Dave Dahl is on top of the world. Eight years ago, he developed Dave’s Killer Bread, an all-natural organic bread line that quickly became an overnight sensation, injecting new life into his family’s five decade old NatureBake bakery and turning Dave into a baking celebrity.
But his story has a twist.
Consumers are not only drawn to Dave’s bread, but also to his life story as a reformed criminal who spent 15 of his 48 years in jail. In fact, Dave’s checkered past is central to the success of the company, and a short depiction of his story of personal transformation from career criminal to bonifide business success story adorns each bag of Dave’s Killer Bread.
Dave’s Killer Bread provides a case study on the power of personal narrative. Although Dave’s success is built foremost around his quality product line (the company produces 15 varieties of bread, selling approximately 250,000 loaves a week), his emotional bond with consumers springs from a bold decision to build his story into the brand which has resulted in fiercely loyal customers.
A Troubled Past
Dave was born into a baking family. His father, James Dahl, a one-time navy sailor, launched NatureBake in 1955. Along with his wife, James built a thriving business. Early on, Dave had little interest in being a baker and, beginning in his early teens, his life took a downturn. Fueled in part by undiagnosed clinical depression, Dave began a path into drug addiction, armed robbery and jail.
“I was alone in the world,” recalls Dave. “I’d put a needle in my arm and within seconds there was no pain, no concerns. Every day and night was a party, and I discovered my calling: crime. I didn’t owe anybody anything—in fact they owed me, and I was going to take it from them. I knew I was on the road to hell, and I didn’t care.”
At first, he stole car stereos, and later robbed homes and businesses to fuel his growing methamphetamine habit and was eventually sentenced to state prison for robbery, resisting arrest, assaulting a police officer and felony firearm possession.
The Transformation
This was the end of the line, and he knew it. “Here was my situation,” recalls Dave. “If I fought the charges, I would lose. The Feds were going to indict me. My choice was to get out of prison before I turned 45, or fight it and re-enter society as a “senior citizen.”
Dave pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 120 months in jail. He was as depressed and miserable as ever, and contemplated suicide before accepting psychological counciling. He was diagnosed with clinical depression and treated with antidepressant medication, which profoundly shifted his outlook and gave him a reason to reason to live.
He started playing guitar, took up drafting, and found that, even in jail, and without drugs, he could build a meaningful life. He became a model inmate, which led to his release after serving 88 months with no intention of returning to drugs and crime. “I’d experienced a rebirth. I hadn’t found Jesus, but I had found a way of living that gave me the strength to leave the needle behind.”
Reinventing a Company
Dave approached his brother Glenn, now CEO of Nature Bake, and asked for another chance, persuaded him that he’d turned his life around and could help lead the business in new directions. Dave went to work, working around the clock developing and testing recipes. Glen encouraged and nurtured his ideas.
Within six months he’d developed six varieties of whole grain bread, using only the highest quality ingredients. While considering names for Dave’s new product line, Glen had an idea. “He asked me about putting my story on the bag, essentially building the brand around my prison past,” recalls Dave. “I was completely surprised, but saw how it might help us reinvent the company and create a human connection with our customers.”
Dave’s Killer Bread debuted in August 2005 at local farmer’s markets. It quickly garnered a following and the Portland media lavished him with press. On each bag, an image of Dave playing his electric guitar is accompanied with a confessional note: “A whole lot of suffering has transformed an ex-con into an honest man who is doing his best to make the world a better place…one loaf of bread at a time.”
By wrapping an honest human story around a product, Dave’s Killer Bread has lifted its bread company from an everyday commodity to a community hero. NatureBake has almost quadrupled its revenue since 2005. It is now a $12 million-a-year company, with 83 employees (including several ex-convicts).
NatureBake continues to grow the company in part by giving back to the community, including making substantial donations to the needy. According to an article in the Oregonian, Dave “now donates so much bread to Loaves & Fishes, “the Meals-on-Wheels people,” that 34 of its centers can feed seniors two sandwiches a week thanks to him.”
Dave is the voice of the company’s social responsibility initiatives, regularly speaking to community groups and at-risk youth. “I’ve told my story to thousands of kids, some of them in correctional institutions,” says Dave.” I stress that if I can do this, anybody can. I also tell other businesses about the rewards in being authentic and real. It starts by appreciating your failures and using them to your advantage, which is my story in a nutshell!”
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