Podcasts about agua bonita

Your pitch is more than just words – it's your first impression, your story, and your chance to stand out. But how do you pack all that into just 60 seconds or less?In this minisode of Small Business Bytes on This is Small Business, host Andrea Marquez walks you through how to craft an elevator pitch that grabs attention, tells a compelling story, and leaves people wanting more. Whether you're pitching to a potential customer, investor, or partner, you'll walk away with actionable steps to make every second count.You'll also get inspired by real-life examples of past guests who've crafted pitches that opened doors for their businesses – like Felicia Jackson, founder of CPR Wrap, who turned a personal crisis into a life-saving product, Matthew Tesvich, founder of Skunk Skin, who solved a smelly problem with humor and creativity, and more! These stories will bring the steps to life and show you exactly how to apply those lessons to your own pitch.So, what's your pitch? Share it (or just one line) with us in a Spotify comment, Apple Podcasts review, or email us at Thisissmallbusiness@amazon.com. Doing that will not only hold you accountable but could also inspire another entrepreneur to take their next big step.Sources: If you want to know more about CPR Wrap, listen to Felicia's story here: Every Entrepreneur's Dream: ‘Your Product Is a Life Saver!' - TISB: Behind The BuyIf you want to know more about Skunk Skin, listen to Matthew's story here: Knock Their Socks Off: A Fresh Solution to a Stinky Problem - TISB: Behind The BuyIf you want to know more about Shezza Socks, listen to Tiffany's story here: From Blisters to Breakthrough: Behind Shezza Socks' Viral Success - TISB: Behind The BuyIf you want to know more about Agua Bonita, listen to Kayla's story here: A Taste of Tradition: Infusing Heritage in Every Sip - TISB: Behind The Buy11 actually great elevator pitch examples and how to make yours - Zapier

Kayla Castañeda, founder of Agua Bonita, brings a refreshing twist to the traditional Mexican drink, aguas frescas, blending heritage and innovation in every sip. With a rich personal story rooted in her family's heritage, Kayla's mission is to share an elevated version of this beloved beverage. After navigating challenges like job loss during the pandemic and financial struggles, she successfully funded her startup through pitch competitions, culminating in a victory on Amazon Prime Video's Buy It Now series, where she secured a $20,000 cash prize. Her winning recipe? A powerful blend of authenticity, determination, and connecting with the right audience. You can watch Agua Bonita's episode on the Buy it Now show titled: Tony Pops Off.Tune in and get inspired by the real stories behind the entrepreneurs and products featured on Buy It Now. You can find winning products on the Buy It Now Store. Follow TISB: Behind the Buy on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts and make sure to watch Buy It Now on Prime Video.

Just a few days left to purchase tickets for our Latina to Latina + Poderistas Live event with NYT Best selling author Xochitl Gonzalez!The first 150 tickets sold come with a bag from Hija de tu Madre, stuffed with goodies from Latine brands including: Agua Bonita, Bloomi, Loisa, Nopalera, Ocoa, Oeste, Reina Rebelde, Rizos curls, Siete Foods, plus a reusable beverage bottle from the City Fund of New York - one of the event's lead sponsors. We also have some special discount codes from Brazi snacks, Cindy Castro New York and Bonita Fierce candles!There are only a few dozen of these tickets left, so grab yours today:https://www.eventbrite.com/e/latina-to-latina-x-poderistas-live-tickets-795621153287?aff=oddtdtcreator

President Joe Biden passionately outlined his vision for a second term, tackling critical issues such as Roe v. Wade, immigration and the economy.With daylight saving time on the horizon, some parents are already worried their children don't get enough sleep. Research shows that more than 18% of children aged 5 to 9 are given melatonin to sleep, and 19% of adolescents take it as well. Dr. Celine Gounder, CBS News medical contributor and editor at large for Public Health at KFF, has more.On International Women's Day, a groundbreaking movie in China is capturing attention by showcasing the fierce determination of modern Chinese women who are resisting patriarchal pressures amid a declining birth rate.Chelsea Peretti, best known for her iconic role as Gina Linetti in "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," takes on the world of filmmaking with her directorial debut in "First Time Female Director."Inspired by the homemade agua frescas of her childhood, Kayla Castañeda transformed her longing for a taste of home into a thriving business. Since launching Agua Bonita in 2020, she has successfully brought the refreshing blend of fruit, water, and sweetener to major retailers nationwide, including Target, Whole Foods and Amazon.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kayla Castenada, of Agua Bonita who has broken into the Beverage industry with her Agua Bonita drinks, a non-alcoholic beverage,  saw an opportunity in the Non-Alcoholic Drinks market with Agua Frescas being something viable within a large industry, but wasn't recognized as an option by global brands. The market opportunity for 2023  amounts to US$496.50bn! That's a lot of BEBIAS! The market's largest segment is the segment Soft Drinks with a market volume of US$328.10bn. Kayla, being from the heart of the Central Valley, Hanford California, where most of America receives its food, saw the opportunity and took her shot. Now, Kayla is the first Latina in her industry to raise more than $1 million dollars and has been honored with a Forbes 30 Under 30 lister, a Cartier global impact entrepreneur, a top 100 Female Founder as recognized by Inc. magazine. In addition,  Agua Bonita has now achieved success in retailers nationwide, 1300 stores and counting,  and part of their sales goes towards supporting farm workers rights.  Let's get into the business of seeing our super powers and presenting it to the world! Los Vamos! This episode was sponsored by Latinas And Power, a network of thousands of Latina Professionals and Entrepreneurs from Across the United States that are ready for leadership opportunities. Join today or inquire about their Latinas In Leadership Institute @ Latinasinleadershipinstitue.com Production and Host by Theresa E. Gonzales of 5-E Leadership and Marketing Audio Engineered by Robert Lopez of Crates Audio Subscribe to our Newsletter Latinasb2b.com Follow us: YouTube @Latinasb2b IG @ Latinasb2b LinkedIn @ Latinasb2b.marketing X @LatinasB2B 

Kayla Castañeda is the Founder and CEO of Agua Bonita, a line of aguas frescas that come in fun and bold flavors that are true to tradition. Kayla shares with cohost Carolina Arenas that she created this line of beverages with migrant farmworkers in mind. Tune in as Kayla goes in depth about creating this cuturally-inspired brand, navigating motherhood and entrepreneurship, and sharing her top insights for other Latina entrepreneurs. This conversation will surely inspire you! To learn more, visit us at latinaleadershippodcast.com

Thanks for checking on me. Water of the week is Mango from three different viewpoints: Manga-Habanero from Agua Bonita, Mango from One Piece Ocean Bomb, and Mango from HOPWTR.

Welcome to a brand new episode of the ¿Quién Tú Eres? podcast, where we explore the conflict we often face between "professionalism" & being our authentic selves. This week's guest is Kayla Castañeda, who is the founder of Agua Bonita. Here's a quick bio...in Kayla's own words... Much like the aguas frescas we make, my family history starts in Mexico and settles in the fruit fields of the Central Valley of California. My ancestors immigrated to the states pursuing the opportunity for a better life and following the migrant farm work as field workers, which led us here – where we grow 60% of the nation's produce!  Growing up here, my grandpa would bring us home super ripe fruit from the fields that he couldn't just stand to let go to waste. This fruit would be sprinkled with chile powder or made into aguas frescas for the whole family to enjoy. When I lost my job mid-pandemic, I took it as “when life gives you lemons, make aguas frescas.” I decided to create something that is reflective of my culture, my family, and my grandpa's teachings of never letting food go to waste (and not too much sugar – he was diabetic), and Agua Bonita was born. We've carried on the tradition of taking real fruit from the fields and creating a delicious drink to share with everyone, from our home to your hands. Resources & Links 1) Agua Bonita website 2) Quick video highlighting the unfortunate business practices from Coca-cola. It's an experience that's highlighted towards the end of the episode. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/quientueres/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/quientueres/support

Back home and in the studio, the hosts shared additional highlights — and unexpected sights – from Expo West 2023, including introductions to several innovative and early-stage brands. Also, Ray Latif offered his take on the 2023 Seafood Expo North America and sat down with Mason Dixie Foods founder and CEO Ayeshah Abuelhiga for the first in a new series of interviews focused on lessons acquired by entrepreneurs at various stages of their respective journeys. Show notes: 0:39: Listen Up, VIPs. Anaheim's Best Parking Lot. Dr. Squatch vs. Mr. Mike. – The crew encouraged listeners to become Taste Radio VIPs and discussed the benefits that come with it, before chatting about Expo West sheen and bubble guts, Ray's luxurious workspace (not really) and his apology to exhibitors. They also spoke about meaningful and touching interactions with Expo attendees, meeting new brands and founders at Startup CPG's Alley Rally meetup, a superb wine-alternative brand and why Mike might not be welcome at a certain booth in a year's time. Later, they also sampled reformulated versions of “big name” candy bars and discussed findings from a fish-laden trade event. 36:32: Interview: Ayeshah Abuelhiga, Founder/CEO, Mason Dixie Foods – We last spoke with Abuelhiga in March, 2021 following the company's $6.3 million Series A funding round, which preceded the launch of its popular biscuit breakfast sandwiches. In the time since, Mason Dixie has experienced remarkable growth, with revenue up 300% over the past year, according to the company. It also launched a national partnership with Marriott Select Brand Hotels, where its grab-and- go breakfast items are stocked in over 3,500 of the chain's locations. This past week the company  also introduced three new product lines at Expo West 2023: Liege Waffle Sandwiches, Liege Waffles and Ready-to-Heat Biscuits. In this interview, Abuelhiga discussed lessons learned from her nearly nine years as an entrepreneur, including those about raising capital, customer service, and sexism and bias in the food industry, among other topics. Brands in this episode: Fishwife, Empress Hot Sauce, Resist Nutrition, Sunwink, Tahoe Artesian Water, Katrina Brewing, Kula Ice Cream, Funky Mello, Pocket's Chocolate, Points, Wise Bar, Proxies, Acid League, Bokksu, Mason Dixie Foods, Trip, Taika, Centr, Agua Bonita, Gigantic Candy, Wixter Seafood, Thunder's Catch, Barnacle Foods, Wild Legend

Kayla Castañeda (@so.fresca.so.clean) is the guest of the week on the Latin Wealth podcast. Kayla Castañeda is the CEO and founder of Agua Bonita. Which is a Latina owned company that makes 100% real fruit aguas frescas out of rescued produce. Kayla Castañeda is the first Latina owned company in Food & Beverage to raise over 1 million dollars! To put that in perspective, there's only been 90 Latinas to do ever raise over 1 million dollars ever in history. With $0 in marketing, Agua Bonita has reached over 1,000 doors across America.  Guest information -Instagram -Website Follow us on IG: @latinwealth Email for questions or inquiries: latinwealthpodcast@gmail.com

