Lexington Bakes: Dessert first, protein second

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Lexington Bakes: Dessert first, protein second

2 Jan 2026

Maddie Lambert

Maddie Lambert is a copywriter and editor from Joplin, MO. She graduated from Missouri Southern State University with a Bachelor of Arts in English – literary studies. When she’s not poring over the magazine or lost in the pages of a new novel, you can find Maddie exploring her local bookstores, spending time with her husband, or sharing her latest literary discoveries with fellow book enthusiasts.

LOS ANGELES — Evolution is the cornerstone of a successful brand in today’s competitive CPG landscape. Trying, and trying again, is how commercial bakers break into the shelf and stay there permanently. Buzzwords today include organic, fair-trade, better-for-you, protein, fiber … the list goes on.

It can get especially challenging when a company tries to blend indulgence into the conversation of those buzzwords, but Los Angeles-based Lexington Bakes is proving that task isn’t impossible.

The brand’s lineup of organic, gourmet products — including cookies, brownies and oat bars — has garnered it a reputation for being a luxury treat provider, but it’s taken some portion adjustments to fit the final piece into the ever-evolving puzzle of consumer spending.

Lexington Bakes’ flagship products, the brownie and cookie, originally launched in a 5-ounce format at an SRP of $10. But when founder Lex Evan kept running into retailer roadblocks, he knew it was time for an adjustment.

Lexington Bakes then transitioned to a bite-sized 2-ounce treat at a more accessible $6 price point. While this resonated with consumers, a piece of the puzzle was still missing.

“What I’ve learned is everything on the shelf is about an ounce, give or take, at a $2.99 price point,” Evan explained. “We were twice the size on the shelf, but our packaging impression was the same size as the 1-ounce treats. Consumers weren’t picking up that our product is thicker, and that the thickness of our brownies is part of the overall brand experience.”

With this insight, Lexington Bakes began another product revamp. Today, the brand has consolidated sizes across its portfolio into a 1.65-ounce format; the perfect size, according to Evan, to keep the previous product dimensions while harmonizing the other specs that needed adjustment.

“This new line of protein cookies allows us to live into our dessert first ethos, while aligning with the modern needs of consumers seeking more protein and fiber in their daily diet.” — Lex Evan | founder | Lexington Bakes

“Changing the size got us from $5.99 to $4.99,” Evan said. “Scale efficiencies with our co-man are helping us shave off another dollar of the retail price. That all helps us reach our new target price of $3.99, which better packages the value perception of Lexington Bakes on the shelf for consumers who are new to the brand. I’m very confident this is the right way to balance the shelf conventions while also pushing category limits.”

When Evan began exploring other ways to communicate the brand’s value to consumers, a new product emerged … one that Evan has proclaimed a “happy accident.”

“I made a vegan and gluten-free peanut butter cookie about a year ago for a holiday launch, and it sold so well,” he said. “Consumers had been asking for it all year long. It was a bit of a rush to develop that cookie last year, and it didn’t meet the nutritional parameters we had for everything else in the portfolio, which was 10 grams of sugar per serving.”

The first version of the peanut butter cookie was 15 grams of sugar, due to its vegan and gluten-free nature. But, with a whole year to spend on R&D for the product, Evan not only kept it vegan and gluten-free, but also incorporated almond flour, which significantly boosted the protein content of the cookie.

Now, the brand has officially added 1.65-ounce Protein Cookies to its lineup, available in Peanut Butter, Berry Blackout, and Vanilla Almond flavors. Each variety offers 7 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber per cookie. The Vanilla Almond was made in partnership with B.T.R Nation, a superfood bar and snacks company whose unique protein blend inspired the line.

“This new line of protein cookies allows us to live into our dessert first ethos, while aligning with the modern needs of consumers seeking more protein and fiber in their daily diet,” Evan said. “B.T.R. Nation is an amazing partner to help us introduce what we’re doing by bringing a more indulgent option to people who love protein treats, while also meeting the highest ingredient standards and keeping the formulas vegan and gluten free.”

With a new focus on winning in protein-forward indulgence, Lexington Bakes’ Good Housekeeping-awarded Oat Bars will be included. The bars will not only see a harmonized price drop but also a boost of protein. Now, each variety will include 6 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber with only 8 grams of added sugar.

For more information on Lexington Bakes’ origin and growth story, check out Commercial Baking’s April | Q2 2025 issue.

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