I started a business in my kitchen - now it brings in $147million a year and product is sold in Walmart

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Elizabeth Stein never planned to build a multimillion-dollar granola empire, but a craving for healthier sweets sparked a kitchen-born brand now sold in 30,000 stores across America. 

From a $5,000 investment in her New York City apartment kitchen, Stein, 43, transformed her natural foods brand, Purely Elizabeth, into a $147million-a-year natural foods powerhouse, with products sold on the shelves of national grocer chains including Whole Foods and Walmart.

As an early-career marketing professional, Stein competed in marathons and triathlons on the side which she claims 'sparked her interest' in health and wellness. 

In 2007, the self-proclaimed 'health-nut' decided on a career change, attending the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and becoming a full-time holistic nutrition counselor the following year - while also teaching cooking classes on the side.

Growing increasingly frustrated by the lack of healthy sweets, feeling like she was unable to recommend any 'sweet and healthy' products to her clients, Stein baked a batch of 'superfood rich' blueberry muffins and started selling them at the races.

'Person after person kept asking where they could find these delicious muffins outside of the race,' Stein told CNBC. 

'So I sort of pivoted on the spot, and I told people that... when they sign up for my nutrition newsletter, I'd let them know where and when the products will be available.' 

A few months later, the budding entrepreneur built a website for the muffin mix. 

Elizabeth Stein, 43, never planned to build a multimillion-dollar granola empire, but a craving for healthier sweets sparked a kitchen-born brand now sold in 30,000 stores across America

Her side hustle quickly outgrew her expectations, as after she was featured in an email newsletter called DailyCandy she had 'about $10,000 of orders in three hours,' she said, adding: 'That was really how the business was born.' Pictured: Purely Elizabeth founder, Elizabeth Stein, holds several bags of her wildly popular granola line

Her side hustle quickly outgrew her expectations, as after she was featured in an email newsletter called DailyCandy she had 'about $10,000 of orders in three hours,' she said, adding: 'That was really how the business was born.' 

In 2009, Stein officially established her now adored brand.

Operating from her Upper West Side apartment, the wildly successful nutritionist invested just $5,000, allocated towards high-quality healthy ingredients, while she used her Manhattan apartment's hallway as an office.

As demand only continued to surge, Stein eventually partnered with a commercial kitchen in Philadelphia.

Slowly, Stein got Purely Elizabeth onto the shelves of a few brick-and-mortar stores in New York and Philadelphia, she said - before her mom landed a much bigger sales victory. 

'My mom, I will say, was the best salesperson,' Stein recalled. 'She single handedly got us into about 40 stores in the Whole Foods Mid-Atlantic region by calling up each of the buyers on the phone.'

However, Stein's real pivotal moment came in 2011 when her mother tasted a batch of granola she made while testing new ingredients.

'[My mom] tasted it and said, "This is the best granola I've ever had. This should be your next product," Stein said. 

Slowly, Stein got Purely Elizabeth onto the shelves of a few brick-and-mortar stores in New York and Philadelphia, she said - before her mom landed a much bigger sales victory

Stein's real pivotal moment came in 2011 when her mother tasted a batch of granola she made while testing new ingredients. '[My mom] tasted it and said, "This is the best granola I've ever had. This should be your next product.'

'It became very clear very quickly that the granola was far more delicious than the muffin mixes were.' 

Her mother then suggested the mouthwatering cereal-sister product be the company's next product.

Stein's mother's insight ultimately led to the launch of Purely Elizabeth's renowned granola line, which featured superfoods like amaranth, quinoa and chia seeds and sweetened with organic coconut sugar.

Eventually, Stein replaced the muffin and pancake mixes with the granola and hired her first two employees. 

In 2013, Purely Elizabeth reached $2million in annual revenue - up from $200,000 in 2011.

The massive uptick in revenue attracted attention of national health-food grocer, Whole Foods, which offered Stein national distribution - an opportunity which she says 'changed my life.'

'I got an email from Whole Foods Global, and the email said, "We are pushing you out nationally,"' Stein said. 'I remember just starting to hysterically cry on the subway, having this feeling, this gut feeling that this was about to fully change the trajectory of the business.'

The expansion, coupled with a $50million Series B funding round in 2022, propelled Purely Elizabeth into approximately 30,000 US stores, including Walmart - solidifying its status as a leader in the natural foods industry.

However, as Purely Elizabeth grew it attracted new challenges. 

The 43-year-old entrepreneur has since moved from her tiny New York apartment to a space in Boulder, Colorado she says is 'better suited' for her lifestyle and allows her to be closer to a Purely Elizabeth manufacturer

'How do we stay true [to the company’s original health-focused goal] from a sourcing perspective? There’s only a finite amount of certain ingredients. That’s something that we really need to consider,' Stein told CNBC.

She added that whatever the challenge, she intends to face the obstacles head-on.

'This is my baby,' she said. 'I want to stay CEO of Purely Elizabeth and [continue] to build this platform, build this lifestyle brand and continue to see where the brand can go.' 

The 43-year-old entrepreneur has since moved from her tiny New York apartment to a space in Boulder, Colorado she says is 'better suited' for her lifestyle and allows her to be closer to a Purely Elizabeth manufacturer. 

Now, I 'have a little bit more balance in my life... walk out of my house, go hiking in the morning,' Stein said.