Kayla Castañeda turned a favorite childhood treat into a successful and fast-growing good-for-you beverage company. In this episode of Women on the Move, the CEO and co-founder of Agua Bonita sits down with host Sam Saperstein to talk about her family, company, thoughts on ambition, and advice for other founders.   Journey from California's Central Valley   Kayla tells Sam that she grew up in a family of migrant farm workers in California's Central Valley. Her grandfather would bring home fruit from the fields and make aguas frescas for the family. She also grew up with a dream of owning her own business—and although she didn't realize it then, producing good-for-you versions of those refreshing fruit-based beverages would become her business plan.   First she cut her teeth in the food and beverage industry from the inside. Growing up in a small town made her crave something entirely different, so after high school she moved to New York City and started working in food and beverage, eventually moving into a sales and marketing position with Major League Baseball. She then took a role with Coca-Cola that bought her back to her roots in California. It was during the pandemic, while working as a consultant for food and beverage companies, that she had the inspiration for Agua Bonita. “Oh, this is something that has been around in my family and in our culture forever,” she recalls thinking. “So why am I not doing something like this and why is this not commercially available?” Within a week she had fleshed out a business plan and embarked on a learning curve with venture capitalism. Agua Bonita's product of a “modern” agua fresca—they use 80 percent less sugar than traditional recipes—was a hit. They first found a place on shelves in small California retailers and recently landed their first national retailer with Whole Foods Market. Kayla attributes their success to their healthy approach as well as their commitment to corporate responsibility. Their sustainability efforts include a reliance on using imperfect fruit and recyclable aluminum containers, and they work with nonprofit partners like Justice for Migrant Women to help current migrant farm workers. But she says she believes their defining characteristic is their flavor profiles. “Right now our current offerings range from some more traditional ones like hibiscus and pineapple and sweet melon to some more fun and modern takes on these drinks like mango habanero and watermelon chili and some really cool new innovations coming soon. And then our packaging, we use a lot of fun packaging that's inspired by our culture and put it on shelf as a work of art. It's the Bonita part of Agua Bonita.” Ambition and helping others In keeping with this season's theme of ambition, Kayla also talks with Sam about her perceptions of her own ambition. “I do consider myself ambitious,” she says. “I asked my mom, have I always been this ambitious? And her answer was yes. And there's been teachers along the way that have helped you with that. So I think I've just always been ambitious and that ambition really stems from my family. No one has ever capped my dreams or told me that I could not do something internally. . . . It gave me the mindset of if not me, it's gonna be someone else, so why not me?” In terms of advice, what Kayla most wants to convey to others is that everything is going to be okay. “I think sometimes we can get really tunnel vision, and there's a lot of things that you're juggling when you're trying to get a company off the ground, and the wins are really high, but sometimes the losses can be really low,” she says. “And I think just having people around me to remind me that it's all gonna be okay, whether it works out or whether it doesn't, it's all gonna be okay, is sometimes just like that humbling thing that I need to hear to just be able to get on with my day.” She adds that she tries to encourage others by making sure that they're feeling fulfilled in other areas of their life. “Because I don't think that you can pour from an empty cup,” she says. “And so that is how I encourage people to keep going with things is that there are other things that you find joy in than just this one thing. So don't let this one thing eclipse everything else.”   Ful transcript here 

This week I had the pleasure of speaking with Kayla Castañeda, co-founder of Agua Bonita. An agua fresca company based in California, Kayla has found success in a booming space largely dominated by soda and juice. She's also a fellow millennial who can tell you about her journey from humble beginnings to entrepreneurship. drinkaguabonita.com To be on the next episode of The Embracing My Markings Podcast visit: EmbracingMyMarkings.com --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/embracingmymarkings/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/embracingmymarkings/support

Today on the show we're learning from Kayla, the founder of Agua Bonita. Agua Bonita is a Latina-owned beverage company making the first better-for-you aguas frescas on the market. A modern take on a traditional Mexican fruit drink, their aguas frescas come in ready-to-drink 12oz cans, made with real fruit, low sugar, and fun flavors (like mango habanero). And this story is a wild one. I actually came across a post of Kayla's on LinkedIn sharing a pretty crappy story for any small business owner to go through. I'm sure you'll find plenty of takeaways in this episode because she's just so insightful. We talk through those initial 6 months of building the brand. Agua Bonita launched conceptually in July 2020, but those first months were really stealth mode. You conceptualize your brand, identify your values, and what makes you different from the whole market. A lot of thinking through that for the first 6 months. What do we want to do that's different, how can we do this sustainably, and how do we communicate that? And we can confidently say this initial stage was a success, with 10,000 units flying out the door in the first month. Kayla talks us through how exactly this came about, this complete wildfire response. Firstly, the people were ready for Agua Bonita. This product was just completely absent from the market, and people wanted it. On top of that, Agua Bonita was ready for the people: extensive research into where they can find their consumers, and then showing up in their life throughout the day. Kayla also shared some pretty key know-how around a concept called free-fill when it comes to giveaways in retail. Heard of it? Check out the full chat for the low-down. You should stick around to the end of the episode, where Kayla shares the number one piece of advice she's ever received, and some of her own advice. When it comes to the first, everything takes way longer than you expect it to. Even when you allot a lot of extra time, add even more time onto that timeline. In business, time really does equal money. So you'll need money to make sure those things work out in your favor. When it comes to Kayla's own piece of advice, she's a strong advocate for leaning into your community. You will find so many other founders and resources, so many people that really want to help you. When you're building a brand, that's all your really trying to do as a brand. Lean into the community, there are people that want to help.  If you love this episode and get something out of it please do share it on your Instagram stories with us @femalestartupclub. You can also find me in the DMs directly @dooneroisin where I love to chat and hear about what you're working on. Let's get into it. LINKS WE MENTION: Kayla's Instagram Agua Bonita's Instagram Hello Alice Website Join thousands of small business owners who are reading our newsletter every Monday at: www.femalestartupclub.com Join our tool and private community for small business owners, Majic [formerly known as Hype Club] Female Startup Club's Instagram Doone's Instagram Doone's TikTok Say hello to Doone: hello@femalestartupclub.com

Today on the show we're learning from Kayla, the founder of Agua Bonita. Agua Bonita is a Latina-owned beverage company making the first better-for-you aguas frescas on the market. A modern take on a traditional Mexican fruit drink, their aguas frescas come in ready-to-drink 12oz cans, made with real fruit, low sugar, and fun flavors (like mango habanero). And this story is a wild one. I actually came across a post of Kayla's on LinkedIn sharing a pretty crappy story for any small business owner to go through. I'm sure you'll find plenty of takeaways in this episode because she's just so insightful. We talk through those initial 6 months of building the brand. Agua Bonita launched conceptually in July 2020, but those first months were really stealth mode. You conceptualize your brand, identify your values, and what makes you different from the whole market. A lot of thinking through that for the first 6 months. What do we want to do that's different, how can we do this sustainably, and how do we communicate that? And we can confidently say this initial stage was a success, with 10,000 units flying out the door in the first month. Kayla talks us through how exactly this came about, this complete wildfire response. Firstly, the people were ready for Agua Bonita. This product was just completely absent from the market, and people wanted it. On top of that, Agua Bonita was ready for the people: extensive research into where they can find their consumers, and then showing up in their life throughout the day. Kayla also shared some pretty key know-how around a concept called free-fill when it comes to giveaways in retail. Heard of it? Check out the full chat for the low-down. You should stick around to the end of the episode, where Kayla shares the number one piece of advice she's ever received, and some of her own advice. When it comes to the first, everything takes way longer than you expect it to. Even when you allot a lot of extra time, add even more time onto that timeline. In business, time really does equal money. So you'll need money to make sure those things work out in your favor. When it comes to Kayla's own piece of advice, she's a strong advocate for leaning into your community. You will find so many other founders and resources, so many people that really want to help you. When you're building a brand, that's all your really trying to do as a brand. Lean into the community, there are people that want to help.  If you love this episode and get something out of it please do share it on your Instagram stories with us @femalestartupclub. You can also find me in the DMs directly @dooneroisin where I love to chat and hear about what you're working on. Let's get into it. LINKS WE MENTION: Kayla's Instagram Agua Bonita's Instagram Hello Alice Website Join thousands of small business owners who are reading our newsletter every Monday at: www.femalestartupclub.com Join our tool and private community for small business owners, Majic [formerly known as Hype Club] Female Startup Club's Instagram Doone's Instagram Doone's TikTok Say hello to Doone: hello@femalestartupclub.com

When do you know that it's time to step out on your own, peers? For today's guest, Kayla Castañeda, it was losing her job mid-pandemic that made her think, “When life gives you lemons, make aguas frescas.” Now, Kayla is the CEO and Co-Founder of Agua Bonita, a drinks company that sells a take on a delicious Mexican drink.In this episode of Peers2Peers, powered by Shopify, Kayla shares why there's never a “perfect” time for anything in life, how her heritage shaped her business, and why everyone can have an opinion but you're the one building your brand. Discover more:Start your Shopify 14-day free trial: https://bit.ly/3fuq58CCheck out Agua Bonita: https://www.drinkaguabonita.com/Instagram Page: https://instagram.com/drinkaguabonitaConnect with Kayla: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaylacastaneda10/Follow The Peers Project on Instagram: http://bit.ly/3adVmYG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How has your background as a Latina inspired your dreams today?Our cultural history is something that should be celebrated and there are so many ways we can share it with the world. There are some incredible amigas that we can all look up to who have intertwined their passions, their background as a Latina, and their creativity to the projects that they share with the world. In this episode, I am excited to be joined by Kayla Castañeda. Kayla is an inspiring amiga, as the CEO of Agua Bonita and a place on the Forbes 30 under 30. Kayla grew up in central California where the majority of the nation's produce is grown and her grandfather would bring home fruit and create delicious aguas frescas for the family. After her grandfather passed away, Kayla was inspired to create the same delicious blends for every one. Tune in to Episode 104 of Amiga, Handle Your Shit, and hear Kayla's experience creating her company, Agua Bonita. She talks about why she decided to leave her corporate job to start Agua Bonita, what the challenges have been for her as a Latina entrepreneur, what the future has in store for Agua Bonita, and her advice for amigas to handle their shit. In This Episode, You Will Learn:What inspired Kayla to build her company, Agua Bonita (4:55)The learning curve Kayla experienced when starting Agua Bonita (7:25)The challenges Kayla faced as a Latina entrepreneur (12:30)What's next for Kayla and Agua Bonita (16:19)Kayla's advice for amigas to handle their shit (20:18)Connect with KaylaLinkedInAgua Bonita WebsiteLet's Connect!WebsiteFacebookInstagramLinkedInJackie Tapia Arbonne website Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we go behind the scenes with Kayla Castañeda and Erin PonTell, co-founders of Agua Bonita, about the founding story of their rapidly growing agua fresca brand. The founders chat with Kristen about: The origin story of Agua Bonita, which began in the early days of the pandemic Finding the right balance between honoring cultural recipes and traditions with creating something that would resonate with modern consumers Fundraising and growth challenges, as well as the pressures associated with being the *first* Latinx-owned beverage brand to raise more than $2M in funding

