Thu, 17 December 2015
Charlie Guo started his first company at Stanford, left it, and did the famed YCombinator in Silicon Valley. While the startup fizzled out, Charlie learned a lot of lessons along the way. He made some friends. Charlie interviewed startup founders from companies including DoorDash, ZeroCater, and Zenefits, and turned it into the book Unscalable. The founders share the behind-the-scenes "dirty work" to success. Working 20 hour days, managing 100's of orders in a simple excel spreadsheet, etc.. whatever it takes. "These interviews pull back the veil on a much more eclectic mix of strategies and experiments, revealing the longer and less predictable road to success in Silicon Valley." The book will be released January 19th, 2016 (Pre-order now: I read an advanced copy and it is phenomenal). We discuss:
Selected Links from The Episode: More about Charlie Guo Charlie Guo based in the San Francisco Bay Area, in the heart of the world he portrays. A software engineer by trade, he has also founded two companies. While getting his undergraduate degree at Stanford, he founded the education-tech company ClassOwl. ClassOwl partners with Stanford and other schools to improve student-teacher communication and productivity, and in startup-storybook fashion it was sold by Guo’s cofounders in 2015 to Branch Metrics. After graduation, he launched a second company, FanHero, which was accepted into Y Combinator, a prestigious startup accelerator program based in Silicon Valley. His own experiences working to make his ideas fly exposed him to the inner workings of the startup culture and inspired him to reach out to a fascinating mix of tech founders to share their experiences.
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Thu, 10 December 2015
Martin Mignot is a Venture Capitalist @ IndexVentures. A large VC firm out of London, their investments include DropBox and Skype, tools we use to make the Food Startups Podcast. Martin is actively looking after Index's investments in Algolia, Blablacar, Capitaine Train,Drivy, Rad, Swiftkey, TheFamily and Deliveroo: an on-demand food delivery startup who just raised 100 million. The food delivery space is hot: over 1,000,000,000 USD was invested in 2014 alone. We talk about his theses and predictions for the exploding sector from his article: The Billion Dollar Food Delivery Wars (TechCrunch). Make sure to check it out before listening. Note: We had a few sound quality issues on the episode. But for the insights from Martin, it was worth editing it the best we could and putting it live! Martin and I discuss:
Selected links from the episode: Index Ventures |
Thu, 3 December 2015
In 1962, Frieda Caplan introduced an exotic fruit to the United States, which she named the Kiwi. Fast forward to 2013, 62 million pounds of kiwi were sold! In the 50+ years since, Frieda's has played a part in introducing more than 200 specialty fruits and vegetables. A documentary about the company, Fear No Fruit, was recently released telling their amazing story. I speak with her daughter, Karen Caplan, who has been the CEO since 1986. Tons to learn here:
Selected links from the show:
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Thu, 19 November 2015
Have you ever seen a recipe online that you loved, but never ended up making? Maybe you didn't have the time. Perhaps you are unfamiliar with some of the ingredients, and it would take too much effort to locate them. Chicory solves that problem with a one-click delivery solution of the ingredient list of a given recipe. Yuni Samashima founded the company in his senior year at Colgate university. Two years later, they are getting millions of page views per month and growing. We discuss Chicory's adventure:
Selected links from the show: |
Thu, 12 November 2015
Simplifying ordering for restaurants is a growing industry. Many startups are entering the space. This week's guest, Bluecart, stands out with a unique business model: it is free for everyone. The company has a potential for huge growth precisely because there are so many small farmers, producers, wholesalers, and restaurants out there who's margins are so tight they could never afford this kind of technology otherwise. This summer, they received 4 million dollars in investment and the Washington D.C. based company is taking off. Jag Bansal, Andrew Genung and myself talk about the how and why of Bluecart:
Selected links from the episode: |
Thu, 5 November 2015
This episode is a compilation of 6 strategies to become a more effective entrepreneur. They are utilized by top entrepreneurs and can help you get to the next level. Learn how to: 1. Define and amplify signal Mentioned in the episode: Carlos Miceli |
Thu, 22 October 2015
