Diverse Foods & Families with David Fullner & Daniel Auld of Kekoa Foods
Have you ever found yourself in a grocery store, staring at rows of bland baby food jars and thinking, “There's got to be a better way?” Today, we sit down with David Fullner and Daniel Auld to discuss how their company, Kekoa Foods, is revolutionizing the baby food space. Kekoa Foods specializes in producing organic baby food and aims to provide nutrient-rich, natural, and organic food options that promote healthy infant development. In our conversation, we unpack how trying to find healthy, palate-expanding baby food for their son prompted starting their company, why variety in a baby’s diet is vital, how the company contributes to and celebrates diversity, and the hard lessons from their entrepreneurial journey. Discover why you don’t need to know everything about business to be an entrepreneur, the ups and downs of the CPG learning curve, why you don’t need to sweat the small stuff, and more. Join us as we explore how Kekoa Foods is nourishing the next generation with David Fullner and Daniel Auld!
Key Points From This Episode:
How Kate Flynn discovered manifHow the premature birth of their son caused the start of their business.
Discover the company’s ethos around diversity and community.
Hear how they learned the fundamentals of running a business.
Fostering healthy adventurous eaters with their baby food products.
Find out where the habit of making their own food originated.
Why it essential to involve children in making and cooking food.
Ways their backgrounds and skills make for a good partnership.
Learn about the lessons and unexpected challenges they overcame.
Explore the current product range that Kekoa Foods has on offer.
Their biggest wins and what they have planned for the company.
Recommendations and resources for startups in the CPG space.
“For me, [making your own food] was there since childhood because we always made food growing up from scratch.” — David Fullner [0:06:13]
“[Reading books about running a business] is nice [from] a theoretical point of view but [for] the actual aspects of running your business there is no handbook for it.” — David Fullner [0:09:34]
“I think we both acquired different skills from our careers that were very transferrable [to running a business].” — Daniel Auld [0:10:18]
“You eat what you know.” — Daniel Auld [0:13:24]
“It is just as important to involve your child in the making of the food so that way they understand what goes into it.” — Daniel Auld [0:17:31]
“We ask questions and it is okay not to know. You just got to keep moving forward and figure it out, and you will get there.” — David Fullner [0:34:30]
“Do not interpret kindness and inclusivity as being weak or unknowing.” — David Fullner [0:51:17]