In this episode, BevNET reporter Brad Avery joined Taste Radio's regular hosts and discussed his recent article about an innovative “scent-flavored hydration system” that is making inroads in the U.S.  They also spoke about 7-Eleven's embrace of upstart brands and shared personal takes on several new products, including grain-free donuts and spicy (if not NOSH-y) potato chips. Also in this podcast: a brief recap of annual cocktail convention Tales of The Cocktail and the latest edition of The Maxi Minutes. Show notes: 0:48: We're All About The Hot, Hot, Hot. Tasty Treats Also Please Us. Brad Has Accepted The Challenge. – The hosts chatted about New Orleans, the site of the 2022 Tales of The Cocktail event, beignet-flavored beverages and PepsiCo's recent investment in a brand of refillable water bottles and scented “flavor” pods. They also discussed the ascendance of grain-free snack and bakery brand Soozy's, the market launch of a traditional salsa and new beverage brand with a proprietary sweetener blend. Oh, and Brad committed to setting his mouth on fire. 26:45: An On The Ground Report From Tales – Ray discussed takeaways from Tales of The Cocktail, which was held from July 24-29 in New Orleans. Notably, the convention highlighted the restaurant and spirit industry's continued focus on premium brands and ingredients, low and no ABV cocktails and ethnic spirits easing their way onto bar backs and liquor store shelves. 30:40: The Maxi Minutes, Part 5 – LDR Ventures co-founder Maxine Kozler Koven discussed effective ways for brands to achieve a high rate of sell through, tips on aligning with merchandising and demo agencies, and the value of having experienced industry professionals on your team (especially when courting investors). Brands in this episode: PulpoLoco Sangria, Ohza, Agua Bonita, Freestyle Snacks, Honey Bunchies, Chunk Nibbles, Tosi, Soozy's, Tia Lupita, Oathaus, Pringles, The Good Crisp, Paqui, Simple Mills, Inura, Faubourg Brewing Company, Italicus, iichiko, Campari, Wild Turkey, Crafthouse Cocktails, Batch & Bottle, Hendrick's Gin, Glenfiddich, Perrier, Nelson's Greenbrier Distillery, Johnnie Walker

We have Kayla Castañeda on Female Founder World! She's the founder of Agua Bonita, a better-for-you agua fresca business that launched in 2020 and sold 10,000 units in the first month. Kayla has never lost a pitch competition. In fact, she's raised nearly half a million dollars for her business this way. We get into her approach and why it works so well in this episode of the Female Founder World podcast.    This episode is brought to you by Gorgias, the ecommerce helpdesk that turns your customer service into a profit center. We can't hype up our new sponsor enough—learn more about how Gorgias can help you build your personalized experience, and nab a free two month trial here: https://gorgias.grsm.io/fgtl7d2cuz4j Links: www.femalefounderworld.com  https://www.drinkaguabonita.com https://www.instagram.com/drinkaguabonita  The Secret Life of Groceries by Benjamin Lorr  Join the community and watch the PR workshop: https://links.geneva.com/invite/00c30313-1566-470a-a764-62010d8301bd instagram.com/femalefounderworld instagram.com/jasminegarnsworthy  Get the free 10-minute newsletter keeping thousands of consumer brand builders in the know: www.femalefounderworld.beehiiv.com  

We talk beverages, working on a small budget and being scrappy, testing DTC before any retail launch and working with good food brokers.

Ep 115 05-26-2022 Pepsi has a fun new smartphone game featuring Pogba, no download required! Miller Lite is getting you ready for summer grilling with Beercoal. Minute Maid Agua Frescas steal a campaign from a small business. It's all here on the Big Promo Cast! Every week join Rich Graham and Amber Jewell as they discuss marketing with swag, merch, apparel, and custom branded promotional products. Join us LIVE on Thursdays at noon eastern time. https://bigpromo.live/youtube https://fb.com/BigPromotions/live #bigpromotions #biggerfish #mybigpromo #bigpromoswag #swag #merch #promotionalproducts #podcast --- Use coupon code FLOWER for 5% off your order of $300.00 or more during MAY 2022! Use coupon code PRIDE for 5% off your order of $300.00 or more during JUNE 2022! Shop your swag at http://bigpromo.link​ --- This week's topics: PepsiCo, Pizza Hut team up on mobile game - SmartBrief https://bit.ly/3GodiQK Pepsi | Score with Pogba https://bit.ly/3N4ZQDG Miller Lite Launches New Beer-infused Charcoal - Chew Boom https://bit.ly/3MReQ8j MILLER LITE BEERCOAL – Miller Lite Shop https://bit.ly/3wPHfpy TikTok to launch LIVE creator subscriptions this week | TechCrunch https://tcrn.ch/3lJGvMB Minute Maid offers heat relief with Aguas Frescas waterslide delivery | Marketing Dive https://bit.ly/3x05d1L Minute Maid Aguas Frescas TV AD SPOT 0:30 - YouTube https://bit.ly/3LLdf2s Minute Maid Aguas Frescas Instagram photos and videos https://bit.ly/3LRlkCR Kayla Castañeda of Agua Bonita on LinkedIn https://bit.ly/3MZzEe0 Agua Bonita https://bit.ly/3GoZd5J Robert Vlasic, who built family name into iconic brand, dies at 96 https://bit.ly/3LRAqIk Home | Everytown | Everytown https://bit.ly/39Y8rcG Jimmy Kimmel on Elementary School Shooting in Uvalde, Texas - YouTube https://bit.ly/3GlBwuS --- Equipment we like: Sony ZV-1 (affiliate link) - https://amzn.to/36LK8e2 Sony ZV-1 Vlogger Accessory Kit (affiliate link) - https://amzn.to/3mSNT72 Shure SM58 Microphone (affiliate link) - https://amzn.to/3axqoeW RODECaster Pro Production Studio - https://amzn.to/3rViinT Switchpod by Pat Flynn (affiliate link) - https://bigpromo.link/switchpod Elgato Stream Deck (affiliate link) - https://amzn.to/2S1CcNJ Software and services we like: Broadcasting with Ecamm Live v3.9 - get a trial now - https://bigpromo.live/ecamm Re-broadcasting with Restream (affiliate link) - https://bigpromo.live/restream This podcast is hosted on Captivate Dot FM - get a free 7 day trial here (affiliate link) - https://bigpromo.live/captivate Beef up your YouTube presence with Tubebuddy (affiliate link) - https://bigpromo.live/tubebuddy Use Jasper to create marketing copy with AI - https://bigpromo.live/jasper Elementor Wordpress Plugin (affiliate link) - https://bigpromo.link/elementor --- Links to this podcast https://bigpromo.link/podcast Sign up for our monthly newsletter https://bigpromo.link/news Big Promotions!

In the world of beverage creation, it's hard to come up with a new angle. But after Kayla Castañeda had spent a decade working in the beverage industry, she decided it was time to make something of her own. Taking inspiration from her cultural heritage, Kayla decided to put a healthy spin on classic aguas frescas, and the company Agua Bonita was born. Ethically made and good for the consumer and the planet, Agua Bonita's drinks are a fruit-forward beverage that pays homage to its cultural roots. In this episode, Kayla told us the story of her startup, how she dealt with copycats, and why failure shouldn't discourage you. Check out Agua Bonita  Check out Perfy Connect with Kayla Castañeda on LinkedIn  Check out Perfy on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok Connect with Vasa Martinez on LinkedIn and Twitter Save 15% on Perfy with code: FOODCHAINED15

Today on the show we're learning from Kayla, the founder of Agua Bonita.Agua Bonita is a Latina owned beverage company making the first better-for-you aguas frescas on the market. A modern take on a traditional Mexican fruit drink, their aguas frescas come in ready-to-drink 12oz cans, made with real fruit, low sugar, and fun flavors (like mango habanero). And this story is a wild one. I actually came across a post of Kayla's on linkedin sharing a pretty crappy story for any small business owner to go through. I'm sure you'll find plenty of takeaways in this episode because she's just so insightful.If you love this episode and get something out of it please do share it on your Instagram stories with us @femalestartupclub. You can also find me in the DMs directly @dooneroisin where I love to chat and hear about what you're working on.LINKS WE MENTION:Kayla's InstagramAgua Bonita's InstagramFemale Startup Club's InstagramDoone's InstagramDoone's TikTokIn sponsorship with Zyro, easiest to use website builder and eCommerce platformIn partnership with Klaviyo, the best email marketing tool for ecommerce businesses.Female Startup Club's YouTubeFemale Startup Club's Private Facebook GroupSay hello to Doone: hello@femalestartupclub.comFemale Startup Club + Clearco: Clear.co/partner/female-startup-club

Today on the show we're learning from Kayla, the founder of Agua Bonita.Agua Bonita is a Latina owned beverage company making the first better-for-you aguas frescas on the market. A modern take on a traditional Mexican fruit drink, their aguas frescas come in ready-to-drink 12oz cans, made with real fruit, low sugar, and fun flavors (like mango habanero). And this story is a wild one. I actually came across a post of Kayla's on linkedin sharing a pretty crappy story for any small business owner to go through. I'm sure you'll find plenty of takeaways in this episode because she's just so insightful.If you love this episode and get something out of it please do share it on your Instagram stories with us @femalestartupclub. You can also find me in the DMs directly @dooneroisin where I love to chat and hear about what you're working on.LINKS WE MENTION: Kayla's InstagramAgua Bonita's InstagramFemale Startup Club's InstagramDoone's InstagramDoone's TikTokIn sponsorship with Zyro, easiest to use website builder and eCommerce platformIn partnership with Klaviyo, the best email marketing tool for ecommerce businesses.Female Startup Club's YouTubeFemale Startup Club's Private Facebook GroupSay hello to Doone: hello@femalestartupclub.comFemale Startup Club + Clearco: Clear.co/partner/female-startup-club

On this episode of The First Close we interview Noramay Cadena and Shayna Harris, co-founders and Managing Partners of Supply Change Capital. Supply Change Capital invests in early stage companies at the intersection of food, culture, and technology and focuses on three verticals, (1) food and ag tech, (2) ingredient tech, and (3) culturally appealing brands. They have invested in CulinaryFlo, Zero Grocery, Aqua Cultured Foods, Whetstone Media, AYO Foods and Agua Bonita.Supply Change Capital believes in a future of food that is sustainability mindful, supply chain efficient, better for you, and culture rich.Noramay and Shayna met in 2009 at MIT while getting their MBA and in 2020, came together to form Supply Change Capital. Noramay and Shayna combine food domain expertise with tech and investing experience. Noramay is an aerospace engineer turned investor. She previously launched an early stage fund that invested in over 20 manufacturing and supply chain companies.Shayna Harris brings an insider's eye to the industry, from architecting the 21st-century chocolate supply chain at Mars to building the groundbreaking food tech company Farmer's Fridge. She advises Fortune 100 companies and startups on navigating the fast-changing food terrain, and writes for Forbes.In our conversation, we discuss their approach to changing the food system through the lens of sustainability, health, and diversity, how they leverage data and proprietary frameworks to constantly improve operations within the firm and their approach to building community and professional networks.Learn more about Supply Change Capital ›

