In this episode I interview Hilary MacMillan, founder of her eponymous women’s fashion brand in Canada. Founded in 2013, Hilary was one of the first Canadian designers to embody the plus-size market within her collections. Having becoming vegan and now sustainable, Hilary’s brand has been a voice of change. In 2017, she launched her Feminist Capsule collection of bomber jackets, which has been worn by fashion icon Victoria Beckham. Hilary donates 15% of all proceeds to Up With Women, an organiza...
Sep 04, 2020•36 min
In this episode I interview Ran Nussbacher, co-founder and CEO of Shouk, a plant-based fast-casual restaurant in Washington D.C that features healthy, Israeli-inspired food. Prior to founding Shouk, Ran served as Vice President of Sales with Opower, a clean tech software company focused on eliminating energy waste and reducing CO2 emissions. In this interview Ran discusses: • Why he left a top position at a software company to start a restaurant • Why Shouk doesn’t use any meat analogues or the ...
Aug 21, 2020•31 min
In this episode I interview Rachel Cook, founder of The Kinder Way in Boston. Rachel is a brand strategist, consumer intelligence expert, and data storyteller who brings decades of experience in the corporate sector to accelerate the growth of the vegan and plant-based industry. Rachel has held leadership roles at a well-established Fortune 100 retailer, a restaurant-focused market research supplier, a successful retail design firm and several high-profile advertising agencies. Her experience sp...
Aug 11, 2020•47 min
In this episode I interview serial social entrepreneur Sonalie Figueiras, the founder and editor-in-chief of Green Queen, an award-winning impact media platform advocating for social and environmental change in Hong Kong with a mission to shift consumer behaviour through inspiring and empowering original content. Green Queen began as a blog and is now currently Asia’s largest plant-based media platform. Sonalie is also the founder and CEO of Ekowarehouse, a global sourcing platform for certified...
Jul 31, 2020•51 min
In this episode I interview Loui Blake, an award-winning vegan marketer and serial entrepreneur in London, UK. Loui is the founder of the UK’s largest plant-based restaurant Erpingham House as well as the Vegan Dough Co, and brand partner for fast-casual plant-based eatery chain by CHLOE. Passionate about plant-based food and sustainable business, Loui is a recognised keynote speaker, having spoken at the London School of Economics, University College London and Goldsmiths University, as well as...
May 08, 2020•53 min
In this episode I interview Grace Regan, founder of SpiceBox, a local curry house in London, UK, which is also vegan. Grace is a serial entrepreneur who cut her teeth in the tech world, with her first start-up Clippet News. In 2015, she won a place on a top Silicon Valley accelerator and moved to California, where she became vegan. Disillusioned by the tech world, Grace moved back to London and started SpiceBox from her home kitchen. She quickly fell into the world of street food, trading at mar...
Apr 24, 2020•41 min
In this episode I interview Sam Dennigan, the founder and CEO of Strong Roots, an Irish plant-based frozen food brand. Founded in 2015, Strong Roots has seen rapid growth in the UK, including being the first frozen food brand (apart from ice cream) to be stocked in Harrods (which is considered to be the UK’s most prestigious and upmarket store where the royals shop). The frozen food brand has also recently launched into the US market in Wegmans, Target and Whole Foods, and secured more than $18 ...
Apr 10, 2020•56 min
This is a special episode of the show, with some tips to help you and your vegan business survive the current COVID-19 coronavirus crisis. I’m joined by three experts: Bob Ratnarajah, a strategic finance practitioner in Australia; Karen Knowler, a business and mindset coach in the UK; and Stephanie Redcross, a business coach and marketing consultant with Vegan Mainstream in the US. Bob provides you with some practical strategies to preserve cash and adapt your business. Karen gives you some grea...
Mar 20, 2020•59 min
In this episode, I interview Michelle Courtright, the owner of Fig + Farro, a mission-based restaurant in Minnesota that educates guests on the environmental benefits of plant-based food. Michelle was part of a business delegation to the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Poland in 2018 and a consultant on the UN’s COP25 menu in Madrid in 2019. She’s been trained by Al Gore as part of the Climate Reality Leadership Corp and worked with the Mayor of Minneapolis to issue a Proclamation...
Mar 07, 2020•52 min
In this episode I’m sharing a talk I gave last year at the World Vegan Day festival in Melbourne, Australia, called ‘Will vegan capitalism save the world?’ It’s a bit of a controversial topic, but one worth exploring as multi-national corporations not known for their ethics in regards to animals, people or planet are jumping on the plant-based trend, bringing out their own animal-free versions of popular products, investing in vegan businesses or buying vegan companies. One of the issues that ke...
Feb 21, 2020•30 min
In this episode I interview Emma Osborne, founder of Citizen Kind, a vegan recruitment firm in the UK. After more than 12 years working for a recruitment firm in Asia, Emma decided to use her international knowledge and corporate experience to work with businesses looking to bring some good into the world. In 2018 she created Citizen Kind, a recruitment company that focuses on working with sustainable, ethical and vegan companies to connect them with the employees they need to help them grow int...
Feb 08, 2020•54 min
In this episode I interview Melissa Murphy-Webster from AVS Organic Foods vegan cheese company in Melbourne, Australia. The company – which was originally called A Vegan Smiles – was the first to produce non-dairy cheese in block form in Australia which Melissa distributed via markets and retail stores. Melissa has a strong business background, including holding an MBA which she completed in 2017. Prior to starting her own business in 2013 she worked for 17 years with The Chemist Warehouse Group...
Jan 17, 2020•53 min
In this episode I interview Rimi Dabhia, founder of vegan snack company LoveRaw in Cheshire, in the north of England. Rimi left behind her career in investment banking and founded LoveRaw, which makes vegan, organic, natural chocolate snacks, in 2013 from her in-law’s home kitchen in Manchester with a budget of just £600. In February 2018 she appeared on Dragon’s Den (the UK equivalent of Shark Tank). Despite receiving an offer of investment from renowned dragon Deborah Meaden, Rimi turned the d...
Dec 14, 2019•56 min
In this episode I interview Alicia Robb, a vegan investor in Colorado in the US. With a strong background in economics, Alicia created Next Wave Impact to increase diversity, inclusion, and impact in early-stage investing. The company’s global fund has 99 female investors, 25 of them women of color, which is led by an experienced investment committee of 10 women. As well as investing in vegan-led companies, Alicia also recently founded Vegan Investors, an angel investor group focused on helping ...
Nov 29, 2019•42 min
In this episode I interview Jeffrey Harris, co-founder of Plant Power Fast Food, a vegan fast food chain in San Diego, California. Jeffrey has spent the past 30 years working in the professional audio industry, mostly as a regional and national sales account manager for top brands. In 2004 he began to contemplate the idea of building a nationwide chain of 100% plant-based fast-food restaurants. After years of searching for partners who had the operational expertise he lacked, Jeffrey eventually ...
Nov 16, 2019•59 min
In this episode I interview Shawna Barker, a plant-based nutritionist in Vancouver, Canada. Shawna is also the owner, manager and in-store nutritionist at Plant Life Nutrition, Vancouver's only fully vegan health food store. She began her journey towards health and nutrition over 25 years ago when she decided to change her diet at a very young age and was determined to learn everything she could about nutrition, food science, natural health, and how to thrive on a plant-based diet. Shawna gradua...
Oct 26, 2019•49 min
In this episode I interview Callee Ackland, founder of Bestowed Essentials, a wholesale distributor, online marketplace, and zero waste retail store selling ethical, vegan and eco-friendly home goods in Rapid City, South Dakota. Callee founded the company three years ago at the age of 23 while still on active duty in the US Navy. A zero waste activist, Callee also hosts the popular Hippie Haven Podcast, a free weekly resource on sustainable living. She also travels the US in a self-converted cam...
Oct 10, 2019•55 min
In this episode, I interview Claire Smith, co-founder of humane investment platform Beyond Investing, in Switzerland. Claire is a vegan and environmentalist with 34 years’ experience in finance and investment at top-tier banks and investment houses, including UBS and Albourne Partners. She’s carried out bespoke hedge fund research, as well as working as a derivatives broker, marketer and structurer, and credit analyst. Beyond Investing creates investment programs designed for animal advocates an...
Sep 27, 2019•1 hr
In this episode I interview Dave Graham, co-founder of Vegan Web Design in Queensland, Australia. Originally from Yorkshire in the UK, Dave spent his early career in software development working for large corporates including Walt Disney and BHP. Since going vegan six years ago he’s now committed to and passionate about using digital marketing to help those helping animals and the environment. Vegan Web Design – which is run by Dave and his wife Sian – works with small animal sanctuaries through...
Aug 26, 2019•1 hr 17 min
In this episode, I interview Christophe Caron, who, with his mother and father, own French vegan restaurant Delice & Sarrasin in New York. Christophe Caron (right) with mother & chef Yvette and father Patrick. Christophe moved from France to New York 10 years ago and spent the first few years as a fashion model, represented by top agencies Wilhemina Models and Ford Models. After becoming vegan he began craving animal-free versions of traditional French food. So he encouraged his mother Y...
Aug 09, 2019•56 min
In this episode I interview John Oberg, a vegan social media marketing expert and influencer in Washington, DC. John is dedicated to making the world a kinder place for animals by utilizing the power of social media. He’s the former Director of New Media for the international animal protection organization, The Humane League. And prior to that, he served as Director of Communications for Vegan Outreach. In both these roles, John oversaw social media for the organizations which led to a tenfold i...
Jul 28, 2019•1 hr 13 min
In this episode I interview Simon Newstead, founder of Bite Society, a new vegan food product company in Melbourne, Australia. A vegan for more than 10 years, Simon’s background is in technology. He’s a co-founder of Frenzoo, a mobile games studio in Hong Kong that has been in operation since 2008. In addition, he’s an angel investor and supporter of other companies including Ocean Hugger Foods, Shiok Meats, Kinds of Grace and Hungry Planet. Bite Society, a zero-profit company, was started in 20...
Jul 13, 2019•54 min
In this episode, I give you some tips on how to respond to queries and callouts from journalists who are working on stories and need expert comment or case studies. It’s one of the easiest ways to get free publicity for your vegan brand. You don’t even have to pitch the journalist or producer a story from scratch – they’re already working on something and are looking for experts in their field to comment or to showcase products. In this episode, I cover: • Where you can find queries and callouts...
Jul 04, 2019•23 min
In this episode I interview Annie Ryu, founder of The Jackfruit Company in Boulder, Colorado in the US. Annie started the company in 2011 while traveling to India as a pre-med student and trying her first jackfruit. She discovered that this large fruit had many nutritional and ecological benefits, but also that the majority of jackfruit grown in India was going to waste. Passionate about global health, Annie saw this as an opportunity to improve lives so while she was still attending Harvard, sh...
Jun 28, 2019•32 min
In this episode, which was recorded live in person in New York at the inaugural Plant Based World Conference and Expo, I interview Michael Schwarz, founder of Treeline Treenut Cheese in upstate New York. Michael’s discovery of the cruelty involved in dairy production and the harm animal agriculture causes to the environment were key drivers for his decision to give up not just milk, but his entire career as an intellectual property attorney, and focus on vegan cheese making. Raised in South Afri...
Jun 13, 2019•34 min
In this episode I interview Melissa Hobbs, co-founder of The Vegan Company in New South Wales, Australia. Launched in 2018, although the business was registered in 2017, The Vegan Company is the go-to destination for vegan fashion and beauty in Australia. Its aim is to make vegan living stylish, desirable and accessible by connecting people with an ever-growing collection of sustainable, cruelty-free vegan fashion, beauty and feel-good news. The content hub shares inspiration, ideas and informat...
May 31, 2019•50 min
In this episode I’m sharing with you a talk I gave recently to a group of vegan business owners and entrepreneurs on what to include on the ‘About’ page of your website. It’s a question I get asked a lot by people, including my coaching and consulting clients and students on my Vegans in the Limelight online PR course and group coaching program, so I thought it would serve you to share this as a podcast episode. It’s also available as a video and as a blog post below. Among the things I discuss ...
May 23, 2019•40 min
In this episode I interview Dr Nadja Pinnavaia, founder and CEO of Plantable (originally Euphebe), a vegan food delivery service and nutritional coaching program in New York. Nadja has an undergraduate degree in chemistry from King’s College, London, and a Ph.D. in quantum chemistry from St. Catharine’s College, Cambridge. The company launched in 2016 under the name Euphebe before undergoing a name change and rebrand recently to become Plantable. Plantable is a 28-day program that delivers nutri...
May 17, 2019•49 min
In this episode I’m sharing a recording of a panel discussion I hosted last year at the 2018 Adelaide Vegan Festival in Australia, called the Future of Plant Based Business. My guests on the panel were Seth Tibbott, founder of iconic American vegan meat brand Tofurky which is sold internationally, and Cale Drouin, a plant-based consultant in Brisbane, Australia who works with food retailers and distributors. Among the topics we discussed are: • What’s driving the take-up of vegan/plant-based liv...
May 10, 2019•52 min
In this episode I interview Damien Clarkson and Judy Nadel, co-founders of Vevolution, a plant-based events and media start-up in London, UK. Damien has spent the past decade primarily working on social change projects for some of the UK’s biggest NGOs and brands. He’s previously ran a creative agency and in fact he’s been on this show before, back in 2016, in episode 35 talking about digital strategy, but since then he and Judy have taken Vevolution forward and now work on it full-time. Judy is...
May 03, 2019•47 min