Melanie Moss is a life long pastry chef. She started her own company last year along with sous chef Alex Hawkins. They create jewel-inspired pastries and sells them under her brand, MiniMelanie. With clients like Spotify, BirchBox, Morgan Stanley, and lots of weddings, Mini Melanie is on fire. They were recently included in the 2016 NYC Michelin Guidebook. Melanie shares her experience:
Selected links from the show:
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Thu, 15 October 2015
It feels good repeating the quote to anyone close by : "Be very worried and buy agriculture". After all, I work in food. Yet, I didn't have a fundamental understanding of the concept. So I read his books and got Jim Rogers to come on the show. Jim Rogers co-founded the Quantum Fund with George Soros in 1973, helping lead the fund to a 4200% return before “retiring” at age 37. He is considered to be one of the greatest investors of all time. Jim has a really strong understanding of history and using it to bet on the future. We talk about:
Selected links from the show: |
Thu, 8 October 2015
I met Josh Parker at ExpoEast. He got started making maple syrup at age 11. Fast forward to 2015 and his business is growing rapidly. After the conference, he has moved from 12 stores to 332 stores. All while being a full time student At Clarkson University. He isn't old enough to vote, but needs to higher 4 employees to meet the production needs! We talk about his life:
Mentioned in the episode: |
Wed, 16 September 2015
What a treat! Bob Moore and his longtime (and lovely) assistant Nancy Garner join us for this episode. At 86 years old, Bob is full of energy as he continues to manage a thriving company with over 400 employees. I start off telling a few highlights of Bob's life as well as some defining character traits that I observed in his biography. Then, Bob sheds light on a variety of questions I prepared along with a few questions from listeners:
Selected links from the show: |
Thu, 10 September 2015
Sorghum is a versatile grain. Not only is it a superfood, but it serves for livestock feed and ethanol. It is an important part of diets in parts of Africa and India. It is also fermented into a popular Chinese liquor: Baijiu and used in KIND® bars and at one of Danny Meyer's restaurants in New York. Doug Bice is the high value markets director at the Sorghum Checkoff, which works with sorghum farmers in USA. This was a really fun interview. We talk about what they are doing to position the grain on a global scale:
Selected links from the show: |
Thu, 3 September 2015
He left a billion dollar nutrition company with a revelation: "I can do better". Brad wanted to sell truly healthy foods that were backed up by a healthy process. An e-commerce and online marketing whiz, Brad helps companies sell online via Amazon and other channels. He also has his own brand: Maivita. Brad takes us to school:
Selected links from the episode: |
Thu, 27 August 2015
Ashwin Cheriyan is a recovering corporate lawyer. Leaving New York @ age 30, he moved to San Fran and started Thistle: a leading cold-pressed juicery and food-delivery startup. Once a struggling industry , particularly with online grocery, food delivery is h-o-t today. On top of Thistle, Ashwin is an investor and advisor in startups. Listen to his story:
Selected links from the episode: Thistle.co
About Ashwin: Ashwin Cheriyan is an entrepreneur, recovering corporate lawyer and a mediocre surfer. He is currently the co-founder and CEO of Thistle, a San Francisco-based cold-pressed juice and healthy food startup. Prior to Thistle and WeGoFair, he spent 4 years in New York as an M&A associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, where he worked alongside senior management and cross-functional deal teams in collective transactions valued at over $100 billion. He received his A.B. in Economics from Brown University and his JD from The University of Texas School of Law. He currently spends his energy working with, advising and investing in startups, suiting up in neoprene to surf the "world-class" waves of Pacifica, and enjoying the abundant culinary delights the Bay Area has to offer. |
Thu, 20 August 2015
"I look at my losses as great lessons and they take the place of the MBA I never got." What most stands out to me about Mark is his evolution as an entrepreneur. Starting as a teenager many years ago, Mark keeps learning and growing. Without a doubt, he has had some failed ventures (like all of us). As of today, he is running a restaurant ordering app that has managed over $32,000,000 in purchases. Pay attention. This episode is full of actionable advice. We learn:
Selected links from the episode: Mark Haidet's Professional background: Out of school I worked for Arthur Andersen as an accountant but after a couple years found I liked learning about the companies I was working at more than doing the accounting side of it. I transferred to the consulting side and spent five years doing management consulting across a dozen or more companies. I learned from this that I liked doing project work but I also wanted the accountability of owning a P&L and being driving tangible results, not just a consulting report. I ended up finding Radiant Systems which was a growing technology company that provided point of sale and management systems to restaurants and retailers. I started out managing large customer accounts and worked my way across various operational roles over 6 years, ultimately leading our hospitality division. I then became the CFO when we had a management change and spent the next 7 years overseeing the accounting, finance, investor relations, legal, IT and acquisition activities. During that time we re-vamped our internal systems and completed about a dozen acquisitions. During my last few years at Radiant, my job became more and more administrative with increased SEC regulations and the scale of running a $400 million business. I was itching to have a creative outlet and spent a few years looking for ways to invest in a restaurant, an area I was interested in learning more about and felt I could have an impact with my operating skills. I eventually ended up connecting with a Chef named Tomas Lee who had created a great Korean Mexican Fusion restaurant in Atlanta called Hankook Taqueria. We hit it off and decided to work together to bring this unique food to more people. This was my first true company that I started from scratch. It was a great learning experience and we eventually opened another location. During this timeframe Radiant ended up getting purchased by NCR giving me a nice payout and the freedom to go pursue other ventures. I spent the first year working with a private equity firm evaluating potential tech company acquisitions in the retail and hospitality space. Over time the convergence of my restaurant experience with the technology background lead to what is now Orderly. My partners and I, who were all executives from Radiant, decided there was a gap in the market that technology could address. We founded Orderly to fill this gap and that is my focus today. The short version of the story is that I like making things. My hobbies include home renovation, cooking, building the neighborhood haunted house, making videos for school productions, creating restaurants and building technology. Anything that requires creativity, design, and execution for a tangible result.
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Thu, 13 August 2015
When I first read Alan Hahn's bio, I thought: "What does it feel like to have a 9 figure per year revenue company?" What about a 1.1 billion ROI? Alan is smart, passionate and knows how to scale businesses. He is back in startup mode with Mycotech: a Food Technology company that has created a new process using gourmet fungi that transforms agricultural products through a fermentation process to improve taste, value and health. They enhance foods like coffee, tea, and rice. Alan teach us quite a bit:
Selected links from the episode: |
Thu, 6 August 2015
Ed Robinson is the Chairman & CEO for Acadia Harvest - They are working up in Maine on sustainable farm raised fishing. As you'll learn, it's important stuff! The California yellow tail and black sea bass are their first two "crops". Ed gives us an insider's view of the seafood industry:
Selected links from this episode: About Ed Robinson: He has more than 30 years of experience launching products, services and growth companies in the life sciences, including 4 years with Acadia Harvest. Ed is also a board member for a San Diego based biotechnology company, Promosome LLC. In his career, Ed has managed groups dealing with fine chemistry, mammalian and tissue cell culture, industrial enzymes as well as aquaculture. Ed has experience in 40 countries, including assignments in England, Mexico, Singapore and Australia. He was educated at Clarkson University (BSc), Rochester Institute of Technology (MBA) and Pennsylvania State University (Executive Management Program). |
Thu, 30 July 2015
A British import to Silicon Valley and tech star turned bug entrepreneur, Daniel of Tiny Farms has a lot to offer. I hope this episode gets you thinking about the WHY: What problem is your startup going to solve? We had a delightful chat and covered a wide range of topics:
Mentioned in the episode: (Tiny Farms Blog - Thoughts on Progress) The Entrepreneurial Imperative Muhammad Yunus (Correction: only one noble peace prize) Stuff White People Like - #105 Unpaid Internships About Tiny Farms: An Oakland, California company developing the supply chain for insects as a sustainable protein source. Tiny Farms applies big data techniques to guide the rapid development of controlled environment agriculture systems used for farming insects.