Bienvenidos, Moneda Moves listeners! Lately, we've been thinking a lot about fundraising for companies. Because as we discuss the rise of new Latinx entrepreneurs, this kind of capital you can secure as a founder is just as important. It's what helps a company scale and grow. But attaining this kind of capital and raising more than $1 million has not historically been a straightforward journey for entrepreneurs of color, and even less so for Latinas. So today, we are sharing a story to help shed some light on the process and how the pandemic thrust former startup employees into the world of entrepreneurship. This is the story of Agua Bonita's Co-Founder and CEO Kayla Castañeda, who broke fundraising records in 2021 while selling canned aguas frescas, a delicious fruit-derived drink popular in Mexico and Central America. Both she and her co-founder, Erin PonTell, arrived at entrepreneurship experienced in the beverage industry but also out without jobs after their employer startup closed mid-pandemic. As they so wittingly shared with Bustle: “We joke a lot — when life gives you lemons, make aguas frescas.” Castañeda became one of two Latina co-founders who raised $2 million in an oversubscribed pre-seed round for their company. This happened just a year out from founding it and also made Castañeda the first Afro-Latina owned beverage brand to raise this amount. Among the investors? Supply Change Capital, whose founder Noramay Cadena we interviewed in just our last episode of Moneda Moves. (And we suggest you listen to it!) Our hope is that Agua Bonita is an example, but not the exception, to help many other Latina founders raise the capital needed to grow their business. Without further ado, here's our interview with Kayla Castañeda, Co-Founder and CEO fo Agua Bonita. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive a weekly digest of Latinx and money news: https://monedamoves.substack.com/ Follow Moneda Moves on Instagram: @MonedaMoves Follow your host Lyanne Alfaro on Instagram: @LyanneAlfaro Main podcast theme song from Premium Beat. Our music is from Epidemic Sound.

