Talty Bar: Meet Tim Talty & Micheal Marchena

Photo Courtesy of Talty Bar

L: TIM TALTY, R: MICHAEL MARCHENA

TALTY BAR: ELEVATING THE LGBTQ+ COMPETITIVE SPIRIT THROUGH ALLYSHIP

It was in 2015 that Tim Talty, creator of the Talty Bar, met his future business partner, Michael Marchena. Tim was caked in the afterglow of his first Tough Mudder and Michael was in attendance at the post-race gourmet snack station while also acting as ultimate cheerleader for his boyfriend (now husband!) who was also a race participant.

At that moment the two may have looked like a mismatched pair but Michael and Tim make a perfectly balanced team in business and friendship. Talty has a lighthearted, trickster energy but exhibits serious talent and creativity in the kitchen. Marchena is gifted with huge business acumen and a no-nonsense edge.

While Marchena appreciated Talty's good time, dreamer spirit and supported him in expanding production of his protein bar, he was concerned that his friend was venturing into an already flooded market … right up until the moment he tasted it. With that first bite, Michael realized that his friend was doing something innovative with the Talty Bar and he wanted in on the business.

Once Michael was on-board, the duo made a commitment to bringing the Talty Bar to the

LGBTQ+ community. Marchena had this to say about their decision: "Of course we want everyone to enjoy the health benefits of our product. But showing support to the LGBTQ+ community is a specific goal for us.” “Representation is critical,” Marchena continued to say, “and we want to elevate the competitive spirit that's present among LGBTQ+ athletes. They deserve recognition and support.

That’s why we've chosen to make diversity the foundation for our marketing and outreach. We are thrilled to be sponsoring the Pride Run Series next year and are looking forward to supporting other LGBTQ+ events as we grow.”

The idea of creating an energy bar is personal to Tim Talty. Tim has always been a passionate chef. By the age of 10 he was already cooking and baking delicious food from scratch. And by his twenties Tim's professional culinary career was flourishing. But there was something wrong. Tim had struggled with his weight since childhood, and as an adult he found that his successful career in bustling kitchens was compounding this issue.

Carrying 80 extra pounds and zapped of energy, Tim knew something needed to change. He committed to taking control of his health and transformed his body with diet and exercise. But something still wasn't right. The hours spent at the gym left even less time for him to cook nutritious meals for himself. So he was reaching for protein bars out of convenience.

These protein bars provided fuel, but they never fully satisfied him. And the long list of ingredients, for a chef who loves food, was (quite literally) hard to swallow. After trying dozens of different brands, Tim noticed a pattern. The protein bars on the market were delivering on two of the following factors, but never all three: great taste, great texture and great ingredients. Tim wanted all three and knew his experience as a chef was the answer to checking all the boxes.

While Tim’s recipes have changed over the years, his basic rules have not – offer the best tasting products on the market utilizing Simple But Honest™ ingredients.

Find out more about Tim, Michael, and Talty Bars online at taltybar.com and share your health journey with them.

belcorva.com