The Startup CPG Podcast

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Daniel Scharff sits down with Chiara Munzi, co-founder of ChiChi Foods — the winner of Startup CPG's first-ever Expo West Pitch Slam, powered by Advantage FDM Sales. ChiChi makes the world's first chickpea hot cereal: a shelf-stable, high-protein, high-fiber breakfast that cooks just like instant oatmeal but delivers everything oatmeal doesn't — more protein, more fiber, and none of the sugar crash.

Chiara shares the full story: how she and co-founder Izzy started mushing chickpeas in their college dorm room after realizing their morning oatmeal was leaving them hungry and crashing an hour later, how they applied to every pitch competition at Expo West instead of paying for a booth, and what it felt like to walk into a room of 200 people and a panel of top retail and distribution judges expecting eight.

Daniel and Chiara walk through the entire Pitch Slam experience — from the application strategy to the five-minute pitch, the surprise questions from the judges, the tight deliberations, and the moment ChiChi was named the winner. A huge thank you to Advantage FDM Sales for making this possible by awarding ChiChi Foods their FDM Brand Accelerator Program — a $150,000 prize package designed to help emerging brands build velocity in retail through demos, field support, and brand-building services. They also get into exactly how ChiChi plans to use the prize — primarily for in-store demos as they head into new regional retail launches this summer and fall — and why demos are the single best marketing tool for a product people need to taste to believe.

Listen in as they cover:
How ChiChi Foods started in a college dorm room and why chickpeas beat oatmeal on every nutritional metric
The strategy of applying to every Expo West competition instead of buying a booth — and why it paid off
What the judging panel looked like: Sprouts, Whole Foods, Hannaford, UNFI Up Next, and Advantage FDM Sales
What it felt like to pitch in front of 200 people when you were expecting eight judges
The honest answer Chiara gave Sprouts about organic and non-GMO certifications — and why it didn't hurt them
Why ChiChi won: product differentiation, a genuine origin story, and grit that came through in every moment
How the FDM Brand Accelerator Program could translate to thousands of in-store sampling events across new retail doors
Why founder-led demos create a different kind of consumer connection — and why it matters for early-stage brands
The long game of building relationships at shows: why the people you meet now might change your business three years later

Whether you're an early-stage brand wondering whether to spend money on a booth, a founder about to pitch to retail buyers for the first time, or someone who just needs a reminder that applying for everything is always worth it, this episode is for you.

Episode Links:
ChiChi Foods Website: https://chickpeaoats.com 
Chiara Munzi on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chiaramunzi/ 
ChiChi Foods on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/chichifoods/ 
Advantage FDM Sales: https://www.advantagefdm.com

⁠Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.

Show Links:

Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)
Follow @startupcpg
Visit host Daniel's Linkedin 
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected]
Episode music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Hannah Dittman sits down with Bill Schultz, Partner at Beliade Consumer Partners — a venture fund focused exclusively on founder-led consumer brands across food and beverage, personal care, beauty, and lifestyle. Bill brings a rare combination of Wall Street pattern recognition and early-stage brand investing experience to the table, having spent the first decade of his career at Goldman Sachs covering publicly traded consumer and retail companies before joining Beliade, where he's now in his seventh year backing breakout challenger brands.

Beliade invests at seed to Series A, writing first checks into companies approaching $1M in revenue and supporting them through the $1–10M growth phase. What sets them apart is a laser focus on disruptor brands in large, established categories — think Little Sesame in hummus or Coterie in diapers — and a deep conviction that the rise of the modern American family is the most powerful structural consumer shift happening right now.

Bill and Hannah dig into everything founders need to know about the fundraising process: how investors actually think about unit economics and contribution margins, why financial savviness is one of the strongest predictors of founder success, and how to come into a raise with a clear, specific ask that builds conviction fast. They also get into the mindset questions every founder should ask themselves before raising a single venture dollar — and why honest self-reflection about what kind of business you want to build matters more than most people realize.

They also walk through Beliade's full diligence process, from first conversation to term sheet, with clear, practical insight founders can use to prepare.

