Marcus Greet.
A lawyer before and after eating a Halcyon bar. (Disclaimer: a RollOnFriday simulation, individual results may vary).
A former Jones Day lawyer has left his legal career to launch a protein bar.
Lawyers seeking a new challenge isn’t a new phenomenon. But instead of inventing an ergonomic potty or becoming a pet psychic, Marcus Greet has quit his job as a junior associate to launch his protein-confectionary business, Halcyon, on Kickstarter.
Greet said he had an “unconventional” route into City Law: he lost both of his parents as a teenager and was a carer for his dad in his last months before he succumbed to cancer; he was kicked out of both his aunt’s and a family friend’s house; and said his “most impressive” grades at school included a G in GCSE Welsh and a U in AS-level Sports Science.
“I somehow made it into a non-Russell Group university to study law. My attendance was appalling and grades mostly average,” said Greet. But he committed to do a Masters at another uni, and subsequently managed to bag a training contract at Jones Day.
However, not long after qualifying as an associate at Jones Day, Greet took the plunge to start Halcyon. He told RollOnFriday that he’d been thinking about starting his own business for a while, and it dawned on him that “there probably wouldn’t be a better time to start my own thing than after qualifying: I wouldn’t ever be younger and with fewer responsibilities than at that point.”
With an interest in fitness and being “slightly obsessed with eating well”, he was aware that “a lot of gyms were looking for healthier protein bar options”.
“The traditional options are loaded with ultra-processed ingredients, and the emerging ‘clean’ alternatives I’ve tried aren’t as healthy as they claim or taste like compromise at best”, said Greet.
He went about making healthy snacks in his own kitchen, and tried to perfect a product by making “nearly 1,000 batches before locking in the first three flavours”.
The former Jones Day lawyer said that he wanted to create snacks that are “reminiscent of our favourite sweet treats whilst also using real ingredients”, adding “the fact that each bar has more protein than most widely available options is an added bonus”.
To save money to launch the business, Greet has been looking after people’s cats while they are away to avoid paying rent. The Kickstarter launched this week, and he’s already had an early win as JAB Boxing Club in Victoria has started stocking his bars for sale after a trial.
RollOnFriday put the snacks to a taste test in a FIFA World Cup (non-approved) knock-out format, judged by its resident protein bar consumer and chief whey taste-tester:
(1) Halcyon double chocolate brownie vs Grenade soft-core ‘Creme Egg’
The Halcyon double chocolate brownie was so good that you’d fight off a seagull for the last bite. The Grenade bar had the texture and taste of shrapnel mixed with dog poo.
Winner: Halcyon double chocolate brownie
(2) Halcyon caramel peanut fudge vs Fulfil chocolate salted caramel flavour
The Halcyon caramel peanut fudge’s brown colour conjured up the nourishment of soil and the promise of spring. The Fulfil chocolate salted caramel’s brown colour was reminiscent of manure decaying on a hot day.
Winner: Halcyon caramel peanut fudge.
(3) Halcyon vanilla berry blondie vs Huel dark chocolate & raspberry
The Halcyon vanilla berry blondie went down like a bottle of Château Cheval Blanc, but provided a healthy glow rather than a hangover. The Huel dark chocolate & raspberry went down like a gallon of Blue Nun, followed by a Steven Bartlett misery-level hangover.
Winner: Halcyon vanilla berry blondie
So that’s a resounding 3-0 to Halcyon.
The quality of office snacks comes up in RollOnFriday’s survey of the profession. With a canny eye on the legal market, Greet told RollOnFriday that “lawyers are often busy, between meetings and working long hours, but are increasingly scrutinising food choices”, and Halcyon can “fill the gap between a treat and an ingredient-conscious snack: indulgence-first, but designed for people who check the back of the wrapper.”
Greet was positive about his time at Jones Day (others have been less diplomatic when escaping the Pit of Sarlaac). When it came to the firm’s snacks, he believed that while they were “well-received…personally I found that healthier options were mostly lacking. It goes without saying that they could improve their offering by stocking some Halcyon bars!”
As well as pleasing RollOnFriday’s taste buds, Greet also scores highly for his promo ad (created by an old primary school friend of his), which captures the spirit of Wes Anderson’s ‘Fantastic Mr Fox’, and seems preferable to using some gurning influencer harping on about tracking their macros. It’s also the most creative advert featured on RoF this year, albeit that’s a very low bar.