Your Margin Will Always Go Down — Here's How to Protect It from Day One

Which Product Goes First? The Strategy That Can Save (or Sink) Your Food Brand

Some of the most important decisions in your food business journey don't happen on the shelf. They happen before you even get there — in the moments when you decide what to launch, when to launch it, and how to back it once it's out in the world. In this episode, Jacinta Kemboi draws from two powerful real-world experiences: a mentoring session with a food founder navigating multiple products in development, and a post-mortem from inside a food company where two products launched simultaneously — with very different outcomes. One was backed by a full marketing strategy. The other was quietly forgotten. The one that was forgotten got discontinued. If you're a Better For You food founder with more than one product idea and not enough clarity on where to start — this episode gives you the framework to make that call with confidence. 💡 What You'll Learn in This Episode * Why launching multiple products at once without a clear lead product is a strategy for mediocre performance across the board * The real reason Product B failed — and it had nothing to do with taste, packaging, or price * How the same mistake made inside a large food company can happen to a solo food founder with even less margin for error * Why being an imagining brand is actually an advantage — if you use it right * How to use market research to identify your high-moving product before you go to market * The 3-step launch framework: do the research, pick your lead, build the marketing plan * The five questions every food founder should answer before launch day 🌟 Key Takeaway A focused launch with one great product will always outperform a scattered launch with three half-ready ones. You don't need to launch everything — you need to launch the right thing, with everything you've got behind it. Market pull beats founder excitement. Let the data guide your first move. 🔗 Resources Mentioned * Retail Readiness Quiz — find out exactly what gaps are holding your product back → [Take Quiz [https://retailreadyquiz.scoreapp.com/]] * Emerging Food Business Hub — community + accountability for food founders → [Explore Hub [https://camaresearch.com/efbh]] * ETS Method Framework — Jacinta's system for developing retail-ready, profitable food products 📋 Not sure if your product is retail-ready? Take the free quiz to find out. ➡️ Retail Readiness Quiz — [Take Quiz here [https://retailreadyquiz.scoreapp.com/]] 👥 Join the Emerging Food Business Hub — [Lean more [https://camaresearch.com/efbh]] 🎧 Loved this episode? Leave a review and share it with a food founder who needs this strategy today.

Keep Going — The Journey Is Worth It

Feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or like you can't see the finish line? This episode is for you. Jacinta shares the pivotal in-flight moment that shaped her entire career — and how a two-hour plane ride from Minneapolis to Montreal became the turning point that led to coaching Better For You food founders toward one million healthier products in retail. Whether you're just starting your food product journey or already in stores and trying to scale, this episode is a reminder that where you are right now doesn't determine where you'll end up. The challenges — supplier issues, rising costs, packaging delays — are part of the process. Keep going anyway. 🎯 In This Episode: • Jacinta's personal story: a cross-border long-distance relationship and the flight that changed everything • Why she chose to bridge the gap between food science and nutrition • The real reasons Better For You food founders keep going despite the hard days • What profitability from Day 1 actually looks like — and why it matters • How to find your community so you don't walk this journey alone • Why this podcast took three years to launch — and what finally made it happen ➡️ Take the Retail Readiness Quiz — find your product's gaps → [Take the Quiz here [https://retailreadyquiz.scoreapp.com/]] 👥 Join the Emerging Food Business Hub → [Learn More here [https://camaresearch.com/efbh]] 🌟 Enjoyed the episode? Share it with a fellow food founder — they need this today.

Maximize Your Food Product's Potential with Multifunctional Ingredients

Are you spending more on ingredients than you need to — or reformulating over and over because something isn't working? In this episode, Jacinta Kemboi breaks down one of the most powerful but overlooked strategies in food product development: using multifunctional ingredients. She shares how the right ingredients can do more than one job — extending shelf life, reducing costs, and improving your flavor profile all at once. If you're a food entrepreneur trying to scale efficiently without compromising on quality, this one is for you. TOPICS COVERED * What multifunctional ingredients are and why they matter * How to audit your current recipe and identify where to simplify * The shelf life advantage — extending longevity without synthetic preservatives * How to reduce ingredient costs without reformulating from scratch * Flavor functionality: making one ingredient do the work of two * How to evaluate and test new ingredients before committing 📌 Ready to build a smarter, more scalable product? ➡ Join the Emerging Food Business Hub [https://camaresearch.com/efbh] ➡ Take the Scale Up & Retail Readiness Quiz [https://retailreadyquiz.scoreapp.com/] to find out where your products stands and what's holding you back and what to focus on next. 🗓️ SHELF LIFE MINI COURSE — STARTING JUNE 5TH If this episode resonated with you, you won't want to miss what's coming next. The Shelf Life Mini Course kicks off June 5th — a focused, practical course designed to help food entrepreneurs understand, test, and extend the shelf life of their products with confidence. Whether you're preparing for retail, working with a co-manufacturer, or just tired of guessing, this course gives you the knowledge and tools to get it right. ➡ Secure your spot before doors close [https://camaresearch.com/workshop#3dayminicourse] Resource mentioned. Podcast episode with Brad Buchholz talking about Pomegranate powder as cocoa replacer and shelf life [https://sites.libsyn.com/552902/site/expert-segment-clean-labels-cocoa-volatility-and-the-power-of-upcycling-with-brad-buchholz-of-pom-wonderful]

Why Food Founders Are Losing Money on Shelf Life Testing (And How to Fix It)

If you're building a food, beverage, or CPG brand, shelf life testing is probably costing you more than it should — in money, time, and missed opportunities. In this episode, we break down why so many founders treat shelf life like a black box, what it's actually costing them, and how bringing this process in-house can completely change the trajectory of your brand. We're also announcing the Shelf Life Mini Course — a founder-focused workshop starting June 5th designed to help you manage shelf life testing yourself, save on lab costs, move faster, and walk into retailer conversations with real data and confidence. What you'll learn in this episode: * Why outsourcing shelf life testing is quietly draining your budget * What shelf life testing actually involves (it's not as complicated as you think) * How in-house shelf life management gives you a competitive edge with retailers * What's inside the Shelf Life Mini Course and who it's built for 🗓️ The Shelf Life Mini Course starts June 5th Learn how to run your own shelf life studies, interpret your data, and present it with confidence — no food science degree required. 👉 Register here: [3 Day Shelf Life Mini Course [https://camaresearch.com/workshop#3dayminicourse]] Spots are limited. Save yours before they're gone. Connect with us: * Instagram: @jacintakemboim * Website: [camaresearch.com [https://camaresearch.com/workshop]] * Email: [info@camaresearch.com]

Your Margin Will Always Go Down — Here's How to Protect It from Day One

I'm currently working with a founder who has two SKUs running below zero margin. The product sells. It just costs more to make than they charge for it. In this episode, I walk through exactly how that happens — ingredient inflation, hidden co-manufacturing costs, and how to build a pricing structure that can absorb years of pressure from day one. TOPICS COVERED • The real story: two SKUs below zero margin • Why ingredient inflation isn't a one-time hit • Hidden co-manufacturing costs most founders never see coming • How to build a pricing structure that absorbs pressure • What to do if you're already underwater on margin Get the recipe scaling and costing template here [https://camaresearch.com/resources#valuevantagecalculator] 📌 Ready to get your product scale-ready the right way? ➡ Take the Scale Up & Retail Readiness Quiz — [Take Quiz here [https://retailreadyquiz.scoreapp.com/]] ➡ Join the Emerging Food Business Hub — [Join here [https://camaresearch.com/efbh]]