Listen in as they cover:
Bill's path from Goldman Sachs covering public consumer companies to backing early-stage challenger brands at Beliade
Beliade's investment thesis: categories, stage, check size, and what makes a disruptor brand worth backing
The rise of the modern American family — and why it's the structural shift driving the best consumer opportunities right now
Why founders should think less about trends and more about enduring long-term changes
The honest question every founder should ask themselves before raising venture capital
Why financial savviness is one of the strongest predictors of long-term founder success
Unit economics and contribution margin — what they mean, why they matter, and what Beliade uses as a north star
The diligence process from first conversation to funded — what happens at each step and how long it takes
Why building investor relationships before you have a capital need is the smartest fundraising strategy
What Beliade looks for in a founder: the ability to operate at 50,000 feet and zoom into the details

Whether you're a founder preparing to fundraise, an operator trying to understand how investors underwrite opportunities, or just someone who wants a clearer picture of how early-stage CPG capital actually works, this episode is packed with practical, hard-won insight.

Episode Links:
Beliade Consumer Partners: https://www.beliade.com
Bill Schultz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billcschultz/
Beliade on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beliade/

Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.

Show Links:
Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)
Follow @startupcpg
Visit host Hannah's Linkedin 
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected]
Episode music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Caitlin Bricker sits down with Marc Brown, founder of ONOIN — a line of shelf-stable, pre-chopped and flavored onions in 100% olive oil designed to save you time and tears in the kitchen. ONOIN comes in four flavors — original, garlic and herb, jalapeño lime, and ginger and lemongrass — and is designed to go on or in anything, from eggs to meatballs to savory oatmeal bowls.

Marc is a food scientist with a master's degree from Drexel University and a seriously stacked background: R&D and industrialization at Danone, Head of R&D as employee #8 at Clio Snacks, and R&D and contract manufacturing work at Hain Celestial. He came to founding ONOIN with a rare 360-degree view of the food industry — from bench science to co-manufacturer negotiations to retailer conversations — and shares hard-won lessons throughout this conversation.

Together, Caitlin and Marc dig into why chopped onions in a jar hadn't been done before (and why it should have been), the origin story of the ONOIN name (credit goes to his brother-in-law at a backyard grill), and what makes a co-manufacturer relationship truly work. Marc breaks down the three-part pricing transparency framework every brand should demand from their co-man — raw, pack, and toll — and explains why trust and belief in your vision are just as important as the contract.

They also get into the realities of early-stage distribution, how to build a velocity story with the right retail partners, and why knowing your product well enough to tell a buyer exactly why they need it on the shelf is non-negotiable.

Listen in as they cover:
How a graduate school innovation exercise sparked the idea for ONOIN
Why shelf-stable pre-chopped onions solve a problem that fresh never fully could
The naming journey from "Yun" to ONOIN — and why the name works on shelf
The three things every brand must demand from their co-manufacturer: raw, pack, and toll
Red flags when vetting a co-man and why trust is the ultimate filter
How Marc's background at Danone, Clio Snacks, and Hain Celestial shaped his approach to founding
Building a velocity story with retailers who actually believe in your product
Why knowing your product's ideal placement in store can change your whole sales conversation
Reducing food waste — one of ONOIN's often-overlooked benefits

Whether you're a founder navigating co-manufacturer relationships, a food scientist thinking about making the jump to your own brand, or a buyer looking for the next smart pantry staple, this episode is for you.

Episode Links:
ONOIN Website: https://eatonoin.com 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eat.onoin/ 
Marc Brown on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marc-brown-41500546/

Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.
Show Links:

Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)
Follow @startupcpg
Visit host Caitlin's Linkedin 
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected]
Episode music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Daniel Scharff sits down with Rebecca Urciuolo, a formulator with over 23 years of food and beverage experience at BevSource (FB Solutions Group), to dig into one of the most exciting and most misunderstood parts of building a CPG brand: working with a formulator to bring your product to life. From how to write a great project brief to what happens when things go sideways at the co-manufacturer, Rebecca shares hard-won lessons and insider knowledge that every founder — at any stage — needs to hear.

