This is what they call a Covid story. Or at least they should.
Jeca Energy Bars CEO Ree Dolnick placed an order in December 2020 for a few pieces of equipment that would dramatically increase production capacity of her startup, which makes plant-based energy bars.
A thermo-controlled mixer, a specialized table for temperature control and cutting and a “giant transformer” were on the way — or so she thought.
Jeca was experiencing demand from grocery stores and distributors across the country, and could not keep up with the rigorous process of hand-making each bar. The new equipment would allow them to produce many more bars while maintaining the artisan quality, Dolnick said.
Overseas factories were shut down several times, however, to deal with Covid outbreaks. It took forever to get the equipment shipped to North America because of freight issues, and then to get them dislodged from the New York City docks because of the processing bottlenecks.
An entire year later, the equipment finally made it into Jeca’s Cheektowaga facility, but they came without the appropriate electrical adapter, which couldn’t be located because of supply chain issues.
“Our electrician said, ‘It’s a really common part, but I just can’t get it to you,” Dolnick said. “Then the part arrives and he gets Covid and is quarantined.”
Finally, while Jeca is indeed able to produce more bars now, the company needs yet another machine to complete its manufacturing workflow. That piece is being designed in partnership with Rochester Institute of Technology now and will be manufactured soon, Dolnick said.
It's been an interesting time for Dolnick and her business partner, Karina Loera, who joined the company as chief operating officer and co-founder in April 2021.
But for Dolnick – who spent two decades as a researcher at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center before leaving in July 2019 to follow her entrepreneurial dreams – the whole process is just a thing that happened.
The desire to create change never stopped burning.
“If we replace some of those awful bars that are marked as being healthy, then I consider that a win,” she said. “This is about quality food in the marketplace that can help people.”
Jeca is preparing to re-engage with a national network of partners, including companies such Whole Foods, the Army Air Force Exchange Store, Delaware North’s Patina Group and several others that have expressed interest in rolling out her health-conscious products throughout their footprints.
She has launched a business-to-consumer e-commerce push through her website, with new offerings such as a “Discovery Pack” sampler.
The company is participating in the University at Buffalo’s accelerator program, Cultivator, which has earmarked $100,000 in investments for Jeca. Another $25,000 is expected to come in from previous investor Launch NY.
Dolnick and Loera have mostly worked with contractors until now, but plan to start adding staff to support the growth they believe is coming.
They expect to spend this year finalizing contracts with vendors and to really start pumping Jeca Energy Bars out in early 2023.
“We are on a great trajectory and I’m so confident we’re going to get there,” Dolnick said. “We have a lot of support and all the things we worked on during our downtown will help us scale in the future. We’re just about to push that go button.”
Jeca Energy Bars is the 18th local startup to confirm a growth-oriented capital raise this year. The others are Torch Labs ($40 million), Circuit Clinical ($29 million), SparkCharge ($22 million), PostProcess Technologies ($5 million), VeriTX ($4.5 million), HELIXintel ($3 million), ShearShare ($2.3 million), Azuna Fresh ($2.5 million), Patient Pattern ($2 million), BetterMynd ($1 million), Cahill Tech ($375,000), Ellicottville Greens ($300,000), Swift Rails ($255,000) AireXpert ($125,000), Arbol ($110,000), Timberhut (undisclosed) and Ognomy (undisclosed).
