Love Good Fats Goes Deep On Sugar Free Snacking With New Launch

Canadian bar maker Love Good Fats is expanding its brand “fundamentals” with a new convenient and indulgent snack line – Dark Chocolate Thins – which debuted at the Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) trade show in Toronto last week. The new line is the first zero sugar product for Love Good Fats and marks a shift in the brand’s approach to its “fat is back and sugar is out” stance on snacking.

The product is available in Coconut, Mint and Almond flavors and includes ingredients like sunflower lecithin, erythritol and stevia. Made with single-origin, Fair Trade Ecuadorian chocolate, each individually wrapped thin is intended to offer both convenience and portion-controlled indulgence – two trends that Todd Kelly, CEO of Love Good Fats, said lend the snack to a wide variety of use occasions and appeal to a broader consumer base than the brand’s core bar line.

“When I was growing up, fat was bad, but [this brand said] fat is back and sugar is out – that’s the fundamental [aspect],” said Kelly. “We have this good fats macro, low sugar macro and high fiber to drive low net carbs and will emphasize those macros wherever the opportunity allows us. [Our goal is] to deliver a product to the consumer that’s going to delight them, that’s going to reward them and that’s going to satisfy them.”

The new launch comes on the heels of leadership changes. In October, founder Suzie Yorke stepped down as CEO and Kelly, former CEO of Balzac’s Coffee, assumed the lead. Yorke now sits on the company’s board but has stepped away from day-to-day involvement. Kelly said he jumped at the opportunity as he has admired Love Good Fats since its launch in 2016. At the time of its launch, Kelly was working as the General Manager of KIND in Canada and said he remembers the brand’s “explosive” growth and the admiration he had for Yorke’s vision which is build on a “really good proposition, that was on trend in a whole bunch of different ways.”

“When I was approached about this opportunity, I really thought back to what a difference maker the brand was in the category and the business [at the time], as well as the opportunity for me to bring my background and skill set to help continue the momentum and continue driving it forward,” explained Kelly. “It was an exciting challenge, especially in COVID times.”

Kelly emphasized that while the bar category overall took a hit due to the pandemic, with sales declining 5.2% in 2020, the company has seen a quicker rebound around protein-focused lines. Love Good Fat’s core line is keto-focused (high protein, high fiber and low sugar) and he said those “fundamentals” have given it the support to also drive expansion into new territory.

“The people who follow a keto lifestyle are great consumers,” Kelly emphasized. “They’re educated, informed and passionate. We want to continue to [cater to] that, but we also want to make sure that we’ve got a brand, a portfolio and a proposition that appeals beyond just people who are focused on keto.”

Kelly said initial impressions at CHFA were “remarkably positive” and he expects the product to be available to consumers by July. Currently, it is in talks with distributors to roll out in health-focused channels across the U.S. and said the product will also be available on e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Thrive Market in larger pack sizes for “greater value.”

The new category entry also marks an exit from the shake segment. Love Good Fats released its Fat Shakes in Vanilla and Chocolate flavors in 2019, its first extension beyond the bar category; however, according to Kelly, the line never quite performed as well as expected.

Looking to future growth he said the brand will focus on innovation and broadening the brand’s appeal beyond keto consumers. While the new product is centered around its no sugar attribute, Kelly emphasized that Love Good Fat will aim to remain “flexible” and on trend with every new innovation.

“It’s about extending the brand while staying true to what makes it special, which is our focus on the great macros low sugar, high in good fat and low net carbs. We’re staying true to that to really extend the brand into other indulgent stacking occasions, with great innovation,” he said.