Founder Feature: Yaniv Simpson of The Conscious Bar

The Startup CPG Podcast

Startup CPG

Startup, Food, Business, Beverage, Cpg, Entrepreneurship

4.9 • 642 Ratings

🗓️ 30 January 2026

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, Caitlin Bricker welcomes Yaniv Simpson, founder of The Conscious Bar, for an inspiring conversation about redefining the chocolate industry through radical transparency and intentionality. Yaniv shares his unique journey from getting banned from a candy store at age five to building a date-sweetened craft chocolate company committed to proving that chocolate isn't candy.

Yaniv discusses the inspiration behind The Conscious Bar—a mission to create chocolate that's truly good for you, not just "better for you." He explains how combining two ancient superfoods, cacao and dates, with zero additives creates an indulgent experience that doesn't compromise on health, ethics, or environmental impact. The conversation explores the complexities of sourcing ethical, organic cacao that meets strict Prop 65 standards while maintaining phenomenal flavor profiles.

They also delve into The Conscious Bar's commitment to 100% compostable packaging, building transparency into every aspect of the supply chain, and the decision to invest deeply in direct-to-consumer and social media education before scaling to retail. Yaniv reflects on the importance of intentionality in every decision—from nine months sourcing compostable materials to building a full creative agency in-house to educate consumers on why sugar isn't just sugar.

You will also hear about The Conscious Bar's community-building approach through educational content, their VIP Circle, and upcoming limited edition SKUs launching in early 2026 as they expand into natural grocery retail.

Tune in to learn how The Conscious Bar is challenging decades of cultural programming around chocolate by building trust, transparency, and a brand that refuses to compromise.

Listen in as they share about:

Origins of The Conscious Bar and Yaniv's Candy Store Ban
Why Chocolate Isn't Candy: Redefining the Category
Sourcing Ethical Cacao and Compostable Packaging
The Nine-Month Journey to Perfection Before Launch
Building a Creative Agency In-House for Education
Direct-to-Consumer Strategy and Community Building
Retail Expansion Plans for 2026

Episode Links:

Website: https://theconsciousbar.co/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theconsciousbar.co
Personal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yaniv-simpson-aa72b22a/
Company LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-conscious-bar/

Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.

Show Links:

Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (20K+ members and growing!)
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Visit host Caitlin's Linkedin
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at podcast@startupcpg.com
Episode music by Super Fantastics

Transcript

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0:00.0	Friends, did you know that a party has been going on this whole time with 35,000 people and you're invited?
0:09.0	It's our Startup CPG Slack.
0:11.0	You hear about it all the time on here, and if you haven't yet joined in, this is your moment.
0:16.0	Take out your phone, type in Startupcg.com, and then click to join our community you'll be at the party you'll
0:23.1	hear about all our events you'll get in front of buyers investors brands whatever's most important
0:28.7	to you we have such big plans ahead but you got to be in the community to hear about all of it see you on the
0:34.7	slack of it. See you on the Slack.
0:56.9	There's a minority of people that do not like chocolate.
0:58.6	And it is what it is, right?
1:02.6	But for the most part, most people do like chocolate, all forms of chocolate.
1:07.6	And so you kind of, you know, I like to say you kind of come into the world loving chocolate and you exit the world's loving chocolate.
1:10.6	And so it's a very,
1:12.5	very nostalgic thing and it's a very culturally relevant item, right? And so there's been a
1:19.7	tremendous amount of culture and associations that have been tagged to chocolate. And we're
1:25.6	trying to shift that slightly.
1:34.8	Hey, everybody. This is Caitlin Bricker, editor at Startup CPG. We are back with another founder feature. Today we're talking with Yenive Simpson, founder of the Conscious Bar, a date-sweetened
1:40.1	chocolate company claiming to redefine the category. After getting banned from a candy store at age
1:45.5	five, Yeniv is now building a chocolate company that aims to break chocolate out of its candy shell. He's on a
1:52.0	mission to prove that transparency matters, and it's not just what's inside the bar that counts. It's the
1:57.3	packaging, too. Enjoy. Hey everybody, welcome back to the startup CPG podcast. This is Caitlin,
2:08.6	and today I'm here with Yenieb Simpson, founder of the conscious bar. Yaniev, welcome to the show.
2:13.5	Thank you so much. I'm excited to be here. I am very excited to have you here.
	...

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