Daniel Lubetzky

Daniel tells Bloomberg Businessweek about making KIND go from Small to Big this week. With an obsessive commitment to quality (and a goofy smile), Daniel keeps KIND’s brand promise to exceed consumers’ expectations. Read the full story after the jump.

By Julianna Storch

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We tend to feel our generation invented so much, but the truth is most of what we do has been done before.

I was wondering this morning at Holidays as a community exercise: why does society organize itself so everyone has the same break at the same time? Why not celebrate rugged individualism and permit each person to take a break when they need it, rather than all at once? Is it part of how modern society is organized with work at the center of our lives, and the need to create moments where we all take a collective rest? But I then realized Judaism institutionalized religious holidays thousands of years ago, and I assume ever since society started to coalesce with any communal beat, with kids being taught at the same time, they figured out the benefits of this coordinated rites.

Then today I was reading this article by Walter Isaacson about Benjamin Franklin, and it reaffirmed that the more things change, the more they are the same. Or at a minimum, that much less than we imagine has been totally freshly invented.

I tend to think of mentors and friends like Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s and Howard Schultz of Starbucks as the fathers of social entrepreneurship. And certainly in our generation, and with work from groups like the Skoll Foundation, SVN, Business for Social Responsibility, Net Impact, and just overall historical trends and social imperatives, social entrepreneurship has gone from a neat exception into an increasing and irreversible trendline.

But Benjamin Franklin, more than 200 years ago, was already creating innovation that we think we are discovering today! From Isaacson’s Op-Ed:

These Rotarian instincts were nurtured in a civic-improvement club that Franklin founded as a young printer in Philadelphia. The Leather Apron Club was composed of enterprising tradesmen, artisans and shopkeepers, what he proudly called “we the middling people.” Instead of replicating the rigid hereditary class system of England, America should have as its backbone, Franklin believed, a middle class whose success came from hard work.

The Leather Apron Club discussed civic and political issues, devised schemes for self-improvement and formed a network dedicated to “doing well by doing good.” Its members helped launch a flotilla of civic associations, including militia and street-sweeping corps, volunteer firefighters, tax-supported neighborhood constables, health and life insurance groups, a library, a hospital, an academy for educating youth, a society for sharing scientific information and a postal system to help connect everyone.

Also:

Franklin also understood the beauty of diversity. During his lifetime, he donated to the building fund of every church constructed in Philadelphia. When a hall was being built to accommodate visiting preachers, Franklin urged his fellow citizens to donate “so that even if the Mufti of Constantinople were to send a missionary to preach Mohammedanism to us, he would find a pulpit at his service.” On his deathbed, he made one of the largest donations for the first synagogue built in Philadelphia.

And even more remarkably in terms of financial innovation:

In his will, Franklin left the bulk of his wealth to create revolving loan funds so that aspiring young tradesmen and shopkeepers could borrow a little money to get started, then pay it back so that subsequent young entrepreneurs could get a helping hand. These loan funds worked for more than two centuries.

There is a lot of innovation today on mechanisms to fund social enterprises and to do so in a socially enterprising way. Several years ago, friends and I thought we had been so clever to come up with a model that is similar to what Franklin came up with more than two centuries before! Looking back may help us find answers to look forward to.

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Daniel is looking forward to delivering the afternoon keynote address at NYU Stern’s 12th Annual Graduate Marketing Association Conference on November 30th. He will be speaking with students about the authenticity of a brand in its efforts to integrate the social and the business. The conference will examine the new challenges and opportunities that technology has presented to marketers, and explore new ideas of how brands can build relationships with consumers.

By Julianna Storch

The August 2012 issue of Washington SmartCEO features a story on Daniel’s friend, Fred Schaufeld. Schaufeld shares entrepreneurial advice for would-be business owners based on his experience as Chairman and Founder of N.E.W Customer Service Companies. See below for some his wise words.

Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Julianna Storch

Money isn’t everything: “The difference between people with money and people without money is money.”

Embrace Failure: “You’re not going to know if you can do it unless you try. One of the nice things about the U.S. is failure here isn’t death, and you learn more from failure than you do from college.”

Be realistic about yourself and others: “Surround yourself with people who are up to the task and be realistic when they’re not. Be realistic with yourself about when you’re not up to the task. You’ll do a better job when your professional life is in sync with your talents and values.”

Create a meritocracy: “There are no true meritocracies, particularly in a small company, because the only people who will work for you are friends, family, and fools. That said, you ultimately need to cerate a meritocracy to get the best people.”

Know what moves you: “Understand why you’re in the business. I found tremendous motivation in my family. I gave up ever being good at golf so I could spend time with my family.”

Ditch the ivory tower: “You have to be wiling to do what needs to be done, and it won’t all be done from up in an ivory tower.”

Delegate: “Learning to delegate is critical. If you are doing everything and don’t let go, you’re never going to get past the little location you started with.”

This is a great article that depicts how Paul and Kristy are crafting a successful luxury brand whose impact is much larger than its sales.  Moreover, Maiyet’s flair, sourcing approach, and most importantly its founders’ backgrounds set the brand apart it from other ethical fashion brands.

Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel

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I enjoyed reading Howard Schultz’s book, Onward, and wanted to share this paragraph that summarized not just the formula that Starbucks followed to reinvigorate its journey, but also a formula that can be applicable to any entrepreneur’s journey:

Grow with discipline.  Balance intuition with rigor.  Innovate around the core.  Don’t embrace the status quo.  Find new ways to see.  Never expect a silver bullet.  Get your hands dirty.  Listen with empathy and overcommunicate with transparency.  Tell your story, refusing to let others define you.  Use authentic experiences to inspire.  Stick to your values, they are your foundation.  Hold people accountable but give them the tools to success.  Make the tough choices; it’s how you execute that counts.  Be decisive in times of crisis.  Be nimble.  Find truth in trials and lessons in mistakes.  Be responsible for what you see, hear, and do.  Believe. 

- Onward by Howard Schultz, page 309

NextStepU is a website that helps students navigate their way along the educational path that’s best for each individual.  Daniel’s insights in the interview below are undoubtedly helpful for these students as they explore their dreams and opportunities.

by Adeena Schlussel

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Check out this great article  in the Wall Street Journal’s “How I Built It” column about how Daniel’s healthy craving and hard work gave birth to KIND! 

by Adeena Schlussel

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This article, by Daniel’s friend Auren Hoffman, articulates how truly important it is to fail, in order to succeed.  As the author states, the right dose of rejection proves that you are on the right path, and an approach replete with risks will ultimately pay off.

Spotted by Daniel Lubetzky, by Adeena Schlussel

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Tomorrow night, December 6th at 6:30pm, Daniel will be participating in a roundtable discussion with Intersections International.   This night promises to be an interesting one so please rsvp using the information below if interested!

By Adeena Schlussel