Walmart Misstep and Learning Operations

What if the thing you care about most ... might be what’s holding your business back?

Daniel Lubetzky didn’t leave his law job to build a straightforward business. He left it to build a company he believed would support peace in the Middle East. Daniel named it, aptly, PeaceWorks. It partnered with Israeli and Arab businesses across the region to make and sell gourmet foods—together.

But Daniel ran into a big problem: he discovered that lots of people don’t shop for a “cause”. Most people buy things they like—especially when it comes to food.

Soon, Daniel was scrambling to find new revenue streams to support PeaceWorks. When he got the chance to sell an Australian snack bar in the U.S., he jumped on it—and did really well! But when Daniel's ONE big retailer dropped it, profits tanked.

Daniel faced a brutal choice: Walk away… or start over.

What came next was a leap of faith. He decided to create his OWN bar. It was almost completely unlike the competition at the time: It was made of whole nuts, fruits, sea salt, and a little chocolate—all easy to see in a novel, transparent wrapping. 

Daniel named his company KIND, and when he sold it to Mars in 2020, it was valued at $5 billion!

This is a story about why mission alone doesn't sell, how failure forces clarity, and the moment every founder faces when they must decide: Do I keep going ... or do I quit?

What you’ll learn:

Why customers don’t buy your mission—they buy your product

The hidden danger of being “too purpose-driven”

How to pivot without abandoning what matters to you

Why control over manufacturing can make or break your business

The surprising power of retail placement (and why checkout counters changed everything)

How scarcity thinking can limit growth—even when you’re winning

Why saying “yes” to the wrong opportunity (like Walmart too early) can hurt you

Timestamps:

00:06:18 – “It really did shape almost all of my decisions”: How Daniel's father survived the Holocaust and built a new life in Mexico

00:17:40 – A landmark meeting of world leaders—and a dramatic career change

00:19:30 – From a bankrupt sun-dried tomato spread to PeaceWorks

00:24:29 – “They think you're adorable”: Why a mission isn’t enough to grow a business

00:30:59 – Overnight collapse: Finding a big, new revenue stream—then losing it

00:36:47 – The creation of the KIND bar

00:47:36 – “You couldn't say no to Walmart”: Entering big box too early

00:49:28 – The investment that pulled Daniel away from PeaceWorks

00:55:43 – Starbucks and sampling: How KIND became a household name

01:03:05 – An acquisition worth billions

01:06:25 – Daniel's new mission: Builders vs. destroyers

This episode was produced by Alex Cheng with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Andrea Bruce with research help from Noor Gill. Our engineers were Maggie Luthar and Robert Rodriguez.

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