Meet Chelsie Hodge, Founder & CEO of Blender Bites, a food entrepreneur. In this interview, your host, Francesca Cadhit, dives into entrepreneurship and business tips with Chelsie Hodge, who is making a splash in the freezer aisle. This food entrepreneur went from her kitchen to national grocers with Blender Bites while focusing on nutritious, convenient, and functional solutions.
Who's Chelsie Hodge?
Chelsie is no stranger to the peaks and valleys of entrepreneurship. She has been an entrepreneur for as long as she can remember. Blender Bites was born in 2017 after Chelsie had an "aha" moment to make a healthy and nutritious smoothie in the morning that would simplify the process yet contain the healthy ingredients she wanted. She felt guilty for throwing away kale that had gone bad in the fridge and grew frustrated with having a freezer full of random frozen fruits, so she froze them all together in a muffin tray. The result – superfood smoothie “pucks” made with clean ingredients and a strong focus on functionality and simplicity.
The Journey:
Chelsie Hodge bootstrapped to get the brand off the ground -- what started as an idea grew into a nationally distributed frozen goods brand sold in many of Canada’s largest grocery chains. Aside from the impressive rapid distribution gains, Chelsie Hodge grew the company as a solo entrepreneur, recruiting her family & tapping into her strong industry connections for support in growing this brand to where it is today. She is passionate about start-ups and is also an investor herself; focusing on early-stage food companies working to make a difference in our food systems.
What's next?
Blender Bites just announced several business developments – a new rebrand with packaging design, distribution news as their full product line is now available at Walmart Canada nationwide, and a new partnership with U.S. actress, performer and entrepreneur Julianne Hough as a brand partner, shareholder and strategic advisor as the company prepares for a US launch this fall.
Learn more about Blender Bites Smoothies (Blender Bites Power Berry, Blender Bites Green Detox) or Blender Bites Frappes on their website: https://blenderbites.com/
In this episode, you will learn Chelsie's insights on:
-Starting a food product business from the ground up
-Bootstrapping to build a brand
-The mission behind Blender Bites, and the focus on convenient, nutritious, and functional solutions
-The challenges of being an entrepreneur
-How Chelsie Hodge got onto shelves nationwide across Canada
-Partnerships and expansion into the US
Have you ever wondered how to start and run a successful business? Or how to get your brand off the ground? Or what it takes to be an entrepreneur?
If you're interested in business tips, entrepreneurship, and business success stories, this episode is a must.
▀▀▀▀ About Chelsie and Blender Bites ▀▀▀
Website: https://blenderbites.com/
Chelsie Hodge: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelsiehodge/
▀▀▀▀ About Smart Growth Rocket ▀▀▀▀
Are you interested in taking your knowledge, career, and money to new heights?
On Smart Growth Rocket, powered by TopClassEdge.com, your host, Francesca Cadhit, shares real-world examples and stories to help you learn how to get ahead in your education and meet your career and money goals.
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