NexxtLevel Brands Podcast G. Steven Cleere - NexxtLevel Brands

Encore Presentation
Brian Tate is the Founder and CEO of Oats Overnight. He studied at the Grande Valley University for two years before leaving to pursue professional poker. After more than a decade of playing high-stakes poker, he took his passion for risk, analytics, and game theory and applied that expertise where it was needed: the crowded breakfast foods industry.
As a health and fitness enthusiast, Brian had already spent years experimenting with homemade oatmeal recipes that complemented his workout regimen and demanding schedule at the poker tables. Looking for a more convenient shelf-stable alternative that would save him time without compromising on nutrition, he created Oats Overnight. Oats Overnight is the first spoon-free, high-protein oats formula. Since its start, the Oats Overnight team has grown to generate eight figures in annual revenue and served 10 million meals.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 
Brian Tate's background playing professional poker and how that led to the founding of Oats Overnight
How Brian started selling his product commercially and where he got the finances to start his business
Oats Overnight's journey to retail storefronts and through e-commerce sites
How Brian handles his company's fulfillment process
How the COVID-19 pandemic impacted Oats Overnight and how they allow their customers to customize purchases
Brian talks about the company's plans and future product lines
Brian's experience transitioning from playing poker to becoming a CEO
The partners Brian has been working with and his exit strategy
Brian's advice to fellow entrepreneurs on building a successful business
In this episode…
Playing poker requires a lot from you: time, energy, and especially, mental clarity. To stay on top of the game, players have to work out as often as they can and ensure that they eat clean, healthy food regularly. This is why Brian Tate started making his own oats cereals for breakfast. When he realized his product wasn’t really accessible in the market, he decided to start making them commercially.
Similar to playing poker, Brian found out that you can't control everything that happens in the business world — but you can control the processes, systems, and decisions that you make based on the information you have. Some business decisions can lead to bad results that need adjusting, but usually, entrepreneurs just have to stay focused and learn from their mistakes.
In this episode of the NexxtLevel Brands Podcast, Steve Cleere interviews Brian Tate, the Founder and CEO of Oats Overnight, about starting and scaling a breakfast cereal CPG brand. Brian shares his experience playing poker professionally, growing sales through retail and e-commerce, and how his company provides customized products to customers.
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Encore Presentation: In this episode, we’re welcoming back Alex Bayer, Co-Founder and CEO of Genius Juice for an update. Genius Juice was featured on Shark Tank, they received Bevnet Smoothie of the Year, and Alex is now the host of two podcasts –15 Minutes of Genius and Friday Vibes, and he’s here to tell us about the latest news and progress around Genius Juice.
Genius Juice is the world's first all-organic plant-based smoothie made from the whole coconut. It blends only two ingredients: organic coconut water and organic meat to make a creamy, delicious and clean smoothie. Founded in January 2014, Genius prides itself on having 'No Dumb Stuff' in its smoothies. NO Gums/Emulsifiers, NO Natural Flavors, NO Stevia or Monk Fruit, and NO Added Sugar.
Join us as we discuss how the pandemic and supply chain issues affected Genius Juice (or didn’t), the benefits of their appearance on Shark Tank, how their business plan has matched up to reality, and hear some great advice from Alex on projections, investors, margins, and not overdoing it with product distribution.
The “NexxtLevel Brands Podcast’ is hosted by G. Steven Cleere, Founder and “Chief Pot Stirrer” of NexxtLevel Brands. This show focuses on disruptors and thought-leaders from the Entrepreneurial Food, Beverage, and CPG Industry, but we also share tips from veterans and key suppliers that may help fellow CPG professionals achieve their goals.
Discussion Points

Welcome back to the show Alex Bayer
Last time, you didn’t have a podcast!? Now you have two…
Time commitments and guest availability for 52 weeks of podcasts
How did your success escalate after Shark Tank?
The initial burst, and the long-term relationships from Shark Tank appearance
How did your business plan stack up against the actual results?
How did Genius deal with the pandemic– team and supply chain?
We want to do more team events, even though we are all virtual, we love being together
How is your business different now, than when you appeared on Shark Tank?
Being cautious about where you distribute your product– sales per door more important than the number of doors
The learnings from placement in 600 Publix stores in the Florida market
Pricing your product – promos vs. debuting at regular price
Any “Oh Shit” moments you want to share?
Pitching to investors, under-promising, over-delivering, investors never forget when you fall short of projections

Encore: Today I’m welcoming back Michael Movitz, of the Movitz group, and co- founding partner of Brandjectory, a one-of-a-kind relationship-building platform for early-stage CPG founders and investors to help discover each other. We last spoke in October of 2020, so we have plenty to hear about Brandjectory and its journey since then.
Michael's career includes 16 years with SPINS at various senior-level positions in the Natural, Organic, and Speciality Products Industry, and in the Natural Products Division of the J.M. Smucker Company.  He is the Founder and Managing Partner of The Movitz Group, an advisory group of industry experts that help early-stage conscious brands raise capital and build go-to-market strategies. He has spent 30 years in the CPG industry working with conscious and premium products.
In this episode you’ll hear how Brandjectory works today vs. when it began, some highlights of Brandjectory’s recent history including functioning as the contest platform for the Naturally New York Slam Pitch, and some general insight into the industry as it stands today.
The “NexxtLevel Brands Podcast’ is hosted by G. Steven Cleere, Founder and “Chief Pot Stirrer” of NexxtLevel Brands. This show focuses on disruptors and thought-leaders from the Entrepreneurial Food, Beverage, and CPG Industry, but we also share tips from veterans and key suppliers that may help fellow CPG professionals achieve their goals.
 
Discussion Points

Michael was last on the podcast in October of 2020
How Brandjectory works
The process - everything CPG all together at BrandJectory - investors are matched with brands on a “dating service” type of match maker
Business today vs original business plan - getting great value from virtual interactions/meetings
This year’s slam pitch -the Spring 2022 Naturally New York slam pitch details
The current state of CPG capital raising - Investors are holding back because of uncertainty, more strict and rigid, requiring a clear “path to profitability”
Canada’s new labeling requirements are highlighting anything over the recommended daily allowance
Sustainability - Organic was the thing for the last 20 years, and the next 20 are going to be about sustainability- carbon, food waste, social/animal welfare, environmental welfare, recycling/reducing, etc.
In a survey of 5-6-year-old kids, 85% want to ‘save the world’
Acquisitions of smaller brands by the giants - how and why it sometimes doesn't work
“Better for you” products currently only comprise 15-30% of the market, real change will come when it’s made bigger inroads
Diluting founders’ equity/ raising capital from investors - striking a balance is not easy
Retailers are beginning to understand the cash flow needs of suppliers
Words to grow by: “There are seven days in the week, and ‘someday’ isn’t one of them”

 
Resources:
Michael Movitz on LinkedIn
Brandjectory Website
NexxtLevel Brands Website
G.Steven Cleere LinkedIn

Encore Presentation: Najwa Khan is the Founder of dalci, a line of gut-healthy brownies. Najwa started the company after struggling to find healthy snacks that could satisfy her craving for sweets. She has over 10 years of experience in the health and wellness space, having worked in various roles for nonprofits, market research firms, healthcare and technology startups, and DTC wellness brands. She also has a master's degree in public health.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 
What drove Najwa Khan to CPG entrepreneurship?
How Najwa started making brownies at home and how she used focus groups to validate her product
Did Najwa prepare a business plan when starting her business?
Najwa explains how she built an e-commerce store and how she handled fulfillment during the COVID-19 pandemic
How Najwa marketed her business through social media, built a community, and bettered her customers' experience 
What does dalci stand for?
The biggest challenge Najwa has had to overcome while growing her business
Najwa outlines dalci's processes for shipping, storage, and production
Najwa talks about dalci's future products, how she built her team, and her plans to start selling on Amazon
Najwa's advice to fellow entrepreneurs on starting a business
In this episode...
Are you in need of a healthy sweet? Are you looking for a gut friendly and healthy dessert that you can enjoy without worrying about eating too much sugar and carbs? 
Living a healthy lifestyle doesn’t mean that you have to stop eating indulgent foods completely. For Najwa Khan, a gut friendly brownie is a great alternative to the decadent desserts out there. She believes in helping people understand sugar and carbs instead of fearing them—and so, her line of organic, non-GMO, gluten-free, and gut-healthy brownies was born.
In this episode of the NexxtLevel Brands Podcast, Steve Cleere is joined by Najwa Khan, the Founder of dalci, to talk about building a gut-friendly, healthy, and better-for-you dessert brand. Najwa explains what inspired her to start the brand, talks about the challenges she has faced growing the business, and shares her future plans for dalci. Stay tuned.
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Resources Mentioned in this episode
 
dalci
Najwa Khan on LinkedIn
 
 
Cool News: 

Matt Weiss is the Founder and CEO of RIND Snacks, a better-for-you snack company focused on whole fruit nutrition. After a nearly two-decade career in finance, Matt launched RIND Snacks in 2017 and returned to his family's health food roots. His passion for whole foods snacking was inspired by lessons he learned from his great-grandmother, Helen Seitner, a health food pioneer who operated a well-known natural food store in Michigan in the 1920s.
RIND Snacks’ dried fruit snacks maximize nutrition while minimizing waste by focusing on the power of the peel. Today, Matt’s company sits right at the intersection of two of the most powerful trends in CPG: functional nutrition and sustainable snacking. Through the company, Matt continues his great-grandmother's legacy of sustainable snacking with a modern twist by encouraging his consumers to keep it real and eat the peel.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn: 
Matt Weiss explains how RIND Snacks came about and talks about the benefits of eating fruit peels
How Matt became a food entrepreneur, how his great grandmother influenced him, why he chose to work with dried fruits, and how he started making his snacks at home
How Matt found the capital he needed to start his dried fruit business
Matt’s experience selling his products on the Amazon marketplace and how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted his business
The challenge of food waste and how RIND Snacks helps cut waste and promote sustainability
The disadvantages of adding sugar to fruits and the types of fruit Matt uses to make RIND Snacks
The new products RIND Snacks has been creating and how Matt positions and sells his snacks in retail stores
Matt talks about a big challenge he faced growing his business and how he handled it
In this episode…
The greatest concentration of fiber, vitamin C, and other important nutrients humans need are usually found in the part of a fruit that’s usually thrown away: the rind. Although there are many dried fruit snacks on the market, most of them have the peels removed and often contain added sugar.
An experience walking through a farmer’s market in California inspired Matt Weiss to start making dried fruit snacks from the peels of different fruits. He started by buying equipment from Amazon to dehydrate the fruits at home and decided to use fruits that were difficult to find in local stores. This wasn’t without its challenges: he later learned that he couldn't dehydrate some fruits with a home dehydrator and at one point ended up blowing out the power in his apartment. But, eventually, he found a winning strategy that just might work for you, too. 
Matt Weiss, the Founder and CEO of RIND Snacks, is Steve Cleere's guest in this week's episode of the NexxtLevel Podcast, where he talks about building his dried fruits CPG business. Matt also talks about the benefits of eating fruit rinds, his grandmother’s influence on him, and how his company helps prevent food waste and promotes sustainability.
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In this Encore  episode we are following up with one of our previous guests, Will Nitze, Founder and CEO of IQBar. We last spoke to Will before the pandemic, so our discussion will cover the last few years and what’s been happening at IQBar, the pandemic and how it affected the company, and future ideas for new product categories.
IQBar’s mission is to empower doers with superior brain and body nutrition. IQBAR makes plant protein bars and IQMIX hydration sticks packed with functional compounds. Every IQBAR product is brain and body nutrition, 100% plant-based, with vegan, nutrient-dense ingredients, low carb and zero gluten, dairy, soy, and no GMOS.
The “NexxtLevel Brands Podcast’ is hosted by G. Steven Cleere, Founder and “Chief Pot Stirrer” of NexxtLevel Brands. This show focuses on disruptors and thought-leaders from the Entrepreneurial Food, Beverage, and CPG Industry, but we also share tips from veterans and key suppliers that may help fellow CPG professionals achieve their goals.
 
Discussion Points

Will’s experience during the pandemic with demand and supply chain issues
Formula changes - Inulin shortage, pea protein
New hydration product line - delivering nutrients with powder packs, retail strategies
Building the IQBar team - keeping it small and lean, evolving with growth
Sales calls and account management - the founder doesn’t always have time
R & D for bars - less skus are better, but some special editions create excitement
Customer feedback - the Costco roadshow garnered 10,000 conversations
Looking at future categories - Will likes “habitual” items relating to things like sleep, coffee, etc.
Fundraising and capital - raising less money more often
Words to Grow by: “Think bigger” - it sounds trite but it’s a good idea to take bigger swings

 
Resources:
Will Nitze LinkedIn
EATIQBAR.com
NexxtLevel Brands Website

Steven Cleere LinkedIn