Hear about amazing innovations in our food supply! You are going to love learning from Anne Greven. Anne is the Global Head of Food and Agribusiness Innovation and the FoodBytes! Platform at Rabobank. Our shared interests are all around change, specifically, how to create a new way to produce food at a time when agriculture is facing escalating crises in soil, water and the environment. In today's podcast, you will listen to this amazing woman talk about her own personal journey and what she has learned as she moved up in the banking world. You just might leave feeling a little better about our planet, too. Watch and listen to our conversation here Some of the key topics Anne and I discuss include: How does a woman manage her career path in an industry that is both European and male-dominated? As a woman who spent 14 years as an executive at three banks, I particularly enjoyed listening to Anne's story and experienced many of the same challenges she has been able to overcome. Anne has a deep interest in the innovations taking place in our food chain, as does Rabobank. Together Anne and I dig into these emerging breakthroughs and the talented entrepreneurs who are pushing them forward. We talk about changing the culture of organizations. This is a major challenge for all companies today. The way we always did things might not work in this ever-changing world coming out of the pandemic period. But what will work and how do we help create it? Listen in and share your thoughts. Get to know Anne Greven A Rabobank veteran, Anne has spent more than 15 years in its New York office, leading landmark client-facing businesses. In her previous roles as Head of Acquisition Finance and Managing Director, Co-Head of Capital Markets, she oversaw a large portfolio of private equity clients focused on food, beverage and agriculture investments. Having this unique financial and "food and ag" experience enables her to provide invaluable insight and advice to team members, clients and startup entrepreneurs, coaching them on refining their business models with an eye toward investment and marketplace success. You can reach Anne on LinkedIn. For a deeper dive into innovation and our food supply, we recommend these Podcast: Sam Radocchia—Ready To Trust Blockchain With Everything From Your Food To Your Taxes? Podcast: Sam Radocchia—Your Bitcoin Pizza Is Ready: Hear How Blockchain Is Coming Soon To You Podcast: Marton Ven—Applying Blockchain to Every Detail of the Food We Eat Additional resources for you My best-selling new book: "Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business" My award-winning first book: "On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights" Simon Associates Management Consultants website   Read the transcript of our podcast here Andi Simon: Welcome to On the Brink, a fresh lens to take you and your business to new heights. Hi, I'm Andi Simon, I'm your host and your guide. And I'm celebrating now because we're almost four years into doing podcasts and we have passed our 300th podcast. And these are really exciting times. There's something that is fascinating about sharing great people's stories with other great people. And I do think that this is an important day as we're looking forward to 2022. All the kinds of things that women are trying to do to help women not just become the best they can be, but really change our society so that women can thrive. Remember, women are more than 57% of college graduates, more than half the doctors, half the dentists. We seem to simply have a hard time making that stick as something that people are embracing. I brought Anne Greven here today. And she has a wonderful Corgi behind her that you're going to enjoy. Okay, it's better than him scratching at the door. And we both love dogs, and welcome to this wonderful world of remote work, hybrid work and what the heck. Annie is the Global Head of food and agribusiness innovation and food platform at Rabobank. And I am an ex-banker, so we share lots of familiar stories about both banking, women in banking, and those kinds of words...innovation and banking. Rabobank food and agricultural innovation platform drives collaboration between startups, corporate leaders and investors to develop solutions to food system challenges. Now, if you aren't familiar with the challenges of food today, it's water, and the deterioration of it, it's soil and the question of how to fertilize and what to fertilize with, and all kinds of things with the distribution of it. I love Arrow Farms that has indoor growing centers that are growing two billion things of food. Stop and Shop just announced they're now providing indoor grown stuff for the Netherlands, where all their food is grown on rooftops. There's so much innovation coming in the agribusiness world that it's important for us to know about it, but also to help contribute to it. And what's the role of women in this whole process? So Annie, thank you for joining me today. Anne Greven: Thanks for having me. It's good to be here.  Andi Simon: It's fun. Annie, share your own story, it's a terrific one. And it also serves as a role model for women who are looking at both financial services but also how to bring your innovation into the mix, so that you can really begin to see things through a fresh lens.  Anne Greven: When I talk about who I am, I often say I'm a banker. I'm an almost 30 year veteran banker. But I was very fortunate to marry my passion for food and ag when I joined Rabobank about 17 years ago, because all they focus on is supporting the food and agricultural system. While I am a person who grew up in New York on Long Island, no less, I was fortunate to spend a lot of time out West where I fell in love with the Western landscapes and the Western way of life, but also in the livelihood of cattle ranches. So that's where my first passion really became with food and ag on a beef operation. But it's expanded with my love of food, and love of cooking and all things food and agricultural related. The important part of the nexus for me is that my biggest passion, even from a very young age, was making sure that we did more to preserve the environment. And we are now at this really fascinating time where the world is coming together to recognize the challenges of global warming and its impact. And most explicitly, you see food and ag as the center of those discussions. So I'm at this point in my sort of next part of my career, I've really been able to embody looking at innovation and what are the sustainable solutions for building a food and agricultural system for the future. Working with large companies, small companies to sort of help realize those ambitions, we're going to have to feed 50 million people and then 10 billion people by 2050. So we better get going. We have a lot of work to do. While we also need to preserve the planet.  Andi Simon: If you look at Africa, the women are the agriculturalists and without sufficient water, they don't have any source of income or food. And it's very complicated because it isn't simply about irrigating better. There's no way to do that. And when you look at the whole continent, you say, wow, now I begin to understand, this is not simple or easy. This is a complex global problem, and we can't solve it solo. So what are you doing with Rabobank and the kinds of innovations you see developing, and we'll talk about being a catalyst for women as we go through it, but I do think you're seeing some terrific ideas emerging. And we both know that innovations take time to see it and grow. But unless we fertilize it and grow them up, then the idea turns into nothing. The ideation person, what are you seeing? Anne Greven: We are seeing so many amazing things we tend to focus on. And that seems like a very broad statement, but it's true, we get to work with young talent, who are really looking at the agricultural landscape differently than I may have. And even generations prior to me, they're actually looking at it with a lens for tomorrow. So whether some of these ideas you talked about, growing foods: maybe you'll go into a grocery store that you know today, but maybe in the future, we'll be walking into a greenhouse-like experience, or we'll think about how we are able to capture water from the air that helps filters arid landscapes. The technology exists, but these are the kind of things that will come forth to really become viable in the future. I think when we think about what it is going to take, there's so many facets to the Food and Ag system that we look at everything across the supply chain, and we call it farm to table or farm to fork. And it really is so many different facets of what needs to happen at the farm, at the distribution, at the warehouses, in the restaurants, getting to the grocery stores, to the consumer, and then how the consumer behaves after that. So that's how we look at innovation. And we look at solutions that help optimize more sustainable opportunities to solve problems that aren't as efficient today, or aren't being solved. Andi Simon: You know, as you think about that farm to table, one of my podcasts was on blockchain and how it was being used on grass-fed beef in Wyoming, so you could track and trace it. And there was blockchain being assigned to beef coming out of Australia, so you could track and trace it. Even eggs, so you could track and trace them. People would not think that even WalMart is putting blockchain chips on its food so we can track and trace it. That's one of those quiet innovations that has tremendous implications. If you really want to know where your food comes from, and how do you make sure that if you're buying a premium piece of steak, it really is? Or maybe you don't want to buy steak at all? And that's a whole other conversation. But are there other ideas that you think that really strike you as important for people to become aware of and begin to think about? Anne Greven: I look at a couple of our alumni and Kaprow Acts is a company that I think about and how they're taking yogurt. People love yogurt, there might be too much yogurt in the yogurt aisle, but there is a lot of yogurt. And with a lot of yogurt, there's a lot of waste. And we call that whey waste. And whey waste is incredibly toxic to the groundwater. So Kaprow Acts actually takes that whey and makes it into oils that can replace the use of palm oils, or other types of oils in our food system. And that's in essence creating this closed loop technology. So that's one where you don't really think about the yogurt you might be eating, or how we got to that stage. But basically, we suck out a certain amount of water. And with that a certain amount of whey and that actually is a waste product. So finding ways such as Kaprow Acts is amazing in the use of that waste. Another one is a company that I'm going to encourage you all to be a part of is Imperfect Foods. Imperfect Foods was one of those companies that was really designed around making sure that the waste that was coming off of farms wasn't a perfect carrot or a perfect apple. It was either too small or too big or too ugly, or too this. They were able to say okay, you know what? These are all really good foods that the consumer, who doesn't care about the imperfect apple, is probably going to buy. And they've built that company in the last five years, especially during the pandemic, into a food delivery system, upcycling the waste, so that us as the consumer can consume it and thinking about the delivery model in a way that really made it work. The pandemic actually was very good for them, and still is. But imagine, you're going to eat a carrot that otherwise would have most likely got ground up and given to feed. You know there's another company but I'm drawing a blank. So I apologize. But I will come back to  it. Hopefully the name comes to me. It is a company that's actually looking at taking the waste of carbon and making it into food. Right now it's being used to feed animals, mostly in the seafood space. But imagine if we can create, capture carbon waste in the air and synthesize it into a food product. It is an amazing full circle as well.  Andi Simon: Yeah, pretty cool. I was fascinated by Amazon buying Whole Foods. And thinking about if Amazon is this clever and innovative company, as it seems to be, it's been ranked among the top, if not the top, could we now watch Whole Foods growing its own food on its rooftops, or its basements or putting the distribution in such a way that it eliminates transportation needs. You may be seeing that already developing. But transportation adds a lot of airways of climate impact, and there aren't any drivers for the truck. So what if I didn't need a driver for the truck? Seeing anything like that developing?  Anne Greven: Well, I think that, you know, this is definitely something that was a big issue. And it's not just now, but prior to covid. People weren't willing to work on farms, work in plants, the labor shortage was a massive issue. And during the crisis, it's become an even bigger issue for many reasons. And we could have a whole podcast about that. So anything that's helping create more efficient technologies such as robotics, massive surge in robotic technology, whether it's making sure that more of the production within plants is robot, you know, roboticized. In the past, you used to have people at the end of the packing lines, putting things in boxes. Now you're seeing more automation around boxing and distributing. And so now the cost of investing in that is actually at a point where it makes sense for more automation to go in all across our supply chain. So that's real. I think the other thing that really happened is not just about labor, but it's about, as you mentioned, carbon footprint, but making sure that those are shorter. Those shipping and those transportation, so looking more locally, and building out more local accessible systems is very, very real. So whether it's building on your own organic farms and supply chains for those within more cities is definitely one of those things that we're seeing greater demand for and innovation around.  Andi Simon: Yep. I guess there's a part of me that's very curious about this. We had a wonderful client who had a few JAG programs and I learned a lot about lasers that could milk cows. And then the State Department went to them, the state's Department of Agriculture wanted them to start to retrain the technical logical stuff because they still needed people who could understand how cows could be milked by machines. But they didn't need people to stay there. So the human quality became more sophisticated. And then, there was a gentleman in a group I was working with who grew tomatoes out in the Sacramento area. And he and his father had a big battle going on because the father said, I'll tell you when those tomatoes are ready to be picked, shake the plant and I know, and he had a drone going across to tell you when the tomatoes were ready to be picked. And the two of them were arguing about two different worldviews. And the perceptions became a great conversation for how difficult it's going to be to change but it takes some time for those who have always done it by shaking the plant to realize that drones can give you a pretty good indication of how much water is there when the plant is ready. And I can see it from my desktop, including the tractors now that are autonomous vehicles and call for their own oil changes. I'm not sure what consumers are paying attention to.  Anne Greven: We've seen that consumers' demands are changing significantly. Mostly because the consumers recognize that food really is the primary sustenance and the first step that they can take control of their health. And that really once again, during covid that really accelerated. And so looking at food as medicine, looking at technologies, also advancements around how your body is synthesizing food. What does that mean? What do you need more of? And I think that the health and wellness component of the food system is one area where we just see massive amount of innovation over the next year. Whether it's wearable technology that allows you to tell you how much fat you're synthesizing and how you're metabolizing something you have eaten or how well your body is absorbing it, or how well it isn't. Those are the kinds of things that were really at the forefront. And even recognition on how your body is responding just by looking maybe into a camera like this. Yes, your doctor can say that you're experiencing an allergy to strawberries, he/she can see it based on these patterns. So I think there's so much coming that will connect the consumer and all of us to our food, and being able to assure us where is that supply chain of foods, a blockchain like you mentioned, but also all of these sensor technologies that can tell you every component of what the DNA of that food is, and how that might impact you. So all of these things exist, it's about how they're going to get supported and how they become relevant in our food system that makes it more sustainable, but also allows us to be smarter about how we use all our resources.  Andi Simon: You say the word that's very important there because I can't tell you how many people say, I'm all for sustainability. And then you ask the powerful question about whether it's in your company or in your own life. I'm not sure people really understand that long supply chain that you described. And where along the way there are opportunities for becoming more sustainable, whatever that might mean. And this becomes an interesting question, particularly as we're seeing more vegetable produce becoming food. And whether it's tofu or it's beef lookalikes or steak lookalikes. Will we slowly be moving to tofu as our primary "tastes like steak but isn't"? And what really means sustainability? Your thoughts on the word and what consumers should pay attention to?  Anne Greven: Yeah, I think there's sustainability in a very, very complex supply chain. I want to be very clear that I don't expect even if I am learning all the time about what the real costs are of something I might consume. And I use coffee as a great example, to really think about, what is the cost of that cup of coffee that you have every day, because we don't grow coffee in our country. It's grown somewhere else. Most of our coffee comes from either Latin America or parts of Africa. That means they're shipping involved. And that means there's a lot on the ground activity that goes on. And most of the coffee you drink comes from a cooperative in either Africa, or Latin America. And that cooperative is probably made up of a farmer that has a hector at most of coffee. So when you think about all the components and all the processing that happens on the ground there, and then it's gathered, it's shipped, and then it's processed. Then that cup of coffee is probably anywhere from $20 to $75 if you were really actually putting in the real costs, fair labor, and so it's quite complex. And then you add in the fact that we have global warming, and the bands that we grow coffee in are changing drastically. And so where will we be growing coffee? So when I am asked about growing coffee, the first thing I'd say is don't drink coffee. It's not sustainable. But how can you make that experience more sustainable? And so what I always ask the consumer and myself to do is for yourself, think about consciously what is it that you're consuming and how is it that you're consuming and what is within your own control you can change to make a difference. And because I think that we can all do something. I don't want to dwell on what we've done in our home because it might alienate people. But I would say that, just thinking about how you guys can be more sustainable, like, if you have used coffee grounds, maybe composting those or things of that nature, because coffee grounds are very good for your garden, things like that.  Andi Simon: You have a real problem, because you have the plastic, and where does that go? And coffee planters have their own challenges with the kinds of diseases that are attacking the coffee plants, and different altitudes. And this isn't easy, and yet, we do love our coffee.  Anne Greven: And we look at what's happening right now with the big energy transition, and something I can safely talk about without alienating my clients is that everyone is very keen on batteries. But the reality is the big component of batteries is lithium. And there is a finite supply of lithium. And there's mining, you have to get lithium from somewhere. So there are many components, and while it might be cleaner, from an admission standpoint, is it really better? Yes. And so this is what adds to the complexity of these sustainable conversations, which is why we're going to all have to make choices, and they have to be different and model differently from how we've made them in the past, making clear indicators of what's of the primary importance, and what has the longest impact for health and wellness of our planet. Those are not easy questions. But I think we're at least talking about them now. And we weren't before. And I hope they're beginning.  Andi Simon: To be taught in some schools, so that my grandkids can begin to have a mindset about what they are intentionally doing for their own health. We're part of this environment. So it isn't as if it's an afterthought, it's the thought. As we started our conversation, you and I were talking about the role of women in this world of innovation, as well as in banking. Maybe you want to go back to the role models, the way in which women have roles to play within the innovation platform. And I know you have some particular perspectives on it, and I thought I'd give you an opportunity to share them.  Anne Greven: I could talk about food all day long.  Andi Simon: But I'm a corporate anthropologist who helps companies and the people inside them change. They hate me even when they know they need me. You have the same mission in front of you, where we've got to change the way the world thinks about everything. And along that entire supply chain, a whole lot of folks who are going to say, “Go away, go away, don't bother me,” because nothing is simple. So what's the role of women in all of this? Any perspective?  Anne Greven: Yeah, I thank you for the question. There's so many places I want to go with that. But maybe I'll start with a story because I think sometimes stories are the best indicator of why and what our focus should be. Last week, it's the end of the year and I know this might be airing later in the year, but right now we're in December. And it's the time that a few of us have been able to gather with clients. And we have had the chance to meet with folks that we haven't been able to in quite a while. And so going into those rooms again, where we have 100 plus people, everyone was tested, everyone was safe. I want to assure you and I want to share with everyone it was all very controlled.  Andi Simon: No super spreader.  Anne Greven: It was not a super spread event. No one got covid. But everyone tested beforehand and everyone was vaxxed that attended. But what I was struck by, with the two recent events that I attended, is that in both finance and Food and Ag is the lack of women in the room, and that it actually was alarmingly smaller than I had recognized in past year. So it really was the first time. We've been hearing about women stepping out more. It was very present in this conversation. And so I started talking about it pretty openly with the CEOs that were in the room as well as former CEOs and there really was a concern. They were genuinely concerned about this lack of representation. Juxtapose those two same events with, I had invited some women who run our startups, that we really thought we're doing something groundbreaking, to attend these events. And in many cases, they were really representative of the women of the future. One was a company called Mazen Health, and she is really developing a health platform for the pig industry. Swine specifically, so that we don't have to use antibiotics. The other was aAnimal and the other one was Agua Bonita, which are these two amazing women who started this company. While they both had just started their families, because they saw a need to have a more authentic beverage that spoke to their roots, which was Aqua Fresca. These three women represented the future. And they were not afraid of taking on big food. They were talking to some of the biggest food net companies, without asking permission, without looking for excuses. And so they were my hope. And why is it important? Because that was your question, why is it important that these women are doing what they do? It's important because they bring a perspective that is different from even my perspective. But it's also different from someone who's running a large company who might come out of a very male-dominated workforce, because they're all about finding solutions, and seeing through boundaries, because they're running a startup. And there's nothing but boundaries for them. And so I look at these women and emulate them. And I want to create the path for them because they are the female leaders of Ag that we need for tomorrow. And in finance, you know, Andi and I spoke quite a bit about this. I see having to take the same stance for attracting women to finance. And why is finance important, because a lot of money is distributed from the financial networks, and that institutes power, and we need to make sure that we have more control over how money is allocated. Not only to young, blossoming entrepreneurs like the ones I mentioned, but to other companies which may be led by minorities, but maybe those that have a purpose that is about preserving the planet. That is beyond making 25% return, maybe they make 23% return or maybe they make 24% return or 20% return because they've taken a different path.  Andi Simon: The bigger they are then just return. I don't want you to end our conversation because we can talk about this. Mostly because the work that we're both trying to do is to move that needle forward. But it's not simply a thing that you can twist in some fashion. And the research is fascinating that people will give money to people who look like them. So who are the funders? They tend to be guys and what do they like? It looks like themselves, like a guy. Only 2.4% of the venture capital money goes to women, these women have a purpose. They have something beyond simply the profits. It's a different story that doesn't necessarily resonate with the investors. The questions I asked are disconnected to the purpose of what they're trying to do. So there's an emerging opportunity to transform the whole conversation. And these women are asking, pressing, pushing. I am in awe of their guts. They just don't know, they don't really care, they're gonna make it happen somehow. The society that we live in is man's because we will not survive on this planet unless we make changes sooner than later. Because there won't be anything left to change. And when you look at evolution, it's never been any easier. You know, it's not ever easier. You think people gave up horses to pick up the car? No, they threw a lot of barbed wire around the Ford and threw stones at it because it was evil. They've been riding horses for 1000 years, who would rather do anything other than ride a horse. So it's never been simple to bring new things into existence. But somehow we keep pushing forward. My hope is that through the eyes of folks like these women, there are men as well not to diminish them. Somehow, we can open up new ways of transforming us and the world. And it's got to happen. Now, we can't wait 100 years because we're not gonna make it. So how fast? Can we help them and support them? And, I'm gonna say this, I want to hug them. Because in some ways we're all committed to what they're trying to do, aren't we? We're about ready to wrap up the last thought or two, to give our audience something to walk away with other than hope. And I think that's something that you've shared with us because it's full of hope. And I think big ideas, and if we're gonna make this happen, it's going to be together collaboratively.  Anne Greven: Yeah, I would say the one thing I'd like to end on because it's something that I'm going to ask the audience is, what is the one thing you can take on? Especially as it is December, we'll be thinking about January, maybe you make promises for the next year? Maybe not? But believe it or not, a lot of the change is in each and every one of us in our control. So when you think about that one thing that you might be able to do differently, and how it could influence and have rippling influence, remember, if you smile, it's infectious. Yes, it's true. So it's the same thing here. If you just decide that one thing, and commit to it to yourself in the future, it will make a difference.  Andi Simon: And we'll celebrate, because if you celebrate your mind remembers it. So my urging is after you make that commitment, and you make your New Year's resolution, and you actually start to do it, write it down in your gratitude diary every day and you'll wake up in the morning with a smile that you're making the world a better place to live one day at a time. And, you can be a movement for sustainability without doing much other than change your coffee. Anne will come back sometime and tell us how she's transformed her home. But we're all very important. My book is called On the Brink because we are on the brink. So I want to thank the audience for coming today, whether you're viewing it, or you're listening, and Anne Greven's has been our guest, and I have just enjoyed every minute of it. As you can tell, she said that smiles are contagious, they are not going to say we're monkeys, but we are. And when you watch her energy, and you're listening to her thoughts, it is a time for both business and people and our society to change. Because unless we do it a day at a time, a person on time, we'll have some real tough road to hoe here. I'm Andi Simon, this is On the Brink with Andi Simon. As you know, I love to help you see and feel and think in new ways. In my book Rethink, there are 11 women's stories like Anne's and the women that she was talking about. And I wrote the book so that other women could have role models. So I'm going to urge you to read my book which is just about out a year now. It came out on January 5th, right before the January 6th mess, but we launched and the book has done extremely well. The reviews are fabulous. And I'm anxious for more and more women to read it and see what they can be. One of the first reviewers said now I have a book I could give to my 13 year old daughter. She's a minority, but now she can actually see how women can become the best that they can be. And if that's really important for us sustainability. But these are women who are making a difference not for just profit, but for purpose, to make the world a better place. And I do think that's what we're all about. So thank you all for coming. And remember, I love your emails, they come from around the world. A little note: my podcast is in the top 5% of global podcasts. Four years into it. I'm honored and I'm delighted but your emails help us bring new people onto the stage and to share their thoughts. Goodbye, everybody. Have a great one. Bye bye now. 

