Brand Development and Innovation with Victoria Ho
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Meet Victoria Ho
Victoria Ho is founder of Sherpa CPG and a fearless food and beverage industry leader. With over a decade of experience as an award-winning brand strategist, clean-label formulator, and commercialization expert, Victoria is dedicated to helping emerging food, and beverage brands turn their meaningful ideas into memorable, retail-ready products. She tackles the essential work of defining brand purpose, developing bulletproof brand positioning, and expressing brand persona consistently across all audience touchpoints, from pitch deck to packaging.
Episode Highlights
During this episode of The Food Means Business Podcast, we discuss:
How to create and maintain a consistent brand strategy as a formula for success in scaling your food and beverage business
How to increase your chances of having a successful partnership with a co-packer
The key stages of growth for food and beverage companies and how to tackle the challenges along the way
The importance of choosing food with the intention to nourish both the body and spirit
How a consistent, exceptional brand and product experience is important in achieving commercial success
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00;00;00;15 - 00;00;24;28
Djenaba
You were listening to the Food Means Business Podcast, which features the personal stories and secret ingredients behind what it's like to abandon your day job to start a food business. I'm joined now by Jonathan Jones, former marketing executive turned entrepreneur and founder of food business incubator Hudson Kitchen. Join a community of fellow food business owners and subject matter experts to learn and laugh with us as we explore a startup world that's a little more culinary and a lot less corporate these days.
00;00;25;07 - 00;00;27;09
Djenaba
Hello, Victoria, How are you?
00;00;27;22 - 00;00;31;09
Victoria Ho
I'm great. Gentlemen, thank you so much for having me today.
00;00;31;23 - 00;00;45;20
Djenaba
Sure. Welcome to the Food Means Business Podcast. So let's start with your story. I would love to hear your origin story and how you moved from employee to co-founder of Sherpa CPG.
00;00;46;15 - 00;00;58;10
Victoria Ho
Gosh, I guess some you know, for any Chinese American with immigrant parents, like the story of food really starts at home.
00;01;00;23 - 00;01;32;25
Victoria Ho
You know, it's not a very openly affectionate culture, but food really is the envoy of love, of apology, of feast, of celebration and grief. And so I think, you know, embedded in my heart of hearts from a very young age was this idea that, you know, food is a language that connects and then beyond just the intimacy of family, connects strangers, connects cultures.
00;01;32;25 - 00;02;09;12
Victoria Ho
So that bridge has always really been with me. The funny thing, though, right, is, again, cultural influence is that pursuing any sort of career in the path of food is like then also becomes the complete opposite of like the good and narrow path for success. And you know, as you grow older, you realize like financial success is informed a lot of ways by, you know, how my parents saw comfortable living, but they also bred in me like a hunger to have a greater impact.
00;02;09;12 - 00;02;34;28
Victoria Ho
And so, you know, with with food, my journey in CPG actually started probably a lot like many food and beverage entrepreneurs by accident. There's no, you know, career day where they show you how to build a food brand or what the heck it looks like to design, packaging or go to a trade show or any of those hidden things.
00;02;35;25 - 00;02;36;11
Djenaba
So true.
00;02;36;12 - 00;03;12;20
Victoria Ho
You kind of learn through the fire. But yeah, my journey in CPG started as a brand owner, so I was a partner in a snack brand called Pops Up Popcorn and quick story of that is just you know we we really launched about two decades gosh how old am I now is about 2010. But that was when I think CPG was just starting to turn the tide towards something that was recognized as more than kind of a compromise.
00;03;12;20 - 00;03;53;12
Victoria Ho
Right. Packaged food as a last minute compromise wise, less than fresh food. Not as good as home cooking. But there was this huge wave a decade ago, that kind of took root where packaged food was being made by really, I would say, flavor and nutrition savvy entrepreneurs who wanted to kind of bottle the magic of diligent sourcing, really special food experiences and somehow, you know, scale that to a place where someone they'd never even met could share in that moment with them.
00;03;55;00 - 00;04;29;03
Victoria Ho
The funny thing is, you know, we didn't have advisers around at that time who were talking to early stage brands. And so we bought a factory and a lot where my education came from, you know, sink or swim and, you know, running a factory with 25 employees and learning the ins and outs of international distribution, learning how to use graphic design software because like holy cow, graphic designers were expensive back then by the hour.
