The day before yesterday, I had the opportunity to meet Jonathan Miller, the co-founder and CEO of element bars. What we do with chocolate, they do with energy bars. You can choose between a chewy, oaty, crispy or datey core, and and then mix in all sorts of ingredients, fruits, nuts, sweets - and boosts.

Now, I have to "disclose" two things: a) I don't really eat energy bars (I'm more the chocolate bar type...). b) Jonathan gave me some bars for free (hey, this is a blog after all). Of course, I had to try a sample on my way back from the meeting, and it actually tasted pretty amazing. Very fresh!

In fact, Jonathan shared with me that freshness is one of the top three reasons why his customers build their own bars at elementbars.com. After you customize your own bar, they bake it and ship it to you, so it is much fresher than a bar that has been lying on a shelf for a few months already. Same with chocolate bars really - we hand-make them and ship them to you, so that you can try them only a few days after they've been made - you will taste the difference!

A second reason why people buy is obviously that - the taste. The chance to create something that is what YOU like - hey, that's the idea of mass customization!

Finally though, you shouldn't underestimate how nice it is to give your creation a name - whether it is your name or a creative invention. That is the third reason why people buy element bars. Chocri also offers you to name your bar, which will be on the packaging. Neat, right?

Here a visual impression from element bars:

Mmm, thanks! ;)

Once again, it was fun to talk to a fellow mass customizer. We both believe that the shift of control to the consumer is not just a temporary fad, but the future! Watch it happen... :)

Visit elementbars and build your custom protein bars