David Protein has our attention. Here’s the bigger plan.
Peter Rahal on building a house of brands, the new David Bronze, and winning in the bar category. Plus: What Americans actually mean when they say they want to eat ‘clean’.
Hello hello! It’s Dan Frommer, back with The New Consumer. How are you?
A few quick plugs: How should restaurants think about tweaking their menus and experiences for the GLP-1 era? I spoke with Expedite’s Kristen Hawley about our new Consumer Trends 2026 research and my thoughts for the restaurant business. Also: Sara Wilson interviewed me about our new data on the creator economy for her Community Catalysts newsletter. And you can check me out on a recent episode of the Aboard podcast talking about AI and a bunch more.
David Protein has become one of the fastest-growing food brands in America by pairing an innovative product that’s tuned to the moment — high-protein, zero-sugar, relatively low-calorie bars — with provocative marketing.
Walking around New York a couple of weeks ago, it was hard to miss David’s new billboard campaign, featuring a lounging Julia Fox: “Men disappoint. David satisfies.”
Now the bigger picture is taking shape. After passing $100 million in sales last year — David’s first full year in the market — co-founder and CEO Peter Rahal is expanding the aperture.
The company plans to add more products and brands to the portfolio as soon as this year, under an umbrella brand called Medici, he told me during a recent visit to David’s headquarters in Manhattan.
Like David, these new brands will feature healthier-leaning, protein-forward products built around EPG, the controversial alternative-fat technology that it acquired last year by merging with its supplier, Epogee.