Rebecca opens with a clear message: the best founders are partners, not passengers. They come with a firm goal in mind, stay present through the iteration process, and actively want to learn — because understanding what you don't know will inevitably make your product better. Daniel reflects on his own experience formulating a beverage during the early pandemic days, calling it one of the most joyful parts of his CPG career.

The conversation covers the most common early-stage mistakes founders make when approaching a formulator: coming in too vague, being too rigid, or not understanding the regulatory and packaging constraints that shape what's actually possible. Rebecca explains how to write a strong project brief, why reference products are half the job, and how the tasting and feedback process works — including the vocabulary founders need to give useful, actionable notes.

They also get into the nuances that make beverage formulation uniquely complex: the chicken-and-egg relationship between formulation and co-manufacturer selection, how packaging constraints shape your formula, what to do when an ingredient gets discontinued, and how your product will continue to evolve on shelf over its entire life. Rebecca walks through the gold standard process at first production, what to watch for at the co-man, and how to think about COGS and ingredient exposure from the very beginning.

Whether you're developing your first SKU, scaling to a co-manufacturer, or trying to understand why your formula tastes different six months in, this episode gives you the practical framework you didn't know you needed.

Listen in as they discuss:
Why your project brief is the single most important thing you can bring to a formulator — and what it needs to include
How reference products and flavor inspiration cut feedback cycles and unlock a formulator's creativity
The vocabulary of tasting: body, brix, mouthfeel, and why learning to give articulate feedback changes everything
Why packaging and co-manufacturer selection can't be decoupled from formulation — and how to think about the chicken-and-egg problem
What happens at the first production run: the gold standard process, what to watch for, and when to bring your formulator on-site
How your product changes over time on shelf — and how shelf life studies help you understand what you're actually selling at month nine or twelve
COGS 101: novel ingredients, ingredient exposure, and why "welcome to capitalism" is the honest answer

Episode Links:
Rebecca Urciuolo – Formulator, BevSource (FB Solutions Group)

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccaurciuolo/

BevSource LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bevsource/ 
Website: https://www.bevsource.com

FB Solutions Group (FBSG) is the strategic partner for food & beverage entrepreneurs, providing end-to-end development, production, and sourcing solutions. Through our specialized divisions—BevSource, AlcSource and iTi Tropicals—we offer the operational expertise and infrastructure needed to optimize supply chains and accelerate growth for emerging brands.

Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.

Show Links:

Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)
Follow @startupcpg
Visit host Daniel's Linkedin 
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected]
Episode music by Super Fantastics

In this episode of R&D Radio, hosted by food scientist Adam Yee, Adam sits down with Monte Ammons, founder of Liquid Sherpas. With more than 30 years spanning food service, Coca-Cola, Community Coffee, and natural ingredient sales at Dohler, Monte brings a uniquely operational lens to product development — one built not in a lab, but on the floor of real businesses learning hard lessons the hard way.

Monte makes the case that most founders jump straight into formulation when they should be doing the opposite: starting with a product brief, understanding the business, and doing the competitive homework before a single ingredient is sourced. He walks through how one client nearly launched into a saturated market — then pivoted his entire proposition 35 degrees by doing the upfront work first.

Listen in as they discuss:

Why formulation should be one of the last steps in product development, not the first
What a technical product brief is and how it prevents costly downstream surprises
How a client shifted consumer target, functional benefit, format, and channel — before spending real money
The realities of natural ingredient supply chains: seasonality, tariffs, sedimentation, and more
Why founders should start small, stay flexible, and invest as little as possible early on
How to research your category by talking to founders, breweries, and operators who've done it
The role of AI as a research accelerator — and why you still shouldn't ask it to develop your formula
Why the beverage industry's failure rate is so high, and what separates founders who make it

Episode Links:
Monte Ammons — Founder, Liquid Sherpas
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ammons/
🔗 Website: www.liquidsherpas.com

Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.
Show Links:

Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)
Follow @startupcpg
Visit host Adam's Linkedin 
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at [email protected]
Episode music by Super Fantastics