MixMyOwn: Another custom cereal maker shuts down

Custom cereal MixMyOwn has announced that today, June 5th, is their final day of operation. In an email sent to customers a few weeks ago they said,

"We want to thank you for your past business and tell you how much we have enjoyed doing this business. We started this with a lot of energy, motivation and hope, but it was not enough. There are many reasons why it did not turn out as we needed and now we want to focus on our other business, which is doing better."

Sadly, this is not the first custom cereal company to fold. We are aware of least three other U.S. ventures that have come and gone over the past decade: [me]&goji, MixMyGranola, and Custom Choice. MixMyOwn was the newest of these, starting only three years ago. Despite the valiant efforts of their European founders, the U.S. market did not respond as they had hoped.

I have long contented that custom cereals is a promising innovation that could help shake-up the cereal industry. Of course, the proof of this is in the brilliance of the concept's originator, mymuesli of Germany. The U.S. imitators tried hard to copy their success, but obviously could not do it. This is not Germany, but the U.S. where the cereal market is well established and entrenched. But, in an environment where the industry desperately needs a revival, the underlying approach should work. In my view, for it work here massive investment will be necessary to give it the kick-start it needs to gain traction. None of the previous attempts had that. Depending on a simple e-commerce model was not adequate for them.

It is sad to see an innovator disappear, but hopefully the lessons learned from their experience will help others who have a vision for this type of company. I still believe that a well-funded, well-crafted, U.S. take on mymuesli could be one of the recipes for success that cereal industry needs.