This Commerce Life

Find Gavin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gavin-mah-712a0041/ Shop Finlandia at : https://www.finlandiahealthstore.com/

Lorna Vanderhaeghe comes on the show. We talk history and what it takes  to succeed in the Natural Health Industry. We were pretty excited to get Lorna on the show - she's a legend in the industry, and such a wonderful person to boot. Knowing who Lorna is, is really required knowledge to be in the Natural Health space     Find Lorna here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorna-vanderhaeghe-96773027/  ...

He leaves a big CPG, jumps into a small business and 50 years later, he's helping brands of all shapes and sizes. We're inspired by Tony's humble nature and how many things he's help to build. Connect with Tony here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-luongo-84b3228/   Find Concord National here: https://concordnational.com/

From fighting forest fires to driving buses, Jamie Parker and his partner learned about coffee roasting and set about building a brand that wants to be the most influential outdoor lifestyle brand. Calgary Heritage Roasting Company is growing one coffee lover at a time!   Check out Calgary Heritage Roasting Company : https://www.calgaryheritageroastingco.com/ Find Jamie here: https://www.linkedin....

Kenny is worried about Wendy Yeung. She's amazing - thank you for listening to our podcast so faithfully. The knuckleheads get together and talk for the first time in a month. (did you miss us?) We talk vacations, taking a break, getting back in retail stores. We also talk about the business we launched. (the fractional COO business)   CHFA Launchpad details are here: https://chfanow.ca/toronto/ch...

An early pioneer to the natural products industry in Canada. Michael Theodor's story has some intrigue and lots of ingenuity and straight up sweat equity An industry icon comes on the show. We take a little longer to get thru his story, but such a compelling story nonetheless. If you've ever eaten Rice Dream, Jason, Blue Sky, Lightlife, KIND Bar, Silk, Annie’s, Blue Diamond, Yogi Tea (and many mor...

When a pancake...isn't a pancake. Andrew Maida is building a breakfast brand that brings delicious, healthier choices to the consumer He had a choice -become a tax lawyer, a doctor or run his dad's company. Instead he becomes...a pancake man? Except it's not really a pancake.  Andrew takes his experience as a self-taught Ecommerce guy, and becomes an omnichannel retail brand. check out Andrew here...

Devin Powell, GM @ Pulp & Press North America stops by to talk juice, the business of juice and how he went from a home services company to making cold pressed, raw, organic juices that use only the highest quality Canadian ingredients.    Find Devin here:    https://www.linkedin.com/in/devinpowellpp/ Shop Pulp & Press here: https://www.pulpandpress.com/  

He didn't want to be a snake oil salesman. SierraSil Health President Michael Bentley talks about pioneering research on bioaccessibility and bioavailbility. A big thank you to Michael for doing this episode after having a major bike accident the week before. (3 broken ribs and a punctured lung.)  oh and welcome home Daniel Vanucci!!!     Find Michael here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-bent...

CEO and CMO of Five Strands, Austin Collins talks about taking career left turns, seeking better ways to help customers feel healthier. Austin, friend of Tazz Latifi, former college athlete and perpetual seeker of healthier ways to live talks about how to take back control of your health & wellness, and providing personalized results to live a healthier lifestyle.   Find Austin here: https://www.l...

Alicia and Jeff Lahey talk about their journeys - from moving to natural and organic and searching and finding sustainable packaging, their knack for unbelievable timing - to producing a wonderful chip in a bag was compostable. Oh...and they're in every major grocery in Canada already.   Find Alicia here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alicia-lahey-3019b954/ Find Jeff here: https://www.linkedin.com/i...

A friend of Angie Baker comes on the show. Justin Osborne, Vice President of Sales at Eat & Beyond Global Holdings Inc. dishes on moving from CPG to the natural space.  We talk to Justin about working for a publicly traded company that invests, owns and grows amazing natural brands.   Find Justin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-osborne-mba-21012821/ Find out more about Eat & Beyond Global...

