One Hot Potato!! Swiss Rosti on the NexxtLevel Brands Podcast!

Steven Caldwell is the Co-founder of Swiss Rosti, a crispy potato filled with cheese or vegetables. The company is based out of Portland, Oregon, and is run by Steve & his wife Lory. Swiss Rosti is non-GMO, gluten-free, vegetarian, and has less than 100 calories.

Steve‘s background is in sales & marketing and he’s spent many years in the kitchen as an amateur chef. His frozen Swiss Rosti comes in three different flavors and is available at Whole Foods, Market of Choice, QVC, and other food stores.

[00:52] Steve introduces his guest, Steve Caldwell

[01:45] Steve Caldwell explains what Swiss Rosti is & how he found it

[04:09] How Steve & his wife started making Swiss Rosti 

[08:43] How Steve got his first order at a testing event in Oregon

[10:41] Steve talks about how he started mass producing his product

[13:44] How Steve's background in sales & marketing prepared him for his current success

[16:00] How Steve raised capital for his new venture

[18:52] Steve talks about the food stores that sell his product & which ones are in the pipeline

[20:40] How Steve plans to handle the pressure from increased production

[23:58] Swiss Rosti's SKUs and the new flavours they will be launching in 2020

[25:57] Steve talks about using focus groups for testing flavors and the benefit of being in a food incubator

[27:46] Who is the target audience for Swiss Rosti?

[29:37] What surprised Steve after joining the food industry?

[33:02] Steve talks about the reception Swiss Rosti has received from the East Coast

[35:56] Has Steve thought of producing other types of frozen products?

[41:00] Steve's advice to fellow entrepreneurs & founders based on his experience

In this episode…

While traveling in Brazil, Steve Caldwell tested a Swiss Rosti for the first time & couldn’t get enough of it. When he got back home in the United States, he tried to look for it but couldn't find it anywhere. So he & his wife Lory started making Swiss Rosti at home. 

Steve’s family & friends loved the Swiss Rosti so much and kept asking them to make them commercially. A few years later, the couple decided to set up a business and then successfully launched the product into the market. Since then the company has experienced rapid growth & the product keeps gaining market traction.

Steve Caldwell joins G. Steven Cleere, host of the Nexxt Level Brands Podcast, to talk about how he came to know about Swiss Rosti, the steps he took to launch his product, and his experience in the Oregon State Food Incubator. Stay tuned.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Kitchen2Shelf

Nexxt Level Marketing

Swiss Rosti 

Steve's email: [email protected] 

Oregon State Food Incubator 

The Fancy Food Show 

Steve Cleere’s interview with Mark Samuel, Founder & CEO of IWON Organics

Steve Caldwell on LinkedIn

Sponsor for this episode...

Our podcast today is sponsored by Kitchen2Shelf, the educational arm of NexxtLevel Brands. Kitchen-2-Shelf provides online and in-person courses and workshops for CPG entrepreneurs at any stage of growth. 

Whether you're an early-stage startup, a local growing business, or if you want to just expand your distribution to a national level, Kitchen-2-Shelf can help you learn what you need to know to grow.