Episodes

Taste Radio’s hosts reflected on a nine-day, three-event, four-competition extravaganza, discussed the value of in-person networking and connecting with entrepreneurs for the first time after two years of virtual meetings. They also chatted about the decision of a well-known entrepreneur to step down as CEO of his company and riffed on new products that came to market over the past month.

Maxine Kozler Koven, co-founder of LDR Ventures & Consulting, discussed the venture capital firm’s investment philosophy and portfolio, which includes stakes in Sweetgreen, Thrive Market and Shaka Tea, the importance of nurturing the development of early-stage founders, the relevance of innovation when evaluating new concepts and the historical lack of funding for female-led companies.

In this episode, Brett Berish, the co-founder of Sovereign Brands and one of most successful brand creators in the wine and spirits industry, chronicled his journey as an entrepreneur, including lessons from the failure of his first brand, why he urges entrepreneurs to trust their instincts, how he aligned with iconic hip-hop artists to promote and grow Sovereign-owned brands, and why he recently decided partner with of the largest wine and spirits companies in the world.

Award-winning television host, chef and writer Andrew Zimmern joined us for an expansive conversation about his new TV series “Family Dinner,” why he has an affinity for certain CPG brands, his belief that believes elitism is hampering solutions to issues of food accessibility and affordability and his position that GMOs – applied within reason – continue to play an important role in the food system.

On the cusp of our Winter 2021 events, Taste Radio’s hosts discussed the speaker agendas for NOSH Live and BevNET Live and highlighted several notable new brands and products, including wellness shots, vegan snacks, an innovative “shimmering sparkling water,” and the largest peanut butter cup in the world. We also feature an interview with Dave Carpenter, who is the master blender for Redemption Whiskey, a brand promoted as “leading rye’s revival” in the U.S.

J.R. Simich, co-founder of leading wellness shot brand Vive Organic, spoke about why the company’s consistent focus has been critical to its development, how staying on message helped land a long-term partnership with Whole Foods, the impact of its creative and efficient trade show strategy and why aligning with founders of like-minded brands has benefited Vive’s ability to land new distribution and retail placement.

Beckon co-founders Gwen Burlingame and Katy Flannery explained how they aligned patented innovation with addressable opportunity to launch their fast-growing brand of lactose-free ice cream, why respect and humility were keys to a successful brand revamp and why the entrepreneurs are encouraging industry professionals to get mad when presented with a shocking statistic.

This week, Taste Radio’s hosts discussed one of the biggest deals in beverage history and what it might mean for future entrepreneurial drink brands, how a David rose up against a Goliath and notable products to cross our desks over the past week. This episode also features an interview with Kyle Peters, who recently made the gut-wrenching decision to shut down his high protein ice cream brand.

Erewhon Chief Growth Officer Kabir Jain discussed the upscale grocer’s emphasis on being first when it comes to carrying new and unique concepts, how it defines innovation and why he describes brand selection as both “an art and science.” He also discussed the throughline for fast-growing food and beverage categories, and how the chain is supporting brands with highly actionable sales data.

A film actor and active investor in several high-profile brands including Super Coffee, NUGGS and Blaze Pizza, Patrick Schwarzenegger recently added the title of entrepreneur to his resume as the co-founder and CEO of brain health brand MOSH. In our interview, Schwarzenegger spoke about why MOSH broke every traditional rule for developing and launching a CPG brand, his investment philosophy and the value of company management when making funding decisions.