Episode 95: My Key Takeaways from Natural Products Business School at Expo West
Did you miss Expo West’s Natural Products Business School this year? Don’t worry! In this episode, I’m summarizing the three themes that came up again and again throughout the 48 hours of educational conferencing, and how YOU can use those lessons to drive your food or beverage business this year.
The three themes that were prevalent throughout this 2 day conference are:
The importance of mental health and mindset for food founders
The call for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the natural products industry
The power that comes from finding your community and investing in continued education as you grow as a founderFor the full show notes, links to the Natural Products Business School video replay, the contact information of the speakers referenced in this episode, and more click here.
In this episode, I mentioned a whole bunch of powerful people who were up on stage alongside me, specifically:
The team at New Hope Network, who put on Expo West & Expo East each year
Susan Skjie with her beautiful mindfulness meditation to kick off both days
Zoe Feldman, the director of Chobani Incubator, in conversation with Ayeshah Abuelhiga, CEO & Founder of Mason Dixie Foods
Vanessa Pham, the Co-founder of Omsom
Corey Ratteau of Good Eggs, Steven Jamieson of PCC Markets and Kari Pedriana of Green Spoon Sales joined me in a fantastic conversation on the State of Retail
Claire Koch of New Hope Network, Funlayo Alabi of Shea Radiance, and Lynne Hoey of Candide Group had a powerful conversation around raising capital in the food industry, and specifically addressed the challenges that BIPOC and female founders face when raising money
Jordan Buckner of Foodbevy moderated a fantastic conversation with Zoe Feldman again, of Chobani, Pete Brennan of Naturally Bay Area, and Wesley The Keeper, of Akron Honey Co.
I also recommend that my listeners revisit the Food Biz Wiz podcast episode 16: Just Say No about the importance of saying “no” in your business more often than you say “yes!”
In addition, you can find the recordings of Natural Products Business School by clicking here.
Finally, I also dropped a sneak peek of CPG CEO, my program for food & beverage founders who are looking for support around founder mindset. If you’re a founder who knows that the key to your future success lies in your ability to manage YOURSELF more than anything else, click through here and you’ll be the first to know when I take on new 1:1 coaching clients later this year.
Once you’re done listening, claim your official seat in Brand Camp, our free, five-day online workshop for emerging brands who want to increase their retail success. Through a 10-minute daily prompt, you’ll get clear on what YOU need to do next to grow your packaged product business. Sign up for free at www.takebrandcamp.com!