Chef Dennis  comes on to talk about how he got started, and what it takes to grow an audience. We get a chance to walk through Chef Dennis' kitchens, and he talks about the origins of his blog, and how to grow the audience to what it is today.    Check out Chef Dennis on his page: https://www.askchefdennis.com/ Be warned - if you subscribe, you could get unsubscribed if you don't interact with his...

The cannabis industry has been a hot topic for awhile. Michele Rebiere talks about the opportunities and challenges, and the knuckleheads wander in with some OTC frustrations and hopes and dreams for this category. #michelerebiereforprimeminister If you're wondering what it takes sometimes to break into a new regulated industry, this episode is for you.   Find Michele here: https://www.linkedin.co...

She survived Kenny's basement from the old days and didn't go blind from his homemade wine. COO of BC Food & Beverage Alisa Hutton talks about the learning journey and helping people and how that brought her to where she is now.    Find Alisa here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisa-hutton-907824155/ Find BC Food & Beverage here: https://bcfb.ca/

We catch up with Jerin Mece (pronounced Meh-che) while he's on vacation.  Jerin's a serial entrepreneur that has gone from building a brand from scratch to now helping brands build healthy, prosperous businesses.   Find Jerin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerinmece/  

A trainer, mom, marketer, now Sales & Marketing leader, Chelan Wilkins talks about learning, reinvention and embracing new challenges.   Find Chelan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelan-wilkins-rhn-cse-934a30129/ Check out Herbaland here: https://www.herbaland.com/

Would you rather be right than rich? Tazz talks about providing the opportunity for retailers to get out of their own way. Ex-retailer Tazz Latifi is one of our favorite people and she comes on to talk about now sharing her experience with other retailers and helping them find profitability.    Find Tazz here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tazzlatifi/    

Three Farmers, Two Sisters, One Vision. CEO Natasha Vandenhurk talks beans, peas and lentils oh my! The vision that turned 3 Saskatchewan farms into something amazing. Their goal now? Make amazing snacks, and put Saskatchewan on the map as a destination for beans, peas, lentils and chickpeas. Shop here: https://threefarmers.ca/ Find Natasha here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natasha-vandenhurk-61a8...

She's building an alternate dimension for cheese. CEO of Lumi Foods (Blue Heron Creamery) Karen McAthy goes visionary on the knuckleheads. She goes deep on how to make 100% dairy-free, plant based vegan cheeses that doesn't sacrifice taste or tradition.   Find Blue Heron Cheese here: https://blueheroncheese.com/ Find Karen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-mcathy-26728019/   If you love what...

Cupcakes to Ice Cream. Lori Joyce talks about her journey from being on tv to now making wickedly good ice cream. Founder of Betterwith Ice Cream comes on to talk about learning how dairy works in Canada to her mission of making amazing ice cream.    Find Lori here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lori-joyce/  Betterwith is here: https://www.betterwith.com/      If you love what we do and want to help...

Gelato season is upon us. James Boettcher, Chief Empowerment Officer & Custodian of Culture 🤙 at Righteous Gelato comes on to talk about buying the business on a handshake, the adversity that took him from a single retail store to being sold all over Canada. This one was really interesting because we also talk about culture and how to build a great culture.   Find James here: https://www.linkedin...

Check out Tout De Suite: https://www.toutdesweet.ca/   Find Jeanette here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanettemillertout/  

Matt LeBeau - President at LeBeau Excel Sales & Marketing, comes on to talk about interviewing brands, choosing who to represent and the value that he brings to the retail space, retailers and brands.   Find Matt here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattlebeau/ Check out LeBeau Excel here: https://www.lebeauexcel.com/ If you like what we do and want to support us keeping the microphones on... https:/...

An unusual guest for us, David Perry is the CEO & Co-Founder of the eCommerce Network Carro. He talks about influencers, brands and retailers and how he sees the dynamics changing in the next few years.    You can find David here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dperry/