Day Out Snacks is adding two limited-edition flavors — Apple Pie and Pumpkin Cheesecake — to its dessert-inspired protein ball lineup, selling the seasonal SKUs exclusively through its own website and Amazon beginning Aug. 17. The DTC-only strategy keeps the launch tightly controlled while supplies last, a format the New Jersey-based brand has used to test flavor resonance before committing to broader retail placement.
The Products
Both flavors are built on Day Out's core base of nut butter and dates. Apple Pie blends sweet apple with a warm spice profile; Pumpkin Cheesecake pairs pumpkin spice with white chocolate chips and cheesecake notes. The latter marks the brand's first dairy-containing product. Each 4.5-ounce bag holds nine protein balls — three servings — delivering 9 grams of protein per serving. Both SKUs are gluten-free and non-GMO.
Pricing & Channel
The products are available in four-, six-, and eight-bag bundles. A four-pack is priced at $33, a six-pack at $49.50, and an eight-pack at $66 — implying a per-bag price of roughly $8.25 at all tier levels. Selling exclusively through direct and marketplace channels allows Day Out to capture full margin on limited inventory while gathering first-party demand data ahead of any potential retail expansion.
Seasonal SKUs as R&D
The launch reflects a wider tactic gaining traction among emerging better-for-you snack brands: using seasonal limited editions as low-risk market research rather than permanent range extensions. "Seasonal flavors give us room to explore the tastes people are actively seeking while staying true to our focus on dessert-inspired snacks with real nutritional value," said Becky Dheri, Day Out's founder and chief executive officer. The Apple Pie flavor was itself shaped by consumer feedback on last year's Apple Cider Donut offering, which generated requests for more apple-forward and spice-forward options — a feedback loop the brand is now formalizing into its development cadence.
The better-for-you snack segment has seen sustained growth as consumers seek products that bridge indulgence and function. Protein content has become a key purchase driver across grocery and e-commerce channels, with ambient protein snacks — bars, bites, and balls — among the faster-growing sub-categories in natural and specialty retail. For a brand of Day Out's scale, the DTC-first model limits upfront production risk while building an owned customer database that can support future retail pitches backed by verified sell-through data. Coverage of emerging protein snack brands and functional snacking trends can be found here and further context on DTC channel strategy in food and beverage is available here.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
