The snack and bakery industry is filled with wonderful stories. Writing about the origins, growth and scope of the amazing companies that grace our covers is absolutely one of the best aspects of my job. It’s an opportunity and a privilege that I will never take for granted, shining a deserving light on innovation and doing our part at Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery to help make the industry a better place.

This month’s profile is certainly no exception. The story of Perfect Snacks and the Keith family highlights true innovation in the face of adversity, carving a new niche in the bars category, one of the most competitive product sets in the industry today, pushing its boundaries and challenging the buying public—and retail buyers—to rethink their options.

My wife has an eye for innovation, and my first exposure to the Perfect Bar lineup came in the wake of one of her regular visits to Whole Foods. I was immediately drawn to the refrigerated nutrition bars she came home with and their prominent use of nut butters—a trend that Perfect Snacks was well ahead of, and one that will certainly serve them well. And then I learned about the “superfood” blend of whole foods that was included in each bar. And they were just so tasty. Certainly an intriguing mix.

But it’s the backstory that hooked me—how the Keith siblings rallied around their father’s offbeat creation, commercializing it on a shoestring budget to provide for their family in the wake of his illness, persevering through the years in the face of adversity, stridently making a name for themselves, and eventually finding a higher level of success than they ever dreamed possible. For me, that’s the best kind of fuel for my tank.