00;04;29;18 - 00;04;59;29
Victoria Ho
And, you know, I just need a square on a piece of paper. Like, surely I can figure out how to do that. You know, obviously along the way, so much respect earned for each of these experts in their field and also realizing that, you know, this little bug of entrepreneurship, it is kind of like a a joy in seeing the big picture, which is, you know, having to wear many hats, which you are very well versed in and all.
00;05;00;04 - 00;05;29;24
Victoria Ho
But like, you know, being able to see the big picture, but also executing on the small details in service of that. And so, you know, kind of running that brand and then leaving after four years to after I realized, like the pursuit of food for me was deeper than just a tasty product, that wasn't enough. And so, you know, I began really kind of just freelance consulting.
00;05;29;24 - 00;06;14;10
Victoria Ho
And it's my kind of obsession with storytelling that landed me with a lot of my earlier clients. And what was really beautiful for me is that the language of food is expressed in so many ways, and I had access to it both as the formulator. So on the food side and on the actual visual and verbal side with engagement and mode of expression and being able to kind of weave that together is what ultimately inspired the founding of Sherpa CBG, which as an innovation development company for emerging food and beverage brands, there was a real need.
00;06;14;19 - 00;06;42;24
Victoria Ho
I saw this was we launched right the year of COVID because, you know, why not? You didn't plan it that way. But good things hardly are ever planned. We saw, you know, a true need for this community of brands in a specific growth stage where you have to kind of be able to run down parallel tracks at the same time very, very quickly.
00;06;43;05 - 00;07;47;18
Victoria Ho
And that's very difficult when you are also trying to be very conscientious of your financial runway and really preserve the integrity of the product, which inspired you to do something as wild as starting a company out of it. And yeah, so, you know, over time, I think I've really been able to flex my own joy in helping brands articulate their story, because our community of entrepreneurs is so talented and talented in different ways and I, I just get so much fulfillment out of, you know, when my specific pile of talents can reinforce or amplify someone else's voice because they maybe don't happen to be great at this, that or the other thing.
00;07;47;18 - 00;08;28;09
Victoria Ho
But it is their purpose usually that drives me and inspires me to craft a voice for them. So yeah, I work exclusively with natural food and beverages and that's something I always emphasize just because, you know, in 2022 and going forward, I feel that as an industry, you know, we have a responsibility to consumers to help reestablish the relationship that people have with food, both with, you know, with their families feeding each other, but also reconnecting with themselves and with the planet that we all share.
00;08;29;06 - 00;08;49;09
Victoria Ho
I think, you know, if you if you try hard enough, you know, using clean ingredients isn't isn't that difficult. And people like me are around to help make that happen. So, yeah, it's a not an intuitive journey, but I'm here now with you, so it feels like, you know, it feels like the path that I was meant to take.
00;08;50;21 - 00;09;03;08
Djenaba
That's great. So let's take a step back for a second and talk about your family. I'm wondering what they think about, you know, your career in CPG versus other career paths that you could have possibly taken.
00;09;03;17 - 00;09;27;18
Victoria Ho
I love that question because I ask it often myself. I don't really know. And I give them huge credit. My my mom and dad especially for making me feel like, I don't know, because it's no longer just, you know, we don't support that or we're ashamed or we think it's kind of charming, but you'll grow out of this phase.
00;09;27;18 - 00;10;03;22
Victoria Ho
Like, I think they really are grasping that they are the ones that raised me to want to make a difference. And for some reason they are the ones who instilled in me these values that go beyond the bottom line and that there is fulfillment in a career which doesn't necessarily prize the full separation of work life and play right with all entrepreneurs.
00;10;03;22 - 00;10;34;00
Victoria Ho
I think if you're in it for the right reason, which is really simply a reason, right? A true intention and a purpose. Mm hmm. Thinking about your work all day can be really fun. And, you know, finding all aspects of inspiration to fuel your work in creative ways is part of just being awake every day and then dreaming about it at night.
00;10;34;00 - 00;11;12;16
Victoria Ho
Like you can pull inspiration from everywhere and anywhere. And, you know, I think that they are appreciating that. And also, you know, I, I think that they are also recognizing that in not just the United States but globally, that this sector of food and beverage, you know, has a little bit more shine on it. And that always helps, I think, you know, bridge that generational gap because it is more accepted or it's being put in the spotlight.
