Denver company expands with sales in Niwot

Two Iowa natives have found their calling in the form of nutrition bar dough.

Co-founders Tom Miner and Reed McIntyre, along with nutritionist Maria Capecelatro started the company Unwrapp’d last summer with the goal to provide a product that is all natural with no added sugar or artificial sweeteners.

But the kicker comes in the name, Unwrapp’d. Their product comes in tubs instead of individually wrapped protein or energy bars.

“I used to work a job where I was at my desk all day,” Miner said. “So I’m there and snacking, and I’d look down at my trash and see all of those stacks of wrappers. I started paying attention to what was actually in them. That’s when I started noticing all of the added sugars and other things.

“You think you’re making a healthy choice with those, but you don’t realize what all is in there. That’s when I got the idea to make something that people could prepare for themselves without the waste.”

McIntyre and Miner were roommates when they came up with the idea to make a dough that people could buy in larger quantities and bake at home.

The dough does not contain eggs or dairy, so it can also be eaten raw.

Miner said that they go to the extra expense to source products to ensure that they fit vegan and gluten-free standards.

“We knew we wanted to challenge the norms in the food industry,” Miner said. “Especially in the bar category. We realized we needed someone who could speak to the science and nutrition side of things, that’s when Maria came on board.”

They initially launched their product in farmer’s markets and other venues last year.

“We started building a steady customer base last summer,” Miner said. “Then over the winter, we kept our heads down and got all of our packaging, logos, permits, found a commercial kitchen — all of that to make it official.”

Though they live in Denver, Miner operates out of an office at Monarch Place in Niwot, and their product is sold in Niwot Market, along with all Lucky’s and Alfalfa’s between Boulder and Longmont. They’re currently working on a deal with Whole Foods as well.

“Niwot has become the epicenter of where we are doing business,” Miner said. “Rather than working out of Denver, it’s nice to have central access to the stores where we sell our products. Niwot has been a great middle ground.

“Even though we’re based out of Denver, most of where we do our business is between north Boulder and Longmont. That’s kind of our ‘tornado alley,’ it’s been our focal area.”

Miner said that since so many people in the area are active and environmentally conscious, it is the perfect area to launch their products.

“A lot of people consider this area to be like the Silicon Valley of natural foods,” Miner said. “This is a great place and an exciting time for this type of product.”

Customers have been sending recipes, some of which are on their website, http://www.eatunwrapped.com, where people can order all of their products.

“The big thing for us is that we want to do things a bit differently,” Miner said. “We are a small team, but our dreams are to keep growing. But at the end of the day we want to be different than other companies. If you walk down the aisles of stores, you’ll see that everything has been done and copied so many times because it’s a current trend.

“But being different is what makes it fun. We gel really well as a team, we’re all in this for the same reason, making a product that wasn’t available before. And Niwot is definitely one of those places that once you get there, you never want to leave.”