Cereality CEO tells of store concept's rise

David Roth wasn't always a success in business. He has dabbled in consulting and publishing and even sold frozen steaks at Sears while in college.

But when he noticed a Wall Street executive taking surreptitious mouthfuls from a Cocoa Puffs box hidden behind his desk, Roth knew he was onto something.

Roth is CEO of Cereality, a cereal bar and cafe chain with a location on Walnut Street. He spoke to an audience of over 40 students yesterday evening in Steinberg-Dietrich Hall.

The company is now growing rapidly, Roth said, with plans to open franchises across the country, as well as in Canada and the United Kingdom.

However, Cereality didn't become successful overnight, Roth said.

Naysayers warned him that people would never feel comfortable eating cereal outside of their homes, that no one would pay more than $3 for a bowl of milk and cereal and that cereal manufacturers wouldn't consider partnering with him.

However, Roth said that he "turned most of their basic assumptions about business upside-down," Roth said, attributing his success to profitable connections, courage and luck.

Roth called himself and Cereality co-founder Rick Bacher "two outside-the-box marketing guys who are observers of human behavior and the wacky relationships people have with branded cereals."

Today, Roth said, Cereality is more than just a cereal bar.

"We built a business out of Saturday morning," he said. "It's a promise to our customers that you can have five minutes of Saturday morning even on Thursday afternoon at 3 p.m."

While talking at length about the inspiration for his company, Roth said he would not take questions about Cereality's financial information because the company prefers to keep that information private.

Students said they enjoyed hearing about the process of creating Cereality.

"I think of myself as entrepreneurial as well, so it was inspiring to hear from someone with an entrepreneurial spirit that succeeded further down the line," Wharton sophomore Andrew White said.

Wharton junior Bill Yau said Roth and Bacher bring with them an appealing message.

"Their marketing campaign ... appeals to memories I had when I was a kid," Yau said. "They're doing a damn good job."

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