The Battle Bars Story: How a Veteran Turned Tragedy into a Mission
It all started with a phone call on July 7, 2016.
The voice on the other end of Alex Witt’s phone delivered the news that his close friend, Patrick Zamarripa—a Dallas police officer and U.S. Navy veteran whom Alex had served alongside in Iraq—had been killed by a sniper during a Black Lives Matter protest.
Just days before, the two friends had been planning a Cubs versus Rangers trip together. Now, instead of heading to the ballpark, Alex was on a flight to Dallas to attend Patrick’s funeral.
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“That was the moment I knew I had to do something different,” Alex remembers, now nine years later.
At the time, he was working at a logistics job but he wasn’t really enjoying it.
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“I realized I wasn’t doing anything that truly meant something to me,” he admitted.
He wanted to do something he was passionate about. Something that made a difference to people.
2017: Getting Started
After his aha moment on July 7, 2016, it took a bit of time for Alex to figure out exactly where to focus his energy.
A year later, the moment came.
Alex learned that a fellow Veteran, Ian Sparks was in the early stages of launching a protein bar company with his family upon return from deploying overseas.
Ian’s mission to combine performance nutrition with purpose resonated immediately with Alex, who joined forces with Ian to grow Battle Bars into a recognized national brand.
Though their concept was clear—they wanted to honor Veterans and tell their stories, all the while offering healthy, high-protein snacks that actually taste good—a lot of work had to be done before the bars would be ready to hit the market.
And their ideas weren’t necessarily easy to execute, starting with their plan for the bars’ taste.
Alex wanted each bar to be reminiscent of a Rice Krispie square, and he wanted the bars to be a nostalgic experience that sparked a memory in those who consumed them.
“When you bite into the s’mores bar, I want you to feel like you’re at a campfire,” Alex explained. “When you taste the lemon bar, I want you to think of your grandma’s lemon square.”
And when you’re eating the cinnamon cereal bar, it’s reminiscent of the milk you drink after eating cinnamon toast crunch cereal.
Taste aside, it was also important that their bars be high in protein, low in sugar, and free of the Harmful 7 (high-fructose corn syrup, hormones, antibiotics, processed and artificial sweeteners, artificial colors, and flavors.)
Further, they needed their products to be shelf stable, with a clean label and packaging, so people understood what they are, all things Alex quickly learned weren’t necessarily easy to do.
But, after months of research and development—including working with food scientists, hiring private chefs and searching for a manufacturer who could produce their formula—in October, 2017, the first two flavours of bars hit the markets: chocolate and blueberry.
2017-2021: Growth and Setbacks
Alex came out swinging with a lofty goal: “I wanted a Battle Bar in every CrossFit gym in America. And I wanted them in every 7-Eleven across the country.”
He knew it wouldn’t be easy, but he was confident he could figure it out and wasn’t going to take no for an answer. (Quickly, Alex and Ian’s mantra became FITFO (figure it the fuck out), a rallying cry that is now printed on Battle Bar t-shirts).
Alex got to work cold calling 7-Elevens across the country until one in Dallas agreed to give their bars a shot.
Three years later, it became the store’s number one selling protein bar.
The success opened the doors to a huge opportunity: In 2021, Alex was offered a deal to place Battle Bars in 1,500 7-Eleven locations on the east coast.
All was moving along, but then, on the exact day production was set to ramp up, Alex got a call from the CEO of his manufacturer telling him the manufacturing line broke down. He was reassured all would be fixed within three weeks.
This was not the case.
The line was never fixed, and the company soon folded—taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from Battle Bars in the process—and killing the 7-Eleven deal.
Not a single battle bar was produced for four months.
“It was a humbling experience,” Alex said.
2022-2024: Rebuilding Stronger
Determined to keep Battle Bars alive, Alex, who was also going through a divorce at the time, cashed out his 401(k), his kids’ college funds, everything.
And then he hit the road, traveling the country, on his own dime, searching for the right manufacturing partner.
He finally found one in Master Food Labs, who became the perfect fit for Battle Bars.
Momentum slowly returned, and business began picking up again. Soon, growth was happening so fast that Alex realized he needed a bigger team.
He brought on his friend Adam Wakefield at the end of 2024, who became both an investor and the Chief Operating Officer.
The decision was a great one, as Adam’s expertise immediately made a huge difference both to the company’s organizational abilities, and ultimately to their ability to scale the business.
2025: Where Battle Bars is Today (And Where they are Going)
Today, Battle Bars has a team of five major players—Alex, Ian, Adam, as well as Elyse Ferguson) (the Director of Operations), Bob Warda (Chief Commercial Officer)—as well as a handful of contractors, influencers, and more.
Their six flavours of protein bars are still the company’s bread and butter, however, Battle Bars also now offers various protein powder flavours.
Today, Battle Bars can be found in every Lifetime Athletics Club across the country, at CrossFit gyms and climbing gyms, at various convenient stores, including Speedway, Yesway and H-E-B, and more than 1,000 CrossFit and climbing gyms. And as of November 2025, Battle Bars can also be purchased on Amazon.
Between all of their platforms, tens of thousands of Battle Bars are sold each month.
Alex couldn’t be more proud of how his company has grown since its inception in 2017, but he also has no plans of slowing down.
In fact, as 2026 approaches, Battle Bars are gearing up for their biggest campaign ever; this includes launching a serious upgrade to their products (more on this coming soon).
Meanwhile, the three-year plan is to turn Battle Bars into a $100 million company. And with the right team in place, Alex knows this can become a reality.
“We’re ready to become a big player, if not the biggest player in this market,” he said.
That being said, Alex’s ultimate goal remains the same as it has been from Day 1: To represent veterans, tell their stories, and of course “to leave our customers satisfied, but still craving more.”