This week we have Kayla Castañeda, founder of Agua Bonita, joining us to share her story. For some of us, the decision about quitting our jobs to pursue our business full-time takes years or many attempts before actually doing so. For Kayla, the decision was made for her when her company went under in the early pandemic days and left her unemployed. When that happened, Kayla decided it was time to take a chance on herself and decided to start Agua Bonita with co-founder Erin PonTell. As of today, Agua Bonita has raised over 2 million in venture capital funding. For context, only 2.7 percent of all venture funding goes to women CEOs... Now think about what percentage of that goes to Latina CEOs. Visit the Agua Bonita site: https://www.drinkaguabonita.com/ Follow Agua Bonita on Instagram: @drinkaguabonita Follow me on Instagram: @firstgenmoney

In this episode of Masters of Community, we speak with Shelly Omílàdé Bell, Founder and CEO of Black Girl Ventures, a social enterprise dedicated to creating access to capital for black and brown women entrepreneurs. Shelly is a serial entrepreneur and computer scientist with a background in performance poetry, K-12 Education, and IP strategy. She was named one of the Top 100 Powerful Women in Business by Entrepreneur Mag, Entrepreneur of the Year by Technically DC, and acknowledged as A Rising Brand Star by Adweek. Shelly is a system disruptor and business strategist who moves ideas to profit while empowering people to live more authentically. As a cultural translator, she connects entrepreneurs, investors, and corporations to diversify their talent pipeline, increase equity and grow their brands. Shelly shares tips on creating access and social capital for people, creating a real sense of community, and scaling the community. Who is this episode for? Community leaders, business women, investors, business strategists Three key takeaways: 1. Sustainably growing and engaging a community: Building the community comes from identifying a need and offering a solution. Engaging the community is about communing with people. Sustaining the community focuses on adopting a business model. 2. Driving value for your community: There are direct and indirect revenue drivers because revenue comes from relationships. The indirect way of driving revenue is building trust, affinity, and belonging, and they will bring valuable revenue to your community. 3. Building social capital: Social capital is the strength of your network, which can be people with helpful resources, knowledge, and access to capital. Building positive social capital relationships requires a community leader to take on the role of a gatekeeper to share and protect the people's interests. Notable Quotes: 1. “Safe space means safe people. And the more safe people that are surrounding in a community, the safer it can be that comes from core values.” 2. “A community can be a great gathering of people unless you have all agreed that there's a problem that needs to be solved, or you are showcasing it as a problem that needs to be solved that this community coming together can solve.” 3. “The money is the water for the seed. It's just a tool. So you have to wrap your head around the difference between humility that takes you out of driving the necessary sustainability measures.” 4. “You may be building a community of people that you serve. But you also need to understand how to build a community of people who can serve you.” Answers to rapid-fire questions: 1. If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? Mexican corn 2. What is your favorite book to give as a gift to others? The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz 3. What's a company in your community that you're really excited about right now? Agua Bonita 4. What is a go-to community engagement tactic, or conversation starter, that you like to use in your communities? What do you care about? 5. Who in the world of the community would you most like to take for lunch? Seth Godin 6. What is a community product you wish existed? I wish there were a product that was an easy way to create a video, like a Wiki video library of learning 7. What is the weirdest community you've ever been a part of? The poetry community 8. What's one thing you learned from the leading community and the world of poetry that you still apply to your community-building today? How to move and motivate people, and put the systems in place simply. 9. If you were to find yourself on your deathbed, and you had to condense all of your life lessons into one tweet-sized piece of advice for the rest of the world for how to live, what would that advice be? Be all that you are as soon as possible.

Learn more about Omi:Omi's LinkedInOmi's TwitterOmi's Facebook PageOmi's InstagramBlack Girl Ventures LinkedInBlack Girl Ventures CommunityThe World of Omi CommunityEpisode resources:The Business of Belonging: How to Make Community your Competitive AdvantageSend your stories and feedback on this episode to pod@cmxhub.comIf you enjoyed this episode then please either:Subscribe, rate, and review on Apple PodcastsFollow on Spotify

“When life gives you lemons, make aguas frescas!” As was the case for many people, 2020 started off on a difficult note for Kayla Castañeda, with a young child and no job. Instead of letting this knock her down, Kayla kicked into gear and put the skills she acquired after many years of working in the food and beverage industry to good use; the co-founding of Agua Bonita. Agua Bonita boasts the first line of better-for-you, ready-to-drink aguas frescas, which come in eco-friendly cans that are branded by Kayla's co-founder, Erin. The quality of the product combined with the authenticity and transparency of the brand, and the relationship-building approach that Kayla adopted from week one, have led to her winning every pitch competition she has entered! That's not to say that the past year has been easy for them, and in today's episode, you'll hear about the ups and downs, the lessons learned along the way, their plans for the future, and some valuable advice for nailing your pitch! Key Points From This Episode:What the past year has looked like for Kayla and her business.Kayla shares what she learned from working in the hospitality industry.Experience that Kayla had working for Coca Cola, and why she decided to leave the company and start consulting. Circumstances which motivated Kayla to found Agua Bonita.The approach that Kayla and her cofounder, Erin, took to funding their business.A goal that Kayla and Erin set when they founded the company. Challenges of balancing work and family life and how this impacted the decision to make Agua Bonita a full-time job.When Kayla and Erin were able to start drawing salaries.How pitching and pitch competitions have benefited Agua Bonita. Why fundraising is a difficult task, and the importance of relationship building early on.Qualities that make Agua Bonita attractive to investors. Valuable tips for going into pitch competitions. Erin's background, and how her skillset complements Kayla's. The biggest challenge that Kayla and Erin have been faced with over the past year.Flavors of Agua Bonita that are currently available.Exciting plans that Kayla and Erin have for the future of Agua Bonita. Links Mentioned in Today's Episode:Agua BonitaAgua Bonita on InstagramKayla Castañeda on LinkedIn Modern SpeciesEvolve CPG

In this episode, Taste Radio's hosts discussed the significance of great taste for functional products, a highly effective way for entrepreneurs to get their brands in the hands of industry gatekeepers and debated on whether the rise of RTD cocktails will impact the premium mixer segment. We also feature short interviews focused on trends and innovation with Bonnie Shah, the VP of marketing and innovation for Molson Coors-backed incubator and accelerator L.A. Libations, and Sunanda Patel, the founder and CEO of TumiBee, an upstart brand of Ayurvedic beverage mixes.  Show notes: 0:53: We're So Psyched About This Banter -- The episode opened with Ray sharing his thoughts about our return to live events and how a recent tweet sparked a conversation about functional products and, along with it, WD-40, riffed on the appropriate texture for dried fruit and encouraged listeners to share their brands with us at BevNET and NOSH Live. The hosts also congratulated Vita Coco co-founder/CEO Mike Kirban on the company's recent IPO, got revved up about newly launched gin, relaxed about a kava-infused water and rational regarding a new non-alcoholic beer brand. 24:06: Bonnie Shah, VP Marketing and Innovation, L.A. Libations -- Shah sat down with Taste Radio editor Ray Latif at Natural Products Expo East 2021 where she spoke about her role with L.A. Libations (LAL), a beverage creator, incubator and accelerator that is minority owned by the Molson Coors Beverage Co. She also discussed LAL's recently launched So-Cal Incubation Program, nicknamed SIP, the company's retail partnerships and efforts to drive awareness and sales for emerging brands, her perspective on beverage innovation, functional ingredient trends and how direct-to-consumer sales fit into the firm's business model. 39:20: Interview: Sunanda Patel, Founder & CEO, TumiBee -- Patel joined Latif for a conversation, also recorded at Expo East, about the creation of TumiBee, an upstart brand of turmeric-based beverage mixes and her experience launching the brand amid the Covid pandemic. She also spoke about Tumibee's formidable DTC business, the company's social marketing and consumer education strategies and how she evaluated and adjusted her pricing strategy. Brands in this episode: 5-hour Energy, TCHO, Alta, Chooza, Teaonic, Vita Coco, Abbot's Butcher, BetterBrand, AVEC, Q Drinks, Engine Gin, Stillhouse, Psychedelic Water, Leilo, Rationale Brewing, Chika Chika Boom Boom, Agua Bonita, ZOA Energy, ZENWTR, Red Bull, Monster Energy, Arriba, Brightfox, Athletic Brewing Co., Mingle Mocktails, Shaka Tea, NUUN, Halo Sport, Orro, TumiBee

In this special Innovation Fund episode we meet the founders from three of the companies in the 2021 cohort, Yoni Medhin co-founder of Grain4Grain, Kayla Casteñda and Erin Pontell with Agua Bonita, and Crawford Hawkins with Husky Beverages. In spring of 2021, The Kroger Co. Zero Hunger | Zero Waste Foundation collaborated with Village Capital to help source, understand and unlock capital to support innovative solutions that prevent, recover and recycle food waste. They encouraged applications from innovators building high-growth, scalable solutions focused on the following challenge: “We seek to reshape the food system by supporting innovators who are elevating food to its highest use and disrupting the linear supply chain. This could include solutions such as imperfect produce lines, upcycled foods & meal kits, upcycled commercial ingredients and more.” With nearly 150 companies applying, 10 were selection for the 2021 Innovation Fund cohort. Over the next few episodes we will be introducing you to all of the companies in the 2021 cohort. Meet the companies in the 2021 Innovation Fund Cohort: Agua Bonita Grain4Grain Husky Beverages Journey Foods Matriark Foods NETZRO reBLEND Renewal Mill Take Two The Spare Food Co. Visit www.toogoodtowastepodcast.com for all episodes and to learn more about the Too good To waste podcast series. Follow us on Instagram @toogoodtowaste_podcast Thanks to our sponsors: NETZRO, SBC - www.netzro.us Upcycled Food Association - www.upcycledfood.org Produced by Hi-Fly'n Productions www.hiflyn.com Producer | Host: Kevin May Associate Producer | Ashley Brown Creative Development | Sue Marshall What's UP Co-Host | Rochelle Still Contact us at kevin@toogoodtowastepodcast.com --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/toogoodtowaste/message

In today's episode, I sit down with Kayla Casteñeda, the Co-founder & CEO of Agua Bonita! SimpliFinance with Shane White is now proudly brought you by ROUTINE! Head over to yourroutine.com and try their newest product "Morning Routine". Use code "ShaneWhite30" at checkout for 30% off your first order! ---------- Helpful Links Instagram: @drinkaguabonita @shane.m.white www.drinkaguabonita.com Book suggestion: https://www.amazon.com/Capital-Gaines-Chip-Gaines-audiobook/dp/B0725WYC2L/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2TKAYCPDDOTP&dchild=1&keywords=capital+gains+by+chip+gains&qid=1629751560&sprefix=capital+gains+by+%2Caps%2C180&sr=8-2 Whoop (1 free month): https://join.whoop.com/#/C20648 Robinhood: http://join.robinhood.com/shanew1 COVID Stock Market Rebound Tracker: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-ayygZVOqsqPuqAWmmIFm7qj2Mymw86OKd7UvQiPx1o/edit?pli=1#gid=0 --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/simplifinance/support

As Kayla Castañeda puts it, “When life hands you lemons, make aguas frescas.” Kayla is Co-Founder and CEO of Agua Bonita, a growing social enterprise producing the first line of healthy alternatives to the traditional Mexican drink, aguas frescas. Made with no added sugar, no chemical sweeteners and rescued produce, the refreshing product fuels their mission and dedication to reinvesting profits back into their community. Stream this episode now to learn more about Kayla, how innovation has helped Agua Bonita grow to where it is today and further insight on the social enterprise's people management practices, including:   -How transparency guides their approach to staying authentic, approachable and affordable  -How creativity and clarity of goals are the key to growth with intention -How placing value on ideas and feedback at every level is essential to maximize impact and become a first mover in the market Interviewers: Patty Hampton, Managing Partner and Chief Social Impact Officer for SITA by Nonprofit HR Lisa Wright Ponce, Senior Consultant for Strategy & Advisory, Nonprofit HR

In this episode, we're joined by Kayla Castañeda, Co-Founder, and CEO of Agua Bonita, a beverage brand made with 100 percent real fruit aguas frescas which gives the end-product a delicious flavor profile. Kayla discusses launching her company during the pandemic and only meeting her Co-Founder in person once before launch. She walks us through Agua Bonita's timeline, from the genesis of her idea to this month when her company won the BEVNET and Coca-Cola best new beverage award. Kayla had some great advice for people looking to break into the beverage industry, including how to work closely with your packer to ensure you get the product you expect. She also delves into topics such as the best way to plug into the CBG community and how to keep your head up when going through hard times. We see big things in Kayla and Agua Bonita's future and are delighted that they are so successful.

#003: Kayla Castañeda, founder of agua frescas company Agua Bonita, joins us in this week's episode of Please Advise. Kayla and Sam dive into the importance of diversity (and authenticity) in the food industry, fundraising, starting a sustainable food company, and much more. This is an episode you don't want to miss. You can find Kayla Castañeda on LinkedIn. You can find Agua Bonita on LinkedIn, Instagram, their website, and Amazon. You can find Sam Ruiz on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and at Tgthr Collective. Episode edited by Inês Peixoto. Music: Rewind by Jay Someday

In this episode, we're joined by Kayla Castañeda, Co-Founder, and CEO of Agua Bonita, a beverage brand made with 100 percent real fruit aguas frescas which gives the end-product a delicious flavor profile. Kayla discusses launching her company during the pandemic and only meeting her Co-Founder in person once before launch. She walks us through Agua Bonita's timeline, from the genesis of her idea to this month when her company won the BEVNET and Coca-Cola best new beverage award. Kayla had some great advice for people looking to break into the beverage industry, including how to work closely with your packer to ensure you get the product you expect. She also delves into topics such as the best way to plug into the CBG community and how to keep your head up when going through hard times. We see big things in Kayla and Agua Bonita's future and are delighted that they are so successful.

In this episode of Black on Shelf, I welcome my new friend, Kayla, CEO and Co-Founder of Agua Bonita, a women-owned beverage brand, producing authentic Mexican agua frescas. Kayla and her Co-Founder Erin PonTell are inspired by perfectly delicious, fresh produce that would otherwise go to waste, and fueled by a passion to create something culturally authentic, unique, better for the planet, and beautiful, hence Agua Bonita was born.Agua Bonita has recorded a lot of accomplishments and received a number of awards; Including Winner of New Beverage Showdown 2021 - Best New Beverage award presented by BevNET and Coca Cola and Winner of Black Girl Ventures x Nike Pitch Competition. Kayla stresses the importance of hardwork. All achievements came at a cost, sacrifices had to be made and they took all the support that they could get from family, and a number of programs. Kayla speaks extensively about wanting to build generational wealth and a commitment to give back to the community. This means alot to her as she is the first generation of her family that did not have to work in the fields. With Agua Bonita, Kayla and Erin reinvest into education for the children of immigrants through their non-profit partners. For the full show notes, visit our website: https://www.blackonshelf.com/episodesStream Black on Shelf NOW on Apple Podcast, Spotify, YouTube, Google Podcast, Amazon Music, Stitcher, and Pandora!Connect with Kayla:Visit Kayla's website: https://www.drinkaguabonita.com/Follow Agua Bonita on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drinkaguabonita/Connect with Kayla on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaylacastaneda10/Connect with Black On Shelf:Follow BOS on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/blackonshelf/Connect with BOS on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/black-on-shelf/Connect with Tenaj on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tenajfergusonFollow BOS on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Blackonshelf/Visit the Black on Shelf website: https://www.blackonshelf.comWatch the full interview on Youtube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH5yI1fUz67nCaME8JIRfLAResource:Hello Alice: https://helloalice.com/tools/

Returning from the last episode is Kayla Castañeda, C.E.O. and co-owner of agua fresca company Agua Bonita. She is here to elaborate more on her journey and discuss some topics such as what it was like to launch a company amid the COVID-19 pandemic last year and how the pandemic has impacted her business currently, and she also gives some advice on what the first step should be for someone who wants to launch their own business. Kayla also agrees to a business breakdown round with Andy in which she presents a current challenge that she is having with Agua Bonita and then bounces ideas back and forth with him about how to find a solution to the challenge and what tools will be needed to achieve the desired result. She reveals that her greatest challenge right now is fundraising, and Andy strongly encourages her to come up with a list of 100 dream investors and explains why that is so important. We hope that you enjoyed the second half of our conversation with Kayla of Agua Bonita, and we can't wait to see how Agua Bonita grows and flourishes in the future! Please stay tuned in to Freed Stories as more guests share their stories of entrepreneurship – their successes, their failures, their goals, their hopes, etc.! Be sure to also hit the subscribe button so that you never miss an episode, and remember to free your mind; free your media!   Time Stamps [1:38] – Kayla discusses how she navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and how it has affected her business now. [3:58] – Kayla reveals how she came to realize what her individual skills are. [5:18] – We learn what kind of work Kayla did with previous companies prior to launching Agua Bonita. [6:47] – Kayla advises us on the first step to take if we want to launch our own business. [9:55] – Kayla's greatest challenge lately has been figuring out who to speak to and the structure of her business. [10:15] – Andy explains the three components of the business breakdown model: (1) the pain point, (2) the desired result, and (3) what tools are needed to achieve that result. [13:12] – Andy identifies Kayla's pain point, and Kayla touches upon what her desired result is. [14:28] – Not all money is good money, Kayla asserts. [17:10] – Andy advises Kayla to develop a list of approximately 100 dream investors. [19:55] – Andy offers Unshackled Ventures as an example of a venture capital firm and describes its focus. [21:35] – Kayla reveals that Agua Bonita currently has a dream 50 list but that there is room for growth. [23:54] – We learn where we can find Agua Bonita online and get updates.   Links and Resources Freed Fellowship - Website Freed Fellowship's Twitter Page Email Us: team@freedfellowship.com Agua Bonita – Website Agua Bonita - Instagram Page Unshackled Ventures - Website

