surge in the awareness and prioritization of gut health. This heightened consciousness can be attributed, in part, to the myriad health challenges that many individuals faced in the wake of the pandemic—issues that extended beyond just gut health concerns.

The result has been a HUGE shift in paying more attention than ever to gut health and populating your gut with good bacteria.

LOLA Snacks: Th!s Sh!t Really Works!

Time to introduce Mary Molina, the incredible founder and mom of five who's the driving force behind the gut healthy snack company Lola Snacks. This woman is all about love, innovation, and making a positive impact.

Mary's determination was on another level. She was facing the daily struggles of her kids' food allergies and her husband's ongoing gut health issues, and you know what she did? She didn't sit around waiting for solutions; she rolled up her sleeves and this is how LOLA Snacks was born!

Lola Snacks isn’t just another energy bar company. We're total pioneers in the gut health game! We're doing something totally groundbreaking and we are all about two things:

1. Giving you that clean energy with a meal placement snack
2. Healing your gut while we're at it.

It's an awesome combo in one delicious bar!

Originally named LOLA GRANOLA which has evolved into LOLA SNACKS, this is a family business with husband/wife duo Ernie and Mary Molina. They also are proud parents of now 5 beautiful children that also help with samplings on the weekend for their company.

The image below is from one of Lola Snacks' earliest events – it's got four of their amazing kids in it. These moments were super important because it's when Ernie and Mary Molina realized just how big of an impact their bars were making on people.

Customers came back feeling the positive gut effects from their bars and LOLA SNACKS started to scale.

In a market that's seriously lacking options for gut-friendly bars. People are falling in love with Lola Snacks and coming back for repeat purchases, and that's proof that there's a real demand for our innovative, health-conscious approach.

We're all about keeping it real, even when it comes to nutrition. Not only are we obsessed with delivering exceptional nutrition (seriously, it's, like, our thing), but we've also gone the extra mile, Mary handpicked the most natural ingredients, like real almonds, cherries, blueberries, cranberries, and more, straight from Mother Nature herself. It's, like, a red-carpet lineup of flavors in every bite!

Plus each bar has 1 billion CFU prebiotics and probiotics to benefit the gut and are a total taste sensation with a texture that's, not chalky or chalkboard like – think chewy, melt-in-your-mouth goodness.

Our bars DO NOT have any artificial flavorings or colors, preservatives, GMO ingredients, artificial sweeteners, or concentrated sweeteners such as stevia.

We offer 5 flavors: Blueberry Almond, Cranberry Almond, Dark Chocolate Almond, Dark Chocolate Peanut, and Dark Chocolate Cherry.

Not Talking Sh!t About Others: Just Facts!

Lola Snacks is not just another face in the crowd when it comes to gut health products. We stand out, and here's the scoop: we're putting ourselves side by side with two other big players in the gut health game – Pro Bar Live! and Core Bar. But we're not stopping there; we're also comparing ourselves to the kombucha craze and the country's top natural yogurt brand, Chobani.

1. **High Probiotic CFU and Proprietary Prebiotic Blend:** Lola Snacks is a heavy hitter  with an impressive 1 Billion Probiotic CFU. Plus, we're doing something few others are doing – we've got prebiotics in a plant-based product.

2. **Shelf Stability:** Unlike some other products that need to chill in the fridge, Lola Snacks Gut Healthy Energy Bars are totally shelf-stable. It's not just about convenience for you; it's also making life easier for retailers. It's a win-win!

3. **Clean Ingredients:** We're not messing around when it comes to ingredients. Lola Snacks is all about clean, whole food goodness. No artificial stuff here!

4. **Less Sugar:** We're taking it to the next level with less sugar. When you compare us to kombucha and yogurt with sugar added, we're the healthier choice. We have an average of 30-40 % less sugar then a standard kombucha.

Why Is Shelf Stable A BIG Deal For This Bar?

• *Double Coverage** Allows bar to be placed BOTH in the fridge with other probiotic bars and also outside of refrigeration for double coverage in all stores
• **Prime Display Locations** We can be those prime store displays in the middle of the store and near the registers. Other probiotic bars? They can't go there because they need a fridge.
• ** Cost Savings** Higher margin for logistics (less cost for shelf stable storage, trucking, and distribution to stores) and also higher margins for online sales since no ice packs or special packaging is required

Distribution and Traction

Our bars are currently found in over 1,000 natural stores and chains nationally and we are with 2 of the largest natural distributors in the country, UNFI and Kehe. Our strategy is not go to everywhere, but only to locations that we know our bars can sell well and people understand the value of gut health bars.

(UNFI AND KEHE LOGOS - REWORK TO HAVE LOGOS ON TOP OF MAP VERSUS IN A LIST - MARY WILL PUT THIS TOGETHER)

We are in locations in the Northeast and Midwest such as Shoprite, D'Agostino's, and Meijer. We also have made BIG headway into corporate campus accounts such as Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, CitiBank, Nike, and a variety of college campuses across the Northeast.

How Are the Bars Selling At Retail?

The most important element when running a food and beverage business is velocity. Meaning, how many units per week per store per flavor are selling. We are proud to share our movement is OFF THE CHARTS with our bars selling as well as any competing bar in the set at our top retailers.

We are averaging 6-8 bars per week per location in a majority of mass market stores and natural stores. And we are topping over 10 bars per week in our top food service accounts!

We are competing head to head with the top gut health bars in the country and there are no signs of us slowing down as we grow and raise more capital.

Financials and Sales Projections

We are experiencing a significant increase in revenue in the last 12 months. In 2021, we achieved $203k in revenue. In 2022, $275k in sales (30 % year over year growth) and in 2023, we are projected to achieve nearly $450k in revenue (63 % year over year growth.)

Our Growth And Use of Funds

We are going through a period of growth. We have achieved revenue of nearly $500,000 in the last 12 months, and expected to reach $1.3M in revenue in 2024 with new commitments from retailers and also corporate campus accounts that drive large volume.

We are also experiencing 226 % Year Over Year online growth for our bars, and over 400 % year over year growth in our top retailers in NYC such as D'Agostino's, DeCicco's, Matter of Health, Fairway, and other select popular retailers in the North East.

The funds raised will primarily be utilized for:

• Raw Material ingredients (food ingredients, food packaging such as printed wrappers, shipper boxes, and display caddies in stores
• Production run costs including tolling fees with the manufacturer to make product for us which includes line-time and also labor
• Marketing such as demos and promotions at our top retail accounts to drive trial and conversion rates at store level
• SG&A including general day to day operating expenses and administrative expenses to keep the company running, especially during our growth phase

And One Last Thing!

This is why we do what we do – because "We Love Your Guts!"  We believe that every single person out there deserves to have a healthy gut, to feel amazing, vibrant, and full of energy every single day of their lives.

When we set out to create LOLA Snacks, our mission was crystal clear: to make the most mouthwatering, nutritious, and gut-healthy bars on the market. And guess what? We've totally nailed it! We've got lots of reviews from our amazing customers telling us how we've brought them relief with their gut and digestive issues. And check this out – we've got a whopping 65% return rate from customers on average. It's a love story between us and your guts, and it's just getting started!  #LolaSnacks #WeLoveYourGuts

We’re sending this straight from our hearts – "From Our Guts To Yours with Love." One gut-healthy bite at a time. Let's keep this journey going!,

-Ernie and Mary, and their 5 children / brand ambassadors Valentina, Enzo, Lola, Ruby, and Ellie