Kareem Cook is the co-owner and Chief Marketing Officer of Naturade. Influenced by obesity, diabetes, and heart disease in their own families, Kareem and co-owner Claude Tellis have repositioned Naturade to address the diet-related illnesses epidemic in underserved communities by providing “Whole Foods quality products to a Walmart consumer.” Naturade has gained distribution in Costco, Whole Foods Market, Target, and 10,000 other retail stores. Kareem and Claude have been profiled in Fast Company, Forbes, Ebony, Black Enterprise, and other publications for the work they are doing to address the health crisis.

 

Prior to owning Naturade, Kareem co-founded Healthy Body Products (HBP), a healthy beverage and snack distribution company based in Los Angeles. HBP was the first company to place vending machines exclusively serving healthy snacks and beverages in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). HBP was instrumental in the banning of junk food in LAUSD and later in banning the sale of junk food in the state of California. Within two years of the company's founding, HBP was awarded the contract to supply all of the high schools and middle schools in Los Angeles, totaling more than 130 schools. Kareem and his partner were invited by President Bill Clinton and Governor Mike Huckabee to present HBP's story and best practices at the Alliance for a Healthier Generation in Arkansas.

 

Kareem is a member of Prep for Prep contingent VI. He earned his bachelor's degree from Duke University in 1994 and his MBA from Duke University's Fuqua School of Business in 2000. He currently serves on the Duke Alumni Association Board of Directors and the Prep for Prep Board of Trustees.