Soco co-founder and Fellow, Goni Light and co-founder Yonatan Sela
There are many companies that have developed innovative technology and groundbreaking products, and produced outstanding returns for shareholders. I highly respect and appreciate the work of the people that drive these companies to success. But for me, the companies I truly admire are those that fully realize, live and breathe their mission and values, while achieving business success. Many companies advertise a lofty mission and an impressive set of carefully worded values decorating the walls of their office, yet only a minority of successful companies truly embody these values on a day-to-day basis and in everything they do. KIND® is that kind of company.
KIND thrives thanks to product innovation and an incredible brand that feeds off its strong commitment to using healthy natural ingredients, being fully transparent with consumers and strongly pushing its social mission. The company’s tagline of “Doing the kind thing for your body, taste buds and the world” is reflected in everything the company produces and does. KIND sold more than 2 billion snack bars to date, providing consumers a healthy choice of energy bars made from real nuts and fruits in a fully transparent package. KIND’s founder and CEO Daniel Lubetzky is leading the kind movement, which launches various campaigns promoting people to actively “do good” to strangers, and donates millions to nonprofits that support collaborations and partnerships in the same spirit. This company continues to grow since it launched in 2004 and continues to seed more good in the world by donating and creating their own philanthropic organizations in the Middle East and Mexico.
KIND and Daniel Lubetzky also promote economic collaboration in unconventional circumstances. KIND sources its ingredients from different parts of the world to show that one can create partnerships even between communities in conflicts. This notion is at the heart of our mission at SoCo – Seeds of Collaboration – and KIND is an inspiration for us. We too aspire to develop a very healthy plant-based product, that stands on its own as something that consumers fall in love with, but also embodies values that extend beyond food.
An entrepreneur I admire and listen to often is Naval Ravikant. Naval is the CEO and Co-founder of AngelList – a company that promotes the democratization and improved accessibility of VC investing to a broader community. He is also a seed investor of groundbreaking companies like Uber and Twitter. He is currently the co-founder of a company that promotes the formation of healthier habits. I appreciate all of his business success and the values he promotes, but the main reason I am mentioning him is his philosophy and the thoughts he shares about building one’s path, comprehending the world using a unique perspective that combines a material and a spiritual view and his practical advice about better leading one’s own life through greater intent, accountability, grit and honesty. Naval inspires me as an entrepreneur, and a person.