NEW YORK — Tony Robbins, the world-renowned, peak-performance strategist and philanthropist, has announced the creation of Nunbelievable, Inc. A mission-based, direct-to-consumer baked goods company, Nunbelievable supports the work of soup kitchens and is a natural extension of Robbins’ 30-year mission to end hunger in the United States. Robbins leads Feeding America’s 1 Billion Meals Challenge, which has provided 420 million meals in the past four years alone and is on track to provide a half-billion meals this year.
Nunbelievable is a premium, organic, baked goods company inspired by the delicious, handmade cookies and confectionary creations of the friars and nuns of St. Roger Abbey in association with the Fraternité Notre Dame, a Chicago-based, “Instrument of Peace” religious order.
The company is launching in partnership with Idealab New York, the breakthrough innovation incubator, Loeb.nyc, the industry-leading venture collective, and Bonin Ventures, a leading growth accelerator.
Robbins’ support for the nuns of Fraternité Notre Dame began two years ago, when he came across an article on SFGate.com that shed light on the order’s San Francisco branch of nuns who were operating the Mary of Nazareth soup kitchen in the Tenderloin District—the city’s most financially blighted area. The nuns, whose religious order was founded in France in 1977, actively strive to live out their dictum, “to help most destitute people and those who suffer.” The French-speaking sisters slept in a small room in the back of the soup kitchen and were facing eviction, struggling to get by on the labor of their hands, the generosity of their benefactors and the witnesses of their Works of Charity. For eight years, they were devoted to feeding the San Francisco homeless, eking out a living by selling their handmade pastries at the city’s farmer’s markets.
Robbins took steps to prevent their eviction, covered their expenses for six months, and donated $1 million to help them open a new facility. He also brought on his friend Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, to donate $1 million to pay for additional housing for the nuns and their staff.
“At the time, I promised the order that we would use start-up thinking to keep their kitchen open and expand their ability to feed the homeless,” Robbins said. “I approached it no differently than I do my work with entrepreneurs all over the world, focusing on innovation to create a sustainable model. I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with Idealab New York, Bonin Ventures, and Loeb.nyc, and proud to donate 100% of my share of the profits from Nunbelievable to support the important community work of the loving, caring and determined sisters of the Fraternité Notre Dame.”
Jonathan Cohen, founder, chairman and CEO of both The Trillions Co. and Idealab New York, will serve as Chairman of the Board. Bryan Janeczko, a serial food-startup entrepreneur, recently recognized by Business Insider as a leader in tech, will serve as CEO of Nunbelievable.
“The world needs new kinds of start-ups that are designed to be effective at driving both profit and impact,” said Janeczko. “I’m so pleased to partner with this incredible team to build a scalable business model while tackling food insecurity, one of the world’s greatest, yet solvable, challenges.”
Sales of Nunbelievable’s products will help fund the work of the nuns of Fraternité Notre Dame, who run soup kitchens and food pantries in San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit and New York City. Nunbelievable is also creating a call to massive action that encourages people to do bold work to feed the homeless – to do something #Nunbelievable.
“We are so grateful to Tony Robbins and his partners for this chance to focus on our mission of serving the poor with no distinction of race, class, gender or creed,” said Mother Marie Martha. “The funding from Nunbelievable will allow us to spend less time in the kitchen baking cookies to fund our soup kitchens, and more time in the kitchen directly feeding the people who are most in need of our help and serving those who suffer in hearts and bodies. We look forward to sharing the Nunbelievable cookies with our community!”
Bonin Bough, one of the foremost CPG marketing executives, and chief growth officer of Bonin Ventures, is an investor in Nunbelievable. Throughout his career, Bough has led some of the industry’s largest global marketing campaigns, including the first-ever 3D-printed food product – a customizable, real-time 3D-printed Oreo.
“It’s been exciting to rethink not only how a food company can look, but also what people should expect from a mission-oriented brand,” Bough said. “We are eager to see what happens when people start doing Nunbelievable things and sharing the positive results.”
Michael Loeb, a successful entrepreneur and founder and CEO of Loeb.nyc, the New York City-based venture collective, is also a major investor in Nunbelievable and will serve on the company’s board.
“We are thrilled to partner with Tony Robbins and the incredible food startup team at Idealab New York to think differently about how companies can do well by doing good,” Loeb said. “I am personally committed to focusing our efforts on ending hunger and, with this venture, am honored to join Tony in his quest to feed America.”
About Tony Robbins
Tony Robbins is an entrepreneur, #1 New York Times best-selling author, philanthropist and the nation’s foremost Life and Business Strategist. A recognized authority on the psychology of leadership, negotiations and organizational turnaround, and athletic peak performance, he has served as an advisor to influencers and world leaders for more than 40 years. Author of five internationally bestselling books, including the recent New York Times #1 best-seller MONEY: Master the Game and UNSHAKEABLE: Your Financial Freedom Playbook, Mr. Robbins has empowered more than 50 million people from over 100 countries through his audio and video programs, and his live training programs. He created the best-selling personal and professional development program of all time (Ultimate Edge: 10 Days to Change Your Life) and more than 4 million people have attended his live seminars. For more, visit www.tonyrobbins.com.
About Nunbelievable, Inc.
Nunbelievable is a mission-based company that provides premium organic baked goods while offering a healthy dose of inspiration to end hunger in our communities most in need. Using traditional French recipes and the finest organic ingredients, and inspired by the vocation of nuns who commit their lives of service to feeding and comforting neighbors in need, we believe that impact and joy that comes when we all, “do something #Nunbelievable” for someone in our community. A portion of Nunbelievable’s proceeds also goes to funding soup kitchens across the United States. Nunbelievablefoods.com
About Idealab New York
Idealab New York is a new venture focused on the earliest stage of company creation — from idea to establishing product market fit. We look for big problems in the world around Food, Education, Media & Manufacturing. We then co-found companies with extraordinary entrepreneurs to turn the most commercially promising solutions into thriving businesses. Idealab New York is based on a 10-acre campus in Rhinebeck, NY, which includes a 5,000 square foot state-of-the-art innovation space for entrepreneurs, a 5,000 square foot advanced manufacturing facility, and residential housing. / idealabnewyork.com.
About The Trillions Co.
The Trillions Co.’s mission is to incubate, accelerate, and scale durable startups and support resilient founders who solve important problems in the world. The portfolio includes the global crowdfunding platform Indiegogo, the 3D-printed and AI-enhanced prosthetic device company Unlimited Tomorrow, the urban farming and education company Back To The Roots, as well the food pioneers in cold-pressed watermelon water, WTRMLN WTR, and nut butter, Wild Friends Foods. / trillions.co
About Bonin Ventures
Bonin Ventures (BV) is a growth accelerator focused on taking big business expertise and applying it to a diverse portfolio of innovative start-up companies. Led by world-renowned marketing guru Bonin Bough, the BV team provides strategic capabilities, unique skill sets, and unprecedented access to drive exponential growth opportunities. They actively seek to work with companies who are challenging the status-quo through the application of unique technology.
About Loeb.nyc
The venture arm of Loeb Enterprises and founded by CEO Michael Loeb, Loeb.nyc is a startup lab and early-stage private investor built on the belief that aligning the right people with the right ideas creates successful companies. A venture collective, Loeb.nyc does not incubate, it curates. We nurture our assets for as long as it takes, looking well beyond a 90-day program or one initial capital round. Loeb.nyc startups are provided with a tool shed of services and access to skilled consultants in a variety of disciplines including operations, sales and marketing, branding, strategy, data analytics, technology, legal, facilities, and community. More information can be found at Loeb.nyc.