How a 65-Year-Old Founder Grew Her Protein-Bite Side Hustle to $2 Million in Revenue

Theresa Burnley, 65, founded the clean-label protein bite brand Circ in Milford, New Hampshire, in 2023 while running Wiley Road Foods. After exiting her bakery manufacturing business at the end of 2024 to focus on Circ full-time, the company generated approximately $2 million in revenue last year across 13,000 retail locations.

The Bottom Line

Scale & Distribution: Circ operates in over 13,000 retail locations nationwide, including Walmart and Starbucks.

Capital Deployment: The brand invested over $1 million upfront into custom packaging equipment and proprietary product research and development.

Growth Projections: Management anticipates a 4X expansion in its operational run rate for the current year.

Transitioning From Contract Baking to Proprietary Brands

After spending 16 years operating behind the scenes through Wiley Road Foods—manufacturing clean-label baked goods for external brands like Trader Joe’s and Milk Bar—Theresa Burnley decided to capitalize on her operational experience. Recognizing that traditional protein bars failed to address modern consumer habits like grazing and GLP-1 portion control, she launched Circ in 2023. Here is the math: transitioning from a contract manufacturer to a brand owner required a total capital investment of over $1 million dedicated entirely to process and product development.

According to Burnley, avoiding standard co-packers allowed the company to control its own proprietary methods. Pastry chefs rather than traditional food scientists drove the R&D process. However, the most capital-intensive hurdle involved designing specialized packaging equipment. Developing the distinctive five-bite packs with resealable lids took several years of iteration alongside material suppliers.

Circ Brand Metrics & Operational Scale

Metric	Value
Founder Age & Location	65, Milford, New Hampshire
Launch Year	2023
Prior Venture	Wiley Road Foods (Exited late 2024)
Total Capital Invested	Over $1 Million (R&D and Packaging)
Annual Revenue (Prior Year)	Approx. $2 Million
Retail Footprint	13,000+ Locations (Including Walmart and Starbucks)
Product Line	6 Flavors of Protein Bites

Supply Chain Realities and Scaling Fixed Costs

Operating a hybrid model of internal manufacturing and brand ownership exposes founders to distinct pressures. While asset-light brands bypass heavy capital expenditures, manufacturing-heavy models absorb higher initial fixed costs. But the balance sheet tells a different story over the long term: owning production facilities establishes a structural cost advantage at scale.

Managing physical supply chains requires constant operational vigilance. Equipment failures, missing material specifications, and transport delays demand continuous administrative oversight. To mitigate these disruptions, Burnley emphasizes maintaining slack in the system through buffer inventory, reserve machine parts, and conservative lead times.

The broader consumer packaged goods sector continues to experience intense competition. Burnley notes that there are hundreds of failed consumer brands every year. Despite these headwinds, Circ secured early placement following debuts at industry trade events like Expo West, driving steady top-line expansion toward its projected 4X run-rate growth.

Strategic Execution and Founder Discipline

Building a scalable enterprise past age 60 requires navigating complex operational friction. Burnley notes that external mentorship provides helpful perspective, but founders must ultimately absorb the daily administrative and financial pressure.

Circ currently offers six distinct protein bite variations. By centralizing manufacturing capabilities, the company retains direct quality control while positioning itself to capture additional market share within the functional nutrition category.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.