LOS ANGELES – Rosa Foods has announced Bryan Crowley is joining the company as president, responsible for day-to-day operations, financial performance and the development and deployment of the company’s business strategy.
Soylent was introduced in 2014 as a meal replacement product the company said would offer consumers comprehensive nutrition conveniently and affordably.
Before joining Soylent, Mr. Crowley was chief strategy officer at KeVita, a business acquired by PepsiCo, Inc. in December 2016. Earlier in his career, Mr. Crowley was president and chief exeucitve officer at VEEV Spirits and chief marketing officer at Pabst Brewing Co. He also has held positions at Conagra Brands Inc. and Anheuser-Busch Companies L.L.C. He graduated in 1995 from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, with a communications and journalism degree.
Announcing that Mr. Crowley had joined the company was Rob Rhinehart, the company’s founder.
“Technology has always been integral to the development of our food system, and it continues to play an important role in solving the demands and challenges of the future,” Mr. Rhinehart said. “Soylent has an enormous opportunity to grow our brand in a way that allows us to capitalize on our success in this space and continue the innovation at the heart of what makes us so unique. Bryan’s diverse background at companies big and small, his passion for our mission and his focus on building people, brands and a winning culture make him the perfect partner to help me take this business to new heights.”
Mr. Rhinehart and other company founders established the business while working on other start-ups and “living off a diet of frozen corn dogs and ramen,” according to the company.
As an experiment, the group developed Soylent as an experiment that generated widespread interest.
A $3 million crowdfunded campaign in 2013 was the largest crowdfunded campaign ever, Rosa Foods said, and was followed by a $20 million Series A capital raise in 2015 led by Andreesen Horowitz. Another $50 million was raised in May 2017 led by GV (formerly Google Ventures).
The company said the capital raised to date supports Rosa’s plans to “rapidly expand into traditional ‘brick and mortar’ retail, new international territories and major investments in product development.”
Mr. Crowley explained, “Rob and his team have done a fantastic job building a tremendous e-commerce platform and a lifestyle brand with an incredibly loyal following, and I look forward to building on that success together.”
Soylent powder is currently offered at a cost of $54 per month (35 meals). Other products offered by the company include a Soylent bar and ready-to-drink bottles, including original, cacao, nectar and Coffiest which the company said combines breakfast and morning coffee in a single product.
