He turned LesserEvil, an almost-defunct snack company, into a major player in the health food category. Coristine acquired the corporation in November 2011, which included a $250,000 up-front payment plus an additional future scheduled $100,000 payment. His journey from corporate life at TD Bank to entrepreneur describes not only his commitment but his creativity and entrepreneurial spirit to business.
At the time of acquisition Coristine was working towards his MBA at the Cornell University Graduate School of Management. So he wanted to make LesserEvil different from his competitors. In order to do that, he introduced exotic actives such as extra-virgin coconut oil and avocado oil into their products. This USP started to lay the groundwork with creative ideas for the brand’s later success.
In 2012, Coristine took LesserEvil to a 5,000-square-foot, organic-certified satellite factory in Danbury, Conn. He proved his ingenuity by outfitting the facility completely with used equipment bought at auction. This commitment to the design allowed them to stay flexible and keep startup costs considerably low. Recognizing the need for a strong leadership team, he hired his graduate school friend, Andrew Strife, as COO and CFO. Collectively, they combined their different backgrounds and knowledge to overcome the realities of being a new business.
Coristine financed LesserEvil’s early operations with his own savings and raised a small, undisclosed figure from friends and family. In 2014, he nearly doubled the company’s production capacity by adding 2,000 square feet to the factory. On top of that, he implemented a new production line to increase efficiency. This expansion was crucial as the demand for their creative, healthier snack alternatives skyrocketed.
In a major creative overhaul, the team completely remade LesserEvil’s packaging, which had previously put a “guru” figure on every product. This branding strategy helped to capture consumer attention and reinforce the company’s identity as a health-conscious alternative in the snack market.
When Kroger started carrying LesserEvil’s products in 2015, it was a huge breakthrough for the company. This collaboration won significant funding in 2017. Armed with this investment, they relocated to a newly-built 20,000-square-foot manufacturing facility where they were able to produce and hire at a vastly improved pace.
By 2022, LesserEvil was packing up a mighty punch, boasting over $103.3 million in annual gross sales. The breakdown consisted of net sales of $82.9 million and an EBITDA of $14.4 million. Coristine’s strategic decisions and innovative approach played a huge part in this growth trajectory.
In late 2015, the company raised just under $3 million in outside funding led by InvestEco, which deepened their capacity to operate and grow. The next year, they raised another $19 million in a round led by Aria Growth Partners. These funds were key in buying out former investors and creating a new factory in New Milford.
On April 3, 2025, The Hershey Food and Confection Company announced its intention to acquire LesserEvil for a reported $750 million. The agreement features up to $50 million in performance milestones, a sign of the dominant position LesserEvil has carved out for itself within a competitive market.
Strife provided further context on the early days of the company:
“It feels joyous, so it doesn’t feel like work.” – Charles Coristine
The path to success certainly had its bumps along the way. Coristine recalled one particularly testing moment during product development:
“If I had done a lot of research and looked into it, I would have realized that the probability of success was pretty low.” – Charles Coristine
Strife provided further context on the early days of the company:
“Everything was scrappy and needed to be reinvented as we went along.” – Andrew Strife
The path to success was not without its challenges. Coristine recalled one particularly testing moment during product development:
“We put it on the top of a fridge, which gets really hot [and left it for] three months.” – Charles Coristine