Kate Flynn, the founder of Sun & Swell Foods did not want to start her own business preferring the sense of security at her day job. But a new’s years resolution led Kate to reconsider her eating habits and find healthier ways. She began the Whole30 and it changed her life. One day, she decided to take a big leap, move to her dream city of Santa Barbara and launch the business she’d been thinking of, a healthy snack food company inspired by the lack of snacks available on the Whole30, Sun & Swell. Kate talks about the unique way she has discovered to get her snacks where people feel like snacking, what it’s like being in business with you family and shares how her business develops as she is developing.
IN THIS EPISODE WE TALK ABOUT:
The idea for Sun & Swell came from Kate’s experience healing her relationship with food, trying the Whole30 and aligned with their desire to live in a certain city
Product testing at local triathlon
Took about nine months to bring product to market
Kate’s healing, eye-opening journey eating whole foods
Need for Whole30 approved marathon-training gel alternatives
First began ideating around a training gel alternative but it evolved into snack foods as a whole
Kate has a background in retail strategy
Kates ideas about herself have grown and shifted with her company
Realizing she can hire people to fill in what is not her strength
Self-funded the company but are considering investors to help get over the hurdle of scale
Plans to be a national brand focused on building a good business, treat their employees well and do good for the world
Many consumers don’t have a grasp on how food cost, quality and are correlated
Kate & Bryan strengths compliment each other well but they schedule in time to intentionally not work and spend time together in other ways
Insights into the difficulties of production, considered a co-manufacturer but is happy to have figured out a way to continue making their healthy snacks in-house
Kate turns to barre3 and surfing to disconnect and energize herself
Launching compostable packaging soon
Inspired by her mother’s baking, her father’s business side & Sadie Lincoln of Barre3
RESOURCES
Contrapreneur Secret Facebook Group
SunandSwellFoods.com use code Contrapreneur20 for 20% off your first healthy snack food order
Consider supporting us through our Patreon. This is our first week having a Patreon… we will never forget our first supporters! Thank you.