Business View - January 2016 67
product line. It brought integrity back into the industry
that was used to doing business a certain way. Our
philosophy was to become a vertically integrated com-
pany that would put the research, the development,
the manufacturing, and the production all under one
roof. It was like a breath of fresh air.”
Cohen believed that by being the Ferrari of the supple-
ments industry, he could bring a better product to the
marketplace. But he also knew that, like a Ferrari auto-
mobile, a price would have to be paid for his premium,
custom-made product. “We felt that consumers were
ready for that,” he says. “They were used to buying
the $15 and $19.99 protein and, here we are, com-
ing to the marketplace with a protein valued over $40.
But, they found out when they drank it, they felt bet-
ter. When they drank it, they had no intestinal upset or
distress. When they drank it, they felt healthier. When
they drank it, they lost weight and had more energy.
And it transformed that segment of the marketplace
within a year.”
Five years after that first victory lap, IQ Formulations
no longer operates out of a kitchen, but rather out of
a state-of-the-art, $3.5 million, 40,000 square foot
manufacturing and packaging facility in Tamarac, Flor-
ida, with plans to open a second facility sometime in
the not-too-distant future. “When we first started, we
had three vendors,” Cohen says. “Now we have 400.”
The staff has similarly grown: from two employees –
Cohen, himself and a salesman – to 47, today, with
people in marketing, customer service, accounting,
quality control, production, manufacturing, shipping,
and sales. “And even at 47 employees, we still con-
sider ourselves, undermanned,” he quips.
TECHNOLOGY
