25-Year Business Veteran Creates Blue Unicorn Protein Bar Empire at 50
  • Aug 27, 2025

25-Year Business Veteran Creates Blue Unicorn Protein Bar Empire at 50

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About Podcast

What happens when a former security company CEO discovers a protein bar so good his kids beg for it daily? Jason Christensen went from teaching business students to building Blue Unicorn, a protein bar brand growing 25% month-over-month with 50% subscription sales. After selling his first company to private equity and spending five years as a BYU professor, Jason stumbled into the food industry when he tasted Dr. Luke Tolley's "unicorn" creation - a fluffy protein bar with impossible nutrition that actually tastes like dessert. In this episode of Startups with Stu, host Stuart Draper dives into Jason's transition from service-based business to consumer products, including the nightmare of promising 3,000 bars before knowing how to make them and the expensive lessons of manufacturing mistakes. Jason shares insights on building subscription-based food businesses, leveraging university partnerships for talent, and the emotional decision to leave comfortable retirement for the startup grind. He reveals why parents hide Blue Unicorn bars from their kids and his strategy for geographic retail expansion across western states.

Follow Startups with Stu:
Website: https://www.startupswithstu.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StartupsWithStu
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Follow Stuart Draper:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/draperstu/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/draperstu/

Follow Jason Christensen:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-christensen-9808b9/

Follow Luke Tolley:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luke-tolley-4900a26/

Follow Blue Unicorn:

Website: https://www.blueunicorn.com/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blueunicornofficial/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blueunicornmagic/ 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@blueunicornofficial

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