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Thu, 23 July 2015
This summer August de Vocht made a trip to the U.S. looking to finalize a round of investment for his Dutch based startup. He also shot a documentary (trailer link) about U.S. attitudes towards food waste. In 2015, does the U.S. really care about Food Waste? No Food Wasted works to connect grocers and local consumers to sell grocery products close to there "best-by" date at a discount. While they are live in Holland, they are still deciding if the app could work across the pond. We compare (North) Americans vs. European in a variety of behavioral attitudes:
Food startup founders: we hope this gets you thinking about cultural attitudes towards your products and services. If you are not aligned, be careful!! Plus, we also talk about the day to day life of August, "Twitter squatting", and some downright scary food waste statistics. Selected links in the episode: |
Thu, 16 July 2015
Delicious home-brewed craft beers are almost never shared with a wide audience. This is due to legal and production capacity reasons. Noble Brewer Beer is changing that, connecting amateurs with professional breweries. They buy the beer that is produced and sell it to its subscribers via a delivery service. FSP Listeners, this is one of our best shows to date. Claude Burns takes us behind the scenes of his company:
Selected links from the show: Noble Brewer Beer |
Thu, 9 July 2015
Today we have a talk about some of the biggest environmental challenges that our earth faces:
Mike from Corigin is working on these humongous problems. But he must sell his technology and ideas Big Agro in order for it to work. I get Mike to break down the solutions in laymen's terms. Get ready to be blown away. Mentioned in this episode: Corigin (going live soon) |
Wed, 1 July 2015
They started at UC-Berkley making organic mushrooms out of coffee waste. Now, they are a full-fledged company in Home Depot, Urban Outfitters, and Target among others. It is one of the most inspiring stories we've had so far. Fresh off a 2 million dollar investment round, Nikhil Arora of Back to the Roots® talks about food and life:
... and so much more. Mentioned in this episode: Back to the Roots Raises $2 Million to Grow Its Mini-Gardens, Food Brand
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Wed, 24 June 2015
A mini-episode to kick off the summer. We talk about:
Mentioned in the show: Photo taken mountain biking last week in the Poconos, PA. |
Thu, 18 June 2015
I've always wondered about artisanal brands that "go big". Can they keep the same quality and authenticity? Bearded Brothers out of Austin makes hand-crafted energy bars. No BS ingredients. Really good stuff (I just ate one). Caleb walks us through the early stages of the company up to the nationwide brand they are today. We cover:
Mentioned in the episode: Bearded Brothers |
Thu, 11 June 2015
Recent college grad Evan Lutz co-founded Hungry Harvest to solve a major problem in the US: surplus produce. Also laziness (delivered to your doorstep!). This is edible produce that doesn't even make it to restaurants or the grocery stores. Only because it is "shaped" differently. Evan sheds light on:
Mentioned in this episode: Why entrepreneurs are suddenly finding the beauty in ugly produce L-theanine, a natural constituent in tea, and its effect on mental state |
Thu, 4 June 2015
Today we get a behind the scenes look at an alternative food business model. 2 Degrees Food is growing rapidly: they are in 2500 stores as well as United and JetBlue airways. Co-founder Lauren Walters walks us through the company philosophy and their keys to success:
Mentioned in this episode:
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Wed, 27 May 2015
Tynan is one of the most interesting people I've ever met. Time Magazine named him "[one of the] Top 25 Best Bloggers". He was also a featured character in the New York Times Bestseller The Game. And he is extremely healthy, mentally and physically. I pick his brain on nutrition, health, and cultivating positive habits. Learn about:
Mentioned in this episode: A Practical and Sane Guide To Eating Healthy NutriSearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements, 5th Professional edition |
Thu, 21 May 2015
A few years ago, quinoa was still a relatively unknown grain. While today it is more widely known, i heart keenwah still has to educate customers and sample their healthy snacks. Co-founder Ravi Jolly tell us how he and Sarah Chalos developed a tasty quinoa snack and put themselves in a position to catapult their brand on a chance encounter with an editor from Oprah Magazine. This is our 50th episode(!!!) and we couldn't have had a better guest willing to share his learnings with the FSP community. Ravi tells us about:
Mentioned in this episode: |
Thu, 14 May 2015
Thanks to our (fabulous) interview with C-FU, other insect food companies have reached out to us. We sit down with the industry leader of cricket powder, All Things Bugs. They got their start with the Gates Foundation. Today, all of the "big boys" use them as their supplier. Whether you are B2B, B2C, or both, there is a lot to learn here. Dr. Aaron T Dossey provides insight on:
Mentioned in this episode: |
Thu, 7 May 2015
Today, we will share 7 tips for success in 2015. 6 of the tips I learned from guests and 1 from my own business. I challenge you to connect the dots and apply the lessons to your projects. We cover:
Mentioned in this episode: Law #18: Isolation is Dangerous - 48 Laws of Power Episode 47 - Skype Meets Uber for Culinary Advice in Silicon Valley - Daniil from TalkToChef
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Thu, 30 April 2015
Imagine you are in the kitchen preparing dinner and you don't have all of the ingredients the recipe calls for. It is too late to run to the grocery store. What if you could instantly Facetime with a chef? TalkToChef is connecting foodies with chefs all over the world for instant support. A fascinating startup that has INCREDIBLE POTENTIAL. I'm already an unpaid promoter for it. Daniil tells us his story: FSP Listeners use PromoCode: FoodStartupsChef for a free $5 donation credit!!!
Mentioned in this episode: AN INSIDER'S HISTORY OF HOW A PODCASTING STARTUP PIVOTED TO BECOME TWITTER |
Thu, 23 April 2015
Colombia was one of the last countries in the western hemisphere to have McDonald's. In the 1990's, it was a very dangerous country. Leftist guerrillas, terrorism, narcos, and a business climate with more bureaucracy and red tape than any US citizen could imagine. While McDonald's unsuccessfully tried a few years before, Pedro Medina made it happen. And he almost lost his life doing it. McDonald's is still a thriving franchise in Colombia today. We hear the full story:
Mentioned in this episode: Yo Creo en Colombia (I believe in Colombia) Pedro Medina TedX talk (in Spanish) |
Thu, 16 April 2015
It is time that you learn about insect gastronomy. The world is not sustainable with such a high diet of beef. Right now, there are 1900 known edible insects or at least 1900 flavors! I had a great time learning from Eli and Lee Cadesky. Things like:
Mentioned in this Episode: Edible Insects - Future prospects for food and feed security - United Nations (FAO) |
Wed, 8 April 2015
"How is business going? It’s good.." If you are an entrepreneur, everyone asks you this question. How do you know it’s good? Financial health; key financial metrics. It turns out that even top level execs lack a complete understanding of basic financial principles. Joe Knight, co-founder of the Business Literary Institute, teaches C-level execs at Fortune 500 companies basic financial literacy. He honed his skills at Setpoint Systems, where they have clients like Tesla Motors. I know him through his book: Financial Intelligence for Entrepreneurs. In the episode, we talk about:
Mentioned in this episode: Vocab (definitions by Investopedia) - Gross Profit Margin (Note: Joe breaks this stat down to a per hour basis) Links - Financial Intelligence for Entrepreneurs. Return on Investment Toolkit - Harvard Business Review Are Your People Financially Literate? Joe Knight Bio: Joe trains managers and leaders at Fortune 500 companies such as Electronic Arts, NBC News, General Electric, Granite Construction and UTC Aerospace Systems. Joe’s unique ability to combine content with energy and humor make his keynote addresses resounding successes with diverse audiences including the Construction Industry Institute; Independent College Bookstore Association; The Association of General Contractors; International Institute for Supply Management; and Society for Human Resource Management. Joe is co-author of Financial Intelligence, a smart, no-nonsense business finance handbook for managers. The book has been heralded as “the Elements of Style” of finance by CFO.com. Financial Intelligence was featured in The 100 Best Business Books of All Time and has been turned into a graphic novel by Smarter Comics. Joe also co- authored Project Management for Profit which outlines the easy-to-implement system he helped create at Setpoint to manage projects towards profitability no matter what stage the project is in. Joe is co-owner and CFO of Setpoint Systems, Inc, a manufacturing company based in Ogden, UT.
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Thu, 2 April 2015
Every wondered how the big grains are traded? We speak with Elaine Kub, farmer, trader, and author of Mastering the Grain Markets: How Profits Are Really Made. We get a behind the scenes look at major grain trading and tons of tips for startups. You don't want to miss this:
Mentioned in this podcast: Book: Mastering the Grain Markets: How Profits Are Really Made Website: Mastering the Grain Markets Twitter: Elaine Kub Elaine Kub Bio: Elaine Kub is the author of Mastering the Grain Markets: How Profits Are Really Made – a 360-degree look at all aspects of grain trading, which draws on her experiences as a futures broker, market analyst, grain merchandiser, and farmer. Before earning an engineering degree from the University of Nebraska and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of California San Diego, Kub grew up on a family farm in South Dakota, where she is still active in grain and livestock production.
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Thu, 26 March 2015
To kickoff 2015, we speak with the British queen of food packaging: Tessa Stuart. She is the author of Packed - The Food Entrepreneur's Guide: How to Get Noticed and How to be Loved (UK / US). I have saved many insightful Kindle highlights from the book and I review it at least once a month. Plenty to learn in this episode, including:
Links Mentioned On This Show: Peoplewatching by Desmond Morris Tessa's Bio: Tessa studied history and boys at Oxford University, and started in advertising. She then got a ‘proper job’ in branding research, working for Cadbury, and Nestle on new products and sexy ads for chocolate bars. She now loves and specializes in food and drink research, and she lurks in the chilled aisles of major supermarkets, watching and talking to shoppers as they make their food choices. Her clients include established UK food and drink brands like innocent drinks, Rude Health, Yorkshire Provender, Firefly Tonics, MOMA! Foods, food chains Daylesford, Itsu and Leon Restaurants, and newer start-ups like G’Nosh Dips, Peters Yard Crispbreads, Jimmys Iced Coffee and Soupologie. She helps food brands to NAIL their customer offer, colour, sizing, branding, and pack health messages, so they can attract MAXIMUM attention and sales from shoppers in the super-competitive supermarket aisles. She is the author of the best-selling Packed: The Food Entrepreneur’s Guide – How To Get Noticed and How To Get Bought, available on Amazon and Kindle. Her second book, Flying Off the Shelves: The Food Entrepreneur’s Guide To Selling will be available in April 2015. In both she shares her 20 years’ food research experience in a tried and tested set of principles to get start-ups from idea, to a product on the shelf, and to THE next household name. And, once there, how to stay there! Tessa's recommended companies to study (w/notes): Muesli, oats of all kinds, and rye and spelt snacks. They sell successfully in both Whole Foods Market and UK supermarkets. Their beautiful new "Pantone all colours of the rainbow" packaging earns them more in-store promotion opportunities in Whole Foods Market because the colour helps their products really stand out. It also works very well in supermarkets to get them noticed. Worth a look at Jimmy’s YouTube channel - he announces his new stockists using amusing videos, and his army of fans love it. He’s also a very accomplished speaker at food start-up events, telling his story to audiences of hundreds. (In the UK, we don’t have lots of iced coffee brands, we basically have Starbucks and Jimmys.) @innocent’s twitter feed is worth looking at, gentle humor, and they have 205,700 followers - they tweet the weather forecast, and other topical events, and always respond to everyone who tweets them. Their packaging is all about the ingredients and hardly any innocent branding - and again shows off the juice and use colour. |
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