Business & Government

His ‘dream job’ has a fellow UVA athlete alum as his boss

They never crossed paths at the University of Virginia, but their shared background as student-athletes made the connection immediate.

“An instant click,” Justin Grender said.

Grender, a 2022 UVA graduate and former All-America swimmer, is two years into his role as operations manager for Mezcla, a plant-based protein bar company founded by 2019 UVA graduate and former national champion lacrosse player Griffin Spolansky.

The fast-growing startup now sells its protein bars in more than 9,000 retail outlets nationwide, including Costco and Whole Foods in Charlottesville. In March, Mezcla closed a $9.5 million funding round.

Portrait of Justin Grender in his graduation cap and gown on the UVA Lawn

Grender, a 2022 statistics graduate from the University, is two years into his role at Mezcla. Only 25, Grender feels like he’s reached his “dream job” alongside Spolansky, a fellow former Wahoo student-athlete. (Contributed photo)

“Justin is arguably the most important piece of the business,” Spolansky said, “because he’s the one who ensures that all our product gets to our retailers. He’s getting trucks from Canada to Chicago to Florida to California, and that’s a lot of mess you have to deal with.

“I attribute a lot of our success to him.”

When UVA Today first introduced readers to Spolansky and Mezcla in October 2023, Grender was working as a business systems analyst for Peloton, the fitness-tech company known for its subscription-based live and on-demand workout classes.

On the surface, that made sense – the former collegiate athlete working for the company that fuels home gyms everywhere.

“It seemed like it was going to be great,” said Grender, who earned his degree in statistics. “But it wasn’t growing. I wasn’t learning. It was kind of this stagnant, full-time job, and I could kind of coast – and I didn’t want to coast.

“I wanted to be challenged. I wanted to be busy, have a productive day.”

Missing the team environment he’d experienced as a UVA swimmer, Grender jumped when a Mezcla opportunity surfaced on LinkedIn. An interview followed in March 2024.

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“Griff and I have spoken about this,” Grender said. “The UVA athlete is kind of a two-part vet. The vetting has already been completed in terms of your hard work, your discipline, your management of time.

“When you’re interviewing someone who played a sport – not only at college, but at a college like UVA with very successful sports programs and hard academics – it becomes clear. There’s a lot of stuff that UVA athletes bring to the table.”

For now, Grender is the lone Hoo among Mezcla’s 12 employees. But Spolansky said he actively looks for former student-athletes when hiring.

“What I’m screening for is intensity and willingness to work hard. These student-athletes are so good at that because they’re pushed to their limits every single day,” Spolansky said. “I think about how I can hire people who are able to deal with adversity, deal with criticism and work really hard. That’s one reason why Justin is so good.”

Justin Grender holding a trophy at the NCAA swimming championships

Grender celebrates at an NCAA championship meet during his swimming career at UVA. Grender earned All-America honors in three events, including the 200-yard backstroke, 200 freestyle relay and 800 freestyle relay. (Contributed photo)

At Peloton, Grender was one of roughly 4,000 employees. Mezcla’s 12-person staff – led by a CEO who models parts of the company’s structure on lessons learned under UVA men’s lacrosse coach Lars Tiffany – feels more familiar.

“It is as close as I can imagine there is to a college athletic program in the professional workspace,” Grender said, “which is what I’ve been looking for. I think it churns a lot of good product. Not everyone’s cut out for it, but the team Griff’s created here is great.”

At 25, Grender once imagined working for a global apparel brand like Nike. Instead, he’s helping steer a growing startup led by a fellow Wahoo – and calls it the right fit for this stage of his life.

For now, it’s his dream job.

“I can have multiple dream jobs,” he said. “But this one is probably as perfect as it can get.”