She quit her job at 60 for a side hustle. It’s now a $2 million brand sold at Starbucks, Walmart

Theresa Burnley, a mother of three college athletes and a runner herself, has turned her side hustle into a successful brand called Circ, which generated $2 million in revenue last year. The company, previously known as Wiley Road Foods, specializes in creating and manufacturing clean-label baked items. Burnley, 65, started Circ while working full-time at Wiley Road Foods in 2023.

The brand offers six different flavors of protein snacks, which have been well-received in 13,000 retail stores, including Starbucks and Walmart. Burnley invested over $1 million for the initial process and product development, and the company had to adapt packaging equipment to form packs containing five round protein bites. Burnley's inspiration for the brand came from her dream of building an independent natural food brand with her family and her realization that the protein bar space was outdated.

The company faced challenges initially due to higher fixed costs, but as they scaled production, they expected to see a significant cost advantage. Burnley is currently investing a lot of time into her brand, but she finds it rewarding.