Ep. 187 – An Intro to the Foodservice Industry with Stephanie Lind, Founder of Elohi

The name of the game in this episode is food service, an area that’s not well talked about yet it dwarfs retail space. Think about it, lunch spots, schools, universities, and prisons all use the foodservice channels to feed people and this channel has its own challenges. That’s where Stephanie Lind comes in.

Stephanie Lind has a good understanding of the food system and I like to say I do too so we get into some really complex discussions about supply chain in the foodservice industry.

So you will learn a ton about the complex world of foodservice and I hope this interview helps you discover this whole new world right under your nose.

Founder and Chief Strategy Officer
Elohi Strategic Advisors

Stephanie Lind is the Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer of Elohi Strategic Advisors, a firm she founded in early 2015.  She works closely with emerging natural and sustainable food and beverage companies as well as their venture capital and private equity investors. Elohi acts as a full service commercialization engine and provides holistic Go-To-Market strategies, outsourced sales execution, robust product innovation road maps and B2B marketing services.

Prior to returning to Elohi Strategic Advisors in January 2019, Stephanie lead the global sales initiatives for Impossible Foods which included sales strategy for all channels (foodservice, industrial and retail), sales operations, B2B marketing and product innovation.  She has over 25 years of experience across Sales, Marketing and Supply Chain working for Fortune 500 companies including PepsiCo, Sysco, McDonald’s supply chain partner Havi Logistics as well as smaller, privately owned businesses including those started by her parents.

Stephanie earned her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Washington and Lee University and her MBA in Marketing from DePaul University.

She is a member of the National Small Business Association (NSBA) Leadership Council, Women’s Presidents Organization, the Plant-Based Food Association and acts as a mentor for the Big Idea Ventures accelerator.  Outside of work, Stephanie and her husband enjoy spending time with their three dogs and four cats, exploring their new community in Half Moon Bay, California and volunteering.

We’re excited to be partnering with Smart Kitchen Summit {SKS}, the leading food tech event bringing together leaders across the food and cooking ecosystems.

Now in its fifth year, #SKS2019 is *the* conference shaping the future of food, technology, and the kitchen. Well-known leaders within the food tech industry will all be speaking on engaging topics such as food robots, alternative protein, and connected kitchen devices such as smart refrigerators.

Trust us, you’ll want to be there. Use code FOODJOB15 to get a 15% discount on tickets and I’ll see you there on October 7-8 at in Seattle. Just go to smartkitchensummit.com to register. For easy access, just click on our link for this episode’s show notes.

What are the cultural differences between Chicago and the Bay Area?: There’s a surge of new brands in the Chicago area. There are a ton of big food companies in that area. For the Bay Area, you have the money.
Good Food Business Accelerator
I teach emerging sustainable brands how to navigate the world of food service
What is food service?: Commercial and Non-commercial. Basically those that choose to feed people and those that need to feed people
We have a bootcamp that funnels our clients through the food service channel
Hidden Cost: Distance, Freight Charges, Booking trucks, lack of data
Does food service price lower?: It depends
What would you tell a new person who wants to distribute their product?: You have to make your product in your backyard. Not only literally, but also figuratively (as in local). Have B2B marketing, especially in the ingredient end. The consumer isn’t walking in expecting your brand.
For restaurants:
Does it increase traffic? Does it increase the check? Does it decrease labor/waste costs?
How do you market B2B?: It’s not sexy. A lot of B2C marketers hate food service marketing.
Does my website answer the questions? Can I sample the product in the industry? For chefs, they use Instagram and that might be an angle for B2B.
There are a ton more foodservice institutions than retail institutions
The steps it took to get to where you are today: I graduated in college during the recession and started with being a truck driver for Pepsico.
Then worked as a supervisor at a distribution center
Nabisco
Mass Drug Club Convenience (ALDI, for example)
Went back to pepsico
Laid off, then went back to Distribution
Elohi – Cherokee word for Earth or Mother Earth
How was working at Impossible Foods?: Money doesn’t solve every problem, but it gets you there faster
They are great for PR and excellent In communicating their brand.
Strategy: going towards innovative chefs
Blitzscaling
Food service is very unforgiving. Build slowly and cater to the customers you have. If you run out, you’re screwed
Any advice for anyone in sales?: You have to listen. And you have to approach them to help them solve their problem.
What type of food trends are exciting you?: Food is medicine
ZOLA – Cannibis industry
How do you focus without the hype? (Cannibis industry): Keep your emotions out of it, and think of the what-if scenario planning. If big companies move, you’ll go from fad to trend
What about plant- based meat?: iternations will focus more on fat or less processed.
PDCAAS
What in the food industry you’d like to know more about?: The marriage between science and innovation, marketing, sales, etc. I’d love to understand the science.
Favorite Kitchen Item: Bunn Single Serve Coffee. I also like Mugs
The ritual of coffee
Do you have a favorite meal?: A meal at home.
Do you have any advice for anyone in the industry?: Get as much cross-functional training as you can. If you want to start your own business, it’s really hard and will take a long time. Sometimes you have to fail to learn something
How do you reflect being fired?: You have to learn from it. The higher you go in an organization, the bigger the risk it is to be fired because there’s bigger risk. If you see someone let go at a senior level, you never know what’s happening in an organization. Also, there is a difference between organization versus background.
The Hard Thing About Hard Things.
Find Stephanie on LinkedIn or her email here: [email protected]