00;11;12;16 - 00;11;39;07
Victoria Ho
And, you know, they've been to a couple kind of like trade shows as well as a guest. And it's really fun for them to see kind of result tangibly, you know, the other day in our family text thread, my dad was making banana bread and he made like three pans of it and in their mind, you know, I think that's like at scale production of a product.
00;11;39;26 - 00;12;03;29
Victoria Ho
But it's it's a it's a treasure. They're they're wanting to learn and their acceptance of me. And I think they've also known from a very young age that like I, I gravitated towards stories like I'm an English major, right? So that was like their first red flag. My kid's not going to her handwriting's way to get like, not going to be a doctor.
00;12;04;02 - 00;12;36;20
Victoria Ho
And so I think them watching me find how best to use that capacity has given them more comfort in the idea that I will be okay. I also have a gloriously talented and smart older sister who is in fact a medical doctor. So, you know, they have one they've got one on the on the path, the shining star path.
00;12;36;20 - 00;13;12;26
Victoria Ho
And, you know, I just really appreciate their support. And for all all children of kind of like, you know, immigrants to the United States who really just want their kids to find success but may not have the vocabulary to articulate all the ways that success can come to their children. I think this is why conversations like ours, you know, even our first meeting, the kinship that I felt community is where you find that support.
00;13;13;02 - 00;13;18;27
Victoria Ho
If you can't find it at home for any amount of time in the beginning or the middle of your journey.
00;13;20;24 - 00;13;36;04
Djenaba
It's so true. I really feel like community helped to build my business and continues to do so. And I, I want I do want to take this time to thank you like I finally met you in person during the fancy food show this year and you just welcomed with open arms. And I truly appreciate that.
00;13;36;13 - 00;14;15;22
Victoria Ho
No, all I wish we could have done it sooner, right? I mean, darn that COVID. But it is so special. And it's a reminder, too, that the connections are real. You know, like, there's this industry invites a lot of buzz and a lot of kind of like surface noise. But there there is real connection there. And that is that is what I love so much about people with purpose who are are trying to build food as a catalyst or real connection.
00;14;15;28 - 00;14;24;11
Victoria Ho
Yeah, my mom and my mom and daughter have one foot on board their climate.
00;14;24;11 - 00;14;41;19
Djenaba
So let's talk about the types of entrepreneurs that you worked with. I understand the focus is on obviously natural foods, but give me give me tell me about your your target audience. What stage business do you work with? Are there specific types of food businesses that you work with in the natural food space?
00;14;41;25 - 00;15;20;20
Victoria Ho
Yeah, great question. So there is probably three kind of like buckets. And what's interesting about growth stages for food and beverage companies is that as you mature, if you have an innovation pipeline often times, right, like you'll repeat certain stages of the cycle again, each time you are bringing, say, a new product line to market, but you'll kind of get better and better at weaving through the challenges that you know already exist.
00;15;20;20 - 00;15;53;07
Victoria Ho
And you can lean on the relationships that you've developed along the way to ensure that any sort of innovation that you launch both kind of amplifies your existing brand ethos and expands or rewards your consumer base. So primarily when it comes to brand strategy, a lot of my clients are in an earlier growth stage, possibly a pre commercialized product, right?
00;15;53;07 - 00;16;28;06
Victoria Ho
So they're still really trying to understand what differentiates them within their category and in the market as a whole. Oftentimes they have prototypes, even kind of like first generation packaging, but they don't quite have a grasp or they don't quite shine with the confidence when they talk about their product or the messaging that's written on their product or even how their packaging communicates all of their values to the consumer.
00;16;28;23 - 00;17;24;11
Victoria Ho
That kind of, you know, captured brand strategy is a lesser degree of brightness than them kind of just speaking about their product. And so we really work to try to galvanize what the strategy is that they can then express across all different touchpoints of consumer messaging or any audience, whether that's, you know, investors or consumers or buyers. It is in that early stage where they are identified, buying their brand positioning, figuring out how to speak about it, and then putting in place the metrics so that they can launch with that positioning and messaging strategy consistently across their brands.
00;17;24;28 - 00;18;00;06
Victoria Ho
And the second kind of category of brands that I often work with start with formulation, and these are brands who are well on the path to commercialization. They are probably looking to work with their first co-packer or they're ready to scale with a co-packer or a contract manufacturer, or they are working in a commercial kitchen or kind of with a boutique co-packer, and they now have the traction to where they have to kind of ramp up.
00;18;01;05 - 00;18;38;26
Victoria Ho
And the work there again, it starts always starts with brand strategy and storytelling for me, because in order to best translate your product and your process to scale, it really helps. When I underst stand. What are the rules and the standards around which your brand and product play? And so, you know, anything that you're making either at home or at Benchtop or even at a commercial kitchen or boutique co-packer, it is kind of nothing like the way that it will be made at scale, right?
00;18;38;26 - 00;19;19;27
Victoria Ho
And so we need to kind of have a very clear idea of where we're trying to end up and then be flexible all about how we get there. Keeping in mind all of the new costs that you are now looking at as a brand to be able to serve this like expansion. And that is where I think my own background as an entrepreneur really comes into play because it, you know, it is about being able to help a brand understand, for example, whether or not an ingredient can be used in their product based on their product philosophy.
00;19;19;27 - 00;20;17;07
Victoria Ho
And at the same time, how do we want to name that ingredient on your ingredient list so that it appeals the most to your consumer? Right? So again, it is storytelling from a product perspective and a brand perspective. And lastly, it's, you know, the last kind of category of brands I work with are established and even legacy brands, brands that are working on a national and global level that are either trying to tap into a new consumer base and need to really understand how to shape their brand messaging and strategy around that introduction without losing sight of what they prize is kind of their central pillars or those same brands having product lines that are
00;20;17;15 - 00;20;49;01
Victoria Ho
historically made with artificial ingredients or possibly not gluten free. And again, how do we continue to grow and move with our consumers as they grow and have new needs and demands and desires? It is always about taste, but also now about nutrition and about whether your brand is relevant to your consumer and resonates with them on a level beyond the surface.
00;20;50;03 - 00;21;53;13
Victoria Ho
So yeah, I would say, you know, really, no matter what growth stage you're in, if you are committed to scaling your product at a commercial level and finding kind of success as a national or internationally distributed brand, that vision of scale is kind of universal among the brands that I work with. And so, you know, to, to have that, that audacity of, of a vision is something that I feel you kind of know from the beginning, from the outset, even if you're just starting out, let's say in a farmer's market or cottage industry, if you know you want to grow and scale your product commercially, to have consistently exceptional brand experience and product experience for
00;21;54;12 - 00;22;02;18
Victoria Ho
people around the nation, then you know, I'm here, I'm here for it.
00;22;02;18 - 00;22;16;05
Djenaba
So we talked about three different stages. The companies that you work with, does this does the brand strategy change based on the stage or is it something that's the foundation of the business in the first place?
00;22;16;05 - 00;23;11;06
Victoria Ho
I love that question. Such a good question. So that's I'm pausing because it's such a smart question. I think when I even during the previous segment of chatting, was slightly conflate the idea of a brand strategy that is executed with the concept of strategic thinking as a brand, right, To your point, Absolutely. Like as a brand passes through stages, I think the strategy of how you execute things that are set into place, such as your brand persona, your purpose, your mission, how you express your esthetic, the core pillars of your brands that you know don't ever change those elements of your brand.
00;23;11;06 - 00;23;50;13
Victoria Ho
Absolutely. As you grow are woven throughout your the way that you engage or interact with consumers in a different way. Right. And that could be because of increased exposure, could be because of an increase injection of capital or bringing on new talent. Sometimes a brand will find that they need to pivot. Right? There have been several brands in the past year that pivoted to plant based or that pivoted to gluten free.
00;23;50;13 - 00;24;25;01
Victoria Ho
However, even then and I've worked with some brands through that, what we try to find is like, what is the thread, right? What is the common thread that remains with the brand that you built that will actually kind of amplify the strength of your new brand positioning, let's say, via kind of like an organic translation of where you were and why it makes sense to move towards where you are now.
00;24;25;29 - 00;24;53;13
Victoria Ho
So messaging may change a little bit to reflect that packaging most often changes a bit to reflect that the relationship you have with your consumers is most important. The strategy around, right? Like how you introduce change them, how you walk them through it, how you troubleshoot those, you know, those few consumers who will always be kind of upset at you no matter what, right?
00;24;53;23 - 00;25;30;02
Victoria Ho
How you either win them back or you think them with with genuine gratitude for their support. Up until this point, that is all strategy that comes into play as you change. But yeah, you're core pillars kind of like your your why you do the thing you do I think should absolutely remain central. And if you find that changing possibly it it is it it is a bit of insight for you to consider whether that's a new brand.
00;25;30;03 - 00;25;59;24
Victoria Ho
Right. Or a new line like it may not be the same brand anymore. And you know that that is a a different can of worms. But when you do have a very clear understanding of your purpose and how you want to articulate it, I think that can of worms presents itself much sooner so that you can address it because you are so clear about your vision.
00;26;00;21 - 00;26;25;26
Victoria Ho
So, you know, doing that work up front to your point, I think is essential because whether or not something aligns with your strategy or not, you need that strategy in place to to help you differentiate that and not slow down your your progress and your growth when you are kind of executing on, you know, with all cylinders firing.
00;26;25;26 - 00;26;48;07
Djenaba
So regarding brand strategy, is there are there a couple of tips that you can give to the listeners or maybe there's some mistakes that brands that you've worked with have made before and how they can kind of have overcome those mistakes. Can you give us that? Give us some, you know, a little bit of like and some help here as people are like working to create their brand strategy?
00;26;49;00 - 00;26;50;23
Djenaba
What are some things that they need to keep in mind?
00;26;51;01 - 00;27;32;16
Victoria Ho
Yeah, so quick tips, I guess. One kind of quick tip on the innovation side is before you think you're ready to scale, I would say make sure that you have all of the kind of documents as far as your formulation, your process, your ingredients, your supply chain contacts, your packaging, turnarounds, costs, all of that. Like, I would highly encourage that brands don't just pick up the phone and call a co-packer to kind of sound out how much it might cost to work with them.
00;27;33;04 - 00;28;03;13
Victoria Ho
You know this more than anyone. Like that's you know, there are, I think, more generous souls like you who will help them through it. But by and large, you know, there is a lot of work on your hands as a brand to codify your kind of product and production process before a co-packer will take you seriously. So that's kind of on one end of like how how I see emerging brands in vision scale.
00;28;04;02 - 00;28;32;16
Victoria Ho
You know, this, this like call packing becomes a magic bullet like, Oh, I just need to find a co-packer and then I'm set. I would say put the work into preparing to find the co-packer that is the best fit for you, and that will put you in a much better place with much better co-packer candidates who will have that conversation with you and really kind of see your vision on the brand side.
00;28;32;26 - 00;29;14;08
Victoria Ho
I you know, when it comes to to messaging and some of this ties directly into packaging a few top tips that I would have would just be, first of all, like don't make me quote unquote, have to get it. You know, like, don't the inside jokes, private language the assumption that I know something that, you know, you know, is dangerous in certain ways when you start to develop a a relationship with your consumers a bit more, I think you find the balance with how you express your brand and how they absorb it.
00;29;14;23 - 00;29;41;07
Victoria Ho
But one of the number one challenges I see on packaging from emerging brands is I don't know what it is. I, I and, you know, I, I think I'm pretty observant, but, you know, when I look at packaging, sometimes I do flip it into consumer mode and I just like I'll see a picture of a cookie, I'll see the flavor chocolate chip.
00;29;41;18 - 00;30;05;23
Victoria Ho
But nowhere on the packaging does it actually say it's a cookie, you know, And to really like, it's funny because sometimes we flip into this mode where we become what I call, like ants on a balloon, right? Like, you're just too close to the thing to understand that no one understands the thing. So, you know, that's another version of of keep it simple, but you're nowhere near stupid.
00;30;05;23 - 00;31;01;19
Victoria Ho
It's just in. When everyone has their consumer hat on, they need things to be crystal clear in line with that, I would say establish a very, very concise, clear and riveting hierarchy of info for your packaging and really all printed things, whether it's a social post sales material, collateral, a print ad, you have the power as the brand to kindly manipulate the viewer's eyeballs where you want them to go, you know, and if there's ten fonts and 40 colors in pictures next to icons, next to logos that need explaining, it just gets intimidating and a bit overwhelming to again, figure out why I should spend money and put you in my car.
00;31;01;24 - 00;31;37;14
Victoria Ho
Another thing I would say, you know, this goes to brand strategy from a kind of universal level is before you claim to think disrupt anything, I very highly encourage you to first aim to just deliver on that promise. Right. So yeah, before you claim to disrupt. Right. Aim to deliver. I think, you know, obviously things that start out really powerful in our industry quickly become buzzwords.
00;31;37;29 - 00;32;09;14
Victoria Ho
And what I find is like, yes, you will always pull in people from with buzzwords, but the influence of brands that operate with integrity and really find a way to showcase that they differentiate because they are delivering upon the promise that they set out to deliver by and large, win more. In the end, you don't want to be kind of a flash in the Pan brand that is lumped in some listicle.
00;32;10;07 - 00;32;58;17
Victoria Ho
You know, at the at the end of the day for something that made a little bit of buzz. It takes an incredible amount of resources to launch a brand successfully that's, you know, money, time, blood, sweat, tears, you know, humans, friendships like it takes so much that you really, really want to put time into making sure that there is a a purpose at the nugget very center of your brand that is going to drive you when when fun things don't know, you will go through periods where there's no trade show, there's no purchase orders.
00;32;58;18 - 00;33;34;05
Victoria Ho
You know, everything feels like it's on fire and is a month late and you know, then and COVID. So there's you know and then and then the sightings that the universe throws at you. So yeah I mean just really put the most work into understanding what the pillars are that make you differentiable and then defend them obsessively and, you know, be proud of sharing that story with confidence and use the whole buffalo like we're talking about patching get right like you have.
00;33;34;15 - 00;34;07;28
Victoria Ho
There's so many places to tell your story. It's not just with words. Look at how whole systems work together, whether it's kind of in-person experiential events with packaging, there's haptics as well, which is right, like the tactile elements of of your packaging, whether it's shiny or satin, there's actual words, right? And words are also shapes, but there's colors, there's pictures, There's photographs versus illustrations, right?
00;34;07;28 - 00;34;30;23
Victoria Ho
Like you have so much at your fingertips to build a unique story, use it all and have fun. Have fun with it. But remember that you are not just doing it for yourself. You're doing it for your brand, and you're doing it so that you can connect it with someone on the other side of the show.
00;34;32;10 - 00;34;53;09
Djenaba
That that's an interesting point that I was thinking as you were talking about, just time and patience was something that I think is really is really, really very important. And also, you write, you're you're there to connect with your customer and serve them in you know, in the ways that you've said that you're going to do. So those are all very important points.
00;34;53;09 - 00;35;03;17
Djenaba
Thank you. Thank you so much. So, you know, as business owners, we are so wrapped up in our businesses and think about it all the time. But I was wondering, what do you do to relax?
00;35;04;20 - 00;36;00;12
Victoria Ho
Oh, gosh. You know, that's a fantastic question. So I, I, I do dance. Really. I am exploring new genres now, but growing up, I really loved modern dance and ballet all throughout my childhood and also college. I, I do write a lot. I don't necessarily know sometimes whether it's fun, but in college I studied contemporary poetry and verse, and I do like challenging my brain to think in certain ways and kind of like distill big ideas down to very aggregate, simple and powerful things.
00;36;01;12 - 00;36;36;23
Victoria Ho
And so, you know, writing that does not appear on product packaging, I would say it's like that. But that concept of it and you know what's great genre is I, I really do love cooking for fun because I, my brain flips modes when I'm like actively formulating for a brand to hit certain metrics and, you know, I may or may not even 1,000%, let's say love the product specification of a protein bar, right?
00;36;36;23 - 00;37;17;25
Victoria Ho
Like maybe it's like chewy chocolate and I'm more like a crunchy lemon person then, you know, I don't love it, but There are things that I can do to ensure that is the absolute best representation of what the client's vision is. However, when I kind of cook for friends or neighbors, that reminds me of, again, what our combo started out with, which is like this just simple joy of watching people light up with with pleasure.
00;37;17;27 - 00;37;50;01
Victoria Ho
When you put things on the table that are immediate gratification to their senses, but at the same time, like, you know, we're really all just gobbling up the company around the table, right? That's like the richness of the stories and the laughter. Like there is something like Pavlovian for me about when I hear that restaurants kind of background noise, it's like clinking of glasses and silverware and people laughing.
00;37;50;23 - 00;38;24;18
Victoria Ho
Something about that soundtrack to me is like so much of my childhood, like Chinese banquets, but also throwing dinner parties with friends and college, even with friends now like that, that sound and then, you know, smells of things. It just is irresistible to me. And that is also how I know sometimes that food is the way that I express care and love, because it is what I what I turn to, to unwind, even when I'm cooking for myself.
00;38;24;18 - 00;39;07;25
Victoria Ho
It is my moment to kind of reconnect, recenter my body and my wellness. You know, very quick story, since we're all friends here now and, you know, food to me as a way of of nourishing spirit and body comes from my, I guess, part of my identity as someone living with autoimmune disorder. So I have solely lupus and in end of high school, first half of college, I went through the whole chemotherapy thing.
00;39;08;23 - 00;40;05;26
Victoria Ho
Oh wow. And had to really re learn what it was to be hungry and how to feed myself and really, like, rebuild my own relationship with my body and food. And for most autoimmune disorders, like there is no real cure, there is maintenance and nourishment through the things that you put in and on your body. And that is why for me, like, you know, clean food is is sacred, but also sharing that and putting intention into how we prepare food to nourish others, even if it is to indulge them for a minute, I think is kind of just utterly important to how I navigate life because, you know, meals are are are essential, like they're
00;40;05;26 - 00;40;35;29
Victoria Ho
part of our every day, whether we set them aside as ritual moments or not to encourage everyone to take at least one one meal a day to have for themselves and like appreciate, you know, everything that their kind of body does for them and choose food with intention that way. And that's also a way to celebrate brands that that kind of align with your own personal values is literally putting your money where your mouth is.
00;40;37;13 - 00;41;08;14
Victoria Ho
But yeah, to, you know, last piece of it, to answer your question is I'm not great at that. I'm not great at shutting off. I know that is a floor that I'm actively aware and working on is that I tend to hide in my work because it's comfortable and I don't like letting people down or not meeting commitments that I have made.
00;41;09;08 - 00;41;48;20
Victoria Ho
So the challenge is to maybe stop making as many commitments. But that is also difficult when again, like there's so many beautiful stories to tell in our industry. So people that we want to connect with that, you know, it's kind of like an embarrassment of riches, you know. But yes, I'm actively working on chilling out. And this chat is is quite honestly one of those moments for me where I'm just kind of luxuriating in in in this atmosphere environment that you've created for us to talk.
00;41;48;28 - 00;41;53;08
Victoria Ho
So, yeah, thank you for doing that. Yes, you are my you are my friend.
00;41;55;01 - 00;42;04;22
Djenaba
I'm glad I could be of service. No, thank you. I do I do really cherish these conversations and conversations with other entrepreneurs. It just it's therapeutic sometimes.
00;42;04;22 - 00;42;10;21
Victoria Ho
So that's such a great word. Absolutely great. Many Eagles therapy, for sure.
00;42;11;10 - 00;42;29;21
Djenaba
Yes. So at Hudson Kitchen, we have a what we call a money bell. And so people will ring the bell when they take on new retail partners or get new customers. And so we'd love to hear what you're celebrating could be in business or on a personal level, let us know how we can celebrate you.
00;42;31;04 - 00;43;07;17
Victoria Ho
Oh, gosh. Wow. I immediately want to, like, list all of these things that my amazing brand partners have done, but I'll try to follow the assignment. I would say I am actually extremely honored this year that I was given an opportunity to serve on the board of directors for the Specialty Food Association, which is the nonprofit organization that hosts incredible fancy food shows, one in summer and one in winter each year.
00;43;08;01 - 00;43;42;03
Victoria Ho
And having been a member of the SFA since 2010 and then kind of threw out my whole career in various companies like in this industry, it was one of the first places a fancy food show where I really got it. Like I really saw what it was like to be surrounded by people who cared as much or more than I did about this amazing thing that we're all trying to do.
00;43;42;14 - 00;44;21;09
Victoria Ho
And, you know, I, I looked up to SFA leadership since my first fancy food show and never really thought that I would ever be invited into the ranks, so to speak, to to really be a servant leader in a bigger capacity than just 1 to 1 working with clients. And so, you know, being surrounded now by like 15 peers and colleagues who I cannot tell you enough how much I admire what they've built and what they continue to build.
00;44;21;18 - 00;44;51;20
Victoria Ho
Has really been humbling for me and I. I so look forward to welcoming kind of the next generation of brands to see within their journey like an inherent part of wanting to give back and, you know, if I, if I can be a voice for that now, like, you know, anyone who has that spirit too can, can find themselves in that position.
00;44;51;20 - 00;45;14;06
Victoria Ho
So yeah, that's a, that's a little thing I'm celebrating and again it's amazing really sunk in yet it's a lot of work but so much fun. Yeah little a little pinch me when they kind of let me know so yeah it'll it's a it's a good time for for the next three years hopefully to make impact there.
00;45;15