REDD, a VC-backed Maine energy bar company, acquired by Connecticut firm

REDD, the venture-backed energy bar company located in Brunswick, has been acquired by a Connecticut-based healthy-snack company.

LesserEvil Healthy Brands LLC, based in Danbury, Conn., acquired a majority stake in REDD, according to a news release. A purchase price was not disclosed.

LesserEvil is a vertically integrated snack company. Its portfolio includes organic popcorn, grain-free organic puffs, Keto-certified mini cookies and veggie sticks. REDD will be its first product in the competitive energy bar category.

“Given LesserEvil’s focus on functional snacking, the bar category is the next natural progression for the brand,” Charles Coristine, CEO of LesserEvil, said in the release. “Like LesserEvil, REDD prioritizes high-quality, clean ingredients with health benefits. REDD’s proven track record for making delicious, functional bars and its strong retailer relationships, coupled with LesserEvil’s expertise in operations and expanded production capabilities, will allow us to combine our resources in a way that enables us to grow faster and smarter together.”

With the acquisition, LesserEvil will take over the production for REDD at LesserEvil’s Danbury facility this summer.

REDD was founded in 2010 by Alden Blease, who was a college student at the time looking for a healthy energy bar. He couldn’t find one he liked, so he decided to make his own, eventually selling them out of his backpack to fellow students and local health food stores under the brand name Rawgasms. The company was rebranded in 2014 as REDD. In 2016, Peter Van Alstine was hired as CEO. He led the company through 2019 before handing the reins to Emma Fuerst Frelinghuysen, whose LinkedIn profile says she’s still CEO.

The news release says the REDD team, including Blease, will join LesserEvil.

“We’re excited to work together with LesserEvil to create plant-powered, gut-friendly energy bars that meet the better-for-you standards that both of our brands are known for,” said Dan Nordstrom, REDD’s board chair, who invested in REDD . “LesserEvil has been a leader in natural snacking for years, and with the brand’s excellent operations and strong relationships in the space, we knew it would be the perfect home for REDD.”

Nordstrom is the former CEO of Nordstrom.com and Seattle-based Outdoor Research Inc. As an angel investor, he led a $1 million investment round in REDD that closed in 2016.

The company has raised several million dollars since 2016, including a $2.2 million round in 2019 and a further debt round that same year. Beside Nordstrom, investors include Vermont-based FreshTracks Capital, Portland-based CEI Ventures, and several angel investors, including Scott Elaine Case; Chris Licata, former CEO of Concord, N.H.-based Blake’s All Natural Foods; and Tyler Ricks, who has held executive marketing positions at such food brands as Peet’s Coffee, Bear Naked Inc., and Plum Organic.