Insights from an Early Stage Food & Drink Brand: SAVED Launches Their First Products
Over the years, Bread & Jam has actively supported the growth of thousands of food startups, from emerging brands getting their first specialty retailer to more established players scoring national supermarket listings. As part of our Success Story series, we’re highlighting fellow challenger brands who have seen some wins, and ask them a few questions.
SAVED launched their first products in January 2023
We were able to sit down and talk with Clara Best, founder and CEO of the newly launched SAVED cricket protein puffs. In early 2023, they were able to get off the ground and launch their product for sale. Starting with their website, they are hoping to expand to future retailers. As someone still pretty early along in her journey, we thought this is a helpful story for those who are also trying to kickstart their own.
What’s the story of SAVED?
“I wanted to eat more plant-based foods to fight climate change, so I started buying meat alternatives like tofu and tempeh but found it difficult to make them taste good… I kept eating legumes daily, despite them making me feel bloated constantly. Eventually I found out about insect protein and how digestible and sustainable it is and started to incorporate it in my diet. I felt so energised, no longer bloated and so relieved that I finally found my alternative protein…
I thought to myself why not integrate insect protein within the food we love to help people transition to more sustainable eating? So I quit my job at PepsiCo and launched Saved, so I could share my insect wisdom with everyone!” - Clara Best
How do you go from an idea to making a tangible product?
I spent a lot of time doing consumer insights, talking to different target audiences and understanding their pain points - it’s important to make sure your product fits a need in the market. From there, I tested my hypothesis that my product might make it out on the market in any way I could. I went to events, did focus groups, MVPs & more to test it out.
I took advantage of the free resources out there! Luckily I had some exposure to the food & drink industry through my previous role at Pepsi Co., but that’s totally different from launching your own brand. Bread & Jam is an amazing resource. Their FREE Monday Motivations, FREE Socials, & annual Festival help give you an overview of topics that are super helpful in the industry.
Network, network, network. Go to trade shows, networking events like Bread & Jam’s socials and summits, and start making connections! You need to find the right mentors and advisors that are out there and can help make your dream a reality. Don’t forget to be okay with compromises, the perfect product is a journey, not a destination.
At some point, just get going. We decided to launch with our website and Amazon and go directly to consumers. We are focused on expanding into online sport nutrition D2C marketplaces and targeting independent shops, gyms and are constantly pitching (thanks Bread & Jam Fest!) and are hoping to be stocked in some other cool places soon.
Top 3 pieces of advice for other food & drink brands?
Get your hands dirty… at the end of the day, if there is a will there’s a way. If you don’t do it yourself or start trying, you won’t learn.
Master your personal brand - your life will be convincing others about you, your abilities, your experience, your new brand, and how nice and friendly you are. It all happens in time, but know how and be confident enough to sell yourself.
Filter the advice you get and make sure you find trusted sources. Not everyone is honest, not everyone has the right experience for the right advice, so find places and communities you know you can listen to.
GO TO BREAD AND JAM FEST. Seriously…. the breadth of people I met through this event in past years is astonishing. From great mentors, people who helped me introduce to relevant investors, agencies who helped me set up Amazon, to packaging manufacturers, the networking at the event is priceless. I love how the talks were so inspiring, encourage you to change the status quo, and be confident in what we do.
At Bread & Jam Fest, I was selected to pitch to retailers like Gorilla, Planet Organic and Ocado before I launched. This was an incredible experience and helped me understand the different requirements from such a broad array of sales channel (I.e. online retailer, quick commerce and speciality retailer) as well as the feedback directly from retailers that I needed to help me move forward.