This is a special edition of the podcast which highlights interviews with six founders, creators and innovators who joined us on the show during the first half of 2021, including Denise Woodard, the founder and CEO of Partake Foods; Mike Fata, the founder of Manitoba Harvest; Lezlie Karls Saltarelli, Nick Saltarelli and Jake Karls, the co-founders of Mid-Day Squares; Bill Moses, the founder and CEO of Flying Embers; Ayeshah Abuelhiga, the founder and CEO of Mason Dixie Foods; and Seth Goldman, the co-founder of Honest Tea and Eat The Change and chair of the board for Beyond Meat. Show notes: 0:45: Empanadas Win The Day. Your Cocktail Brand Could Win $10,000 On The Next One. -- The hosts chatted about the recently held NOSH Pitch Slam 10 competition and its winner, Cocina 54, a brand that aims to create a “new generation” of better-for-you Latin American foods and currently markets a line of frozen empanadas. They also discussed BevNET's inaugural Cocktail Showdown, an early-stage brand pitch competition designed to showcase innovative, spirit-based ready-to-drink and ready-to-pour cocktails and riffed on several new products to cross their desks over the past week. 15:04: Interview: Denise Woodard, Founder/CEO, Partake Foods -- We kicked things off with Denise Woodard, the founder & CEO of Partake Foods, a brand of cookies and baking mixes that are free from eight major allergens, and are sold at Target, Whole Foods and Sprouts stores nationwide. In this clip, pulled from our episode featured on January 29, Woodard spoke about staying focused after initially being rejected by potential investors, the impact of sales data in the company's Series A round, why entrepreneurs should ask for specific versus general advice and why she views her employees as her “boss.” 24:20: Interview: Mike Fata, Founder, Manitoba Harvest -- Our next clip is pulled from an episode featured on March 16 with Mike Fata, the founder of global hemp foods producer Manitoba Harvest. Fata spoke about why he describes himself as “a born entrepreneur but a made CEO,” why he urges listeners to “dream bigger,” how he advises entrepreneurs when it comes to navigating a competitive market for natural foods and how he utilized confidence and fear to become a better leader. 32:41: Interview: Lezlie Karls Saltarelli, Nick Saltarelli and Jake Karls, Co-Founders, Mid-Day Squares -- We continue with a clip from our episode published on June 1, which featured the co-founders of Mid-Day Squares, a surging brand of refrigerated chocolate and protein snack bars. They discussed the keys to their compelling social and content strategy and how they measure ROI for their efforts, how they define and value “tribalism” and why a commitment to clean ingredients and consistent communication with the brand's consumers gave the brand a solid foundation on which to build. 44:06: Interview: Bill Moses, Founder/CEO, Flying Embers -- Next we featured a clip from an episode published on May 25, which featured an interview with Bill Moses, the founder of better-for-you alcohol beverage platform Flying Embers. Moses, who is also the co-founder of probiotic drink and kombucha brand KeVita, discussed his perspective on innovation in the context of online retail, why making the right hires is critical to maintaining the company's growth pace and the importance of finding balance amid an intense drive to win. 50:20: Interview: Ayeshah Abuelhiga, Founder/CEO, Mason Dixie Foods -- The episode continues with Ayeshah Abuelhiga, who is the founder of Mason Dixie Foods, the fastest growing frozen baked goods company in America. In this clip, pulled from an episode aired on March 30, Abuelhiga spoke about how bias and inequality in corporate life prompted her foray into entrepreneurship, how Mason Dixie gained a foothold in a legacy food category and how she vetted investors for the company's Series A round. 59:49: Interview: Seth Goldman, Co-Founder, Honest Tea & Eat The Change; Chair Of The Board, Beyond Meat -- Finally, we hear from Seth Goldman, the co-founder of Honest Tea, Chair Of The Board for Beyond Meat and most recently, the co-founder of Eat The Change, a mission-driven platform that markets chef-crafted, planet-friendly snacks. In the following clip, pulled from an episode published on April 27, Goldman discussed the importance of winning consumers' trust, why Eat The Change led with mushrooms for its inaugural product line and why the food community has the means to address societal problems. Brands in this episode: Uncle Matt's, Earth & Star, Flock Chicken Chips, Beyond the Equator, COCINA 54, Honey Child Artisan Pops, Singing Pastures, Down to Cook, Daily Crunch Snacks, Grateful Snacking Co, Iya Foods, FUN Sesames, Kuali, Mariam's Garlic Goodness, Chia Smash, Chiki Chiki Boom Boom, Agua Bonita, Electra Drinks, Barcode, Madre Mezcal, Starbucks, Partake Foods, Manitoba Harvest, Mid-Day Squares, Flying Embers, KeVita, Mason Dixie Foods, Honest Tea, Eat The Change, Beyond Meat, Flow Hydration, Hydrant, Pillsbury, Annie's, Larabar, vitaminwater, Kind Snacks

Most small business stories from the pandemic are about about pivoting or perishing, but there's also been an unexpected surge in new small business creation. One example is Agua Bonita, a canned beverage company that launched last year after both of its co-founders were laid off. Dan talks with Agua Bonita co-founder Kayla Castañeda and Techstars founder David Cohen about what it was like for startups over the past 14 months and what recovery means for businesses that didn't even exist before COVID-19. Plus, a conversation with Wall Drug proprietor Rick Hustead. Note: This episode first aired 5/28/21. Due to platform issues that blocked it from some listeners' feeds, we are rerunning it for all listeners. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andy and Maggie take the reins in this episode of Freed Stories to interview our Freed fellow of April, Kayla Castañeda! Kayla is the C.E.O. and co-owner of Agua Bonita, a company that makes healthy and ready-to-drink agua frescas (a traditional Mexican drink). Kayla is here to share her Freed story and share some background information about herself and Agua Bonita! Kayla got her foot in the beverage industry working for Coca-Cola as a market developer. This led to her consulting for beverage startups where she met her would-be Agua Bonita partner, Erin PonTell. She reveals why she centered her company around agua frescas and what her vision is for the company and also talks about how the company came to be and how, because it launched amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it naturally grew into being a direct-to-consumer company. Kayla also shares some insightful advice with listeners who might be on (or plan to soon be on) a similar path as hers. For example, we at Freed often say that the road to entrepreneurship can sometimes be lonely, and Kayla says that a major factor in having combatted that for her is having a partner in the business, so she recommends having a partner and/or co-founder if possible. She shares that that has also helped her stay on top of things and be efficient because work can be delegated between her and Erin depending on their individual strengths and skills. Kayla also recommends staying true to yourself and to your vision, even if that means not keeping up with what's trendy! We hope that you enjoyed our conversation with Kayla of Agua Bonita and that you will stay tuned as more guests share their stories of entrepreneurship – their successes, their failures, their goals, their hopes, and so on. Be sure to also hit the subscribe button so that you never miss an episode, and remember to free your mind; free your media!   Time Stamps [1:12] – Andy reveals this episode's guest to be Kayla of Agua Bonita. [1:40] – Kayla provides us with some background information about herself and her company. [4:21] – Kayla discusses the gap in the beverage industry and how she wanted to fill that gap with Agua Bonita. [6:18] – Andy enthuses over the importance of your company being unique even if you're in a category that already exists. [7:30] – Kayla compares Agua Bonita's products to traditional agua frescas. [9:28] – Kayla reflects on drinking agua frescas as a child. [11:10] – We learn about some of the spices that Agua Bonita tends to incorporate into its drinks. [12:48] – Kayla shares what the process of going from the kitchen to commercial formulation has been like. [15:46] – Kayla elaborates upon her experience with an accelerator program. [18:49] – We discover how Kayla has avoided loneliness in the world of entrepreneurship. [21:19] – Agua Bonita, Kayla explains, is currently a direct-to-consumer company. [23:55] – Kayla had predicted that Agua Bonita's products would be most popular in southern California and southern Texas, a hypothesis that was proven true. [25:16] – Kayla expounds upon how she and Erin manage their time and stay on top of things. [27:27] – We receive a couple tidbits of advice from Kayla: (1) network as often as you can and (2) budget efficiently. [29:55] – Kayla credits LinkedIn as an invaluable resource. [30:33] – Kayla also recommends and gives some background information on the book Capital Gaines by Chip Gaines. [31:39] – We learn what Kayla would tell herself five years ago if she could. [32:01] – Kayla hopes to still feel good about what she does five years from now.   Links and Resources Freed Fellowship - Website Freed Fellowship's Twitter Page Email Us: team@freedfellowship.com Agua Bonita - Website Agua Bonita - Instagram Page LinkedIn - Website Chip Gaines – Capital Gaines: The Smart Things I've Learned by Doing Stupid Stuff

This week, we're joined by Alexander Harik, founder and CEO of Zesty Z, a brand of condiments, popcorn and seasonings inspired by the Mediterranean diet. Born in Brooklyn, Zesty Z debuted in 2017 and has attempted to introduce Middle Eastern flavors to American households via easily understood and accessible products, beginning with its flagship zaatar and olive oil blend, which gained national distribution at Whole Foods within a year of its launch. The company has since extended the brand via a three-SKU line of popcorn infused with Mediterranean flavors, such as thyme and feta, and a line of table seasonings, which includes everything bagel and zaatar varieties.  In an interview featured in this episode, Harik discussed the duality of Zesty Z as an authentic Mediterranean food brand whose products are designed to reach a broad set of consumers, how he initially won over independent retailers on his way to coast-to-coast distribution, the process of scaling from a single product to a platform brand and how he's navigated challenges and surprising roadblocks as an Arab-American food entrepreneur. Show notes:  0:48: Sipping Aguas Frescas Out Of A Trophy… It's A Thing. Also, You'll Want Your Microwave For This. -- NOSH reporter Erin Cabrey helped kick off this episode, which arrived just ahead of BevNET and NOSH's Virtually Live Summer 2021. The hosts discussed the agenda for the event, which is loaded with informative panels, interactive discussions and much more, along with the recently held New Beverage Showdown 21 competition, which was won by aguas frescas brand Agua Bonita. Later, they spoke about an innovative take on microwave popcorn, exquisite frozen desserts, better-for-you pantry staples and “electrifying” beverages. 18:51: Interview: Alexander Harik, Founder/CEO, Zesty Z -- Harik sat down with Taste Radio editor Ray Latif and spoke about the origins of the company, how its whimsical name differentiates Zesty Z from legacy Mediterranean food brands and the key elements of a first market-viable product. He also explained his process for landing the brand's first 25 retailers, how he built strong relationships with local and national Whole Foods buyers and how he chose popcorn as the brand's second and most scalable product line. Later, he discussed how the bigotry and racism he experienced in the wake of 9/11 impacted his journey as a food entrepreneur and why he's concerned that Arab-Americans are not classified as a minority group by some industry organizations.  Brands in this episode: Zesty Z, La Colombe, A Dozen Cousins, Agua Bonita, Olipop, Opopop, Dolcezza Gelato, Vybes, Electra, Unlit, High Road Craft Ice Cream, Incredo Spreads, Not Just Co., Nutella, Siete, Dang Foods

We chat with Erin PonTell and Kayla Castañeda from Agua Bonita about how they launched their brand during covid, the pivots they had to make, and how they have positioned themselves as the drink of Summer 2021. https://www.drinkaguabonita.com/ https://www.instagram.com/drinkaguabonita/ https://www.westock.io/

Most small business stories from the pandemic are about about pivoting or perishing, but there's also been an unexpected surge in new small business creation. One example is Agua Bonita, a canned beverage company that launched last year after both of its co-founders were laid off. Dan talks with Agua Bonita co-founder Kayla Castañeda and Techstars founder David Cohen about what it was like for startups over the past 14 months and what recovery means for businesses that didn't even exist before COVID-19. Plus, a conversation with Wall Drug proprietor Rick Hustead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aqua Bonita makes the first 100% real fruit, ready-to-drink aguas frescas. Inspired by perfectly delicious, fresh produce that would otherwise go to waste, and fueled by a passion to create something culturally authentic, unique, better for the planet, and beautiful, Kayla Castañeda co-founded Agua Bonita. Kayla joins Justin to discuss this fresh beverage concept.