The Twin Cities Business Show

The Secret Science Behind Dairy Queen's Blizzards

How does Dairy Queen create new Blizzard flavors? Why do some menu items go viral while others never make it to stores? And could a Mango Sticky Rice Blizzard ever come to America?In this episode of the Twin Cities Business Show, we sit down with Jane Friedrich, Executive Vice President of Research & Development at Dairy Queen, to go inside one of Minnesota's most iconic brands.Jane is a food scientist with a Ph.D. in flavor chemistry and a former Cargill executive. In this episode, she explains the science behind creating new menu items, how consumer trends shape innovation, and why social media has become a powerful force in determining what ends up on the menu.Topics include:00:00 Introduction00:35 How New Blizzard Flavors Are Created02:15 How Many Flavor Ideas Does Dairy Queen Start With?03:13 The "Blizzard Freezer" and Bringing Back Fan Favorites05:03 Food Trends Shaping Dairy Queen's Future06:19 Why Dairy Queen Invests in Food Beyond Ice Cream07:31 The Science Behind a Perfect Chicken Strip and Blizzard09:13 Why the Oreo Blizzard Is Still No. 110:47 How GLP-1 Drugs Could Change the Food Industry11:13 Jane Friedrich's Journey from Cargill to Dairy Queen13:42 What It's Like Working at Berkshire Hathaway-Owned Dairy Queen15:01 How Franchisees Influence New Menu Items16:29 Cocoa Prices, Inflation, and Food Costs18:11 Products That Flopped—and Ones That Went Viral19:58 How Dairy Queen Monitors Social Media Trends20:45 The Science of Taste, Smell, and Flavor Chemistry22:45 Why Dairy Queen Creates Powerful Childhood Memories24:54 Why Dairy Queen Introduced the Mini Blizzard26:38 Where Dairy Queen Is Headed Next28:24 International Expansion and the Mango Sticky Rice Blizzard31:01 Why You Can't Build a Menu Based on Your Personal Favorites32:30 Closing ThoughtsIf you're interested in food innovation, consumer trends, branding, or the business behind iconic products, this conversation offers a rare look inside the R&D engine of Dairy Queen.

Kris Lindahl on Haters, Billboards, and Building a Huge Personal Brand

Kris Lindahl is one of the most recognizable business leaders in Minnesota. From his iconic billboard campaign to his Guaranteed Cash Offer program, he's built one of the largest real estate brands in the Midwest—and sparked plenty of conversation along the way.In this episode of the Twin Cities Business Show, Kris sits down with Twin Cities Business to discuss how he built his personal brand, why he's invested so heavily in marketing, and what he's learned from nearly two decades in real estate.They also dive into the future of the housing market, the rise of cash-offer programs, how his company manages a massive portfolio of homes, and why he believes affordability is the biggest challenge facing homebuyers today.Topics include:• The story behind Minnesota's famous billboards• Building a personal brand at scale• How the Guaranteed Cash Offer program works• Real estate market trends and housing affordability• Entrepreneurship, growth, and leadership• Handling criticism and staying focused• The future of home buying and selling

170+ Franchises and Counting – Michele Henry and the FACE FOUNDRIÉ Story

From a single location in Edina's Galleria to more than 170 committed locations nationwide, FACE FOUNDRIÉ has become one of Minnesota's fastest-growing franchise success stories.In this episode of The Twin Cities Business Show, we sat down with FACE FOUNDRIÉ founder and CEO Michelle Henry to discuss how she built the company, why she chose franchising from day one, and how she has scaled the business while remaining debt-free and retaining 100% ownership.Michelle shares the surprising story of scrapping half of her original business model just 10 days after opening, the lessons she learned from her first company, Primp, and how FACE FOUNDRIÉ evaluates franchisees, maintains quality across dozens of markets, and uses AI to personalize skincare recommendations.She also also discusses:• How franchising really works• What makes a successful franchisee• Why FACE FOUNDRIÉ launched its own esthetician school• The economics behind a growing franchise system• Building a company without outside investors• The future of skincare, wellness, and AI• Leadership, entrepreneurship, and what it takes to be a founder Whether you're interested in franchising, entrepreneurship, retail growth, consumer brands, or Minnesota business success stories, this conversation offers an inside look at how a local concept became a national brand.

The AI Playbook Behind General Mills’ Digital Transformation

AI is going to transform every workplace, and that makes a lot of people afraid. At the first live taping of The Twin Cities Business Show, we asked Jaime Montemayor, the Chief Digital, Technology & Transformation Officer at General Mills, about this fear. No, he does not think AI is going to wipe out millions of jobs – but he thinks it will change them. It will change how businesses work, and the people that can use it to reinvent business processes will drive a lot of value in the months and years to come. He also believes that it will create new categories of jobs that don't yet exist. If you want to drive change at your organization with AI, you need to have a human in the loop. Jaime shared that at General Mills, there are processes that require more human touch than others, but the bigger the decision, the more critical it is to have someone making the final call. Their company has overhauled its tech stack and built an internal AI tool called MillsAI which contains a toolbox of approved, secured tools that their employees can use. Finally, he shared that cats are one of the biggest growth areas for General Mills. Cat ownership is growing faster than any other pet in the U.S., and Jaime shares how the company is capitalizing. They expanded from human food to pet food with the $8 billion purchase of Blue Buffalo in April 2018, and increased their footprint by buying Tiki Cat for $1.45 billion in late 2024.

Inside Bread & Butter Ventures: The VC Firm Backing Minnesota’s Next Big Companies

How can we get the venture and startup ecosystem in Minnesota to really take off? According to Mary Grove of Bread and Butter Ventures, we need to shift resources from investments in real estate and late-stage private equity into venture capital. Those investments could provide necessary oxygen to innovators that are looking to build and scale their companies and create growth engines for the state for many years to come. Mary says that we're in an AI bubble – but it's not going to pop soon. Your company needs to be thinking about your strategy: "Whether you are an AI company or not, there needs to be a component of an AI strategy."If you're building a company, here are the three things Mary says you need to think about before you raise venture capital: 1) What is the founder/product fit? Why you, why this problem, and why do you want to be on a ten year journey to build it? 2) What type of business are you building, and what's the best way to capitalize that business? Venture is a very specific type of funding, and you should make sure it's aligned with your company's goals before pursuing it. 3) Do you have a team of co-founders that you deeply believe in? Mary shared that the team is the biggest thing they look at before making an investment. What are your strengths as a leader, and is this who you want to be in the trenches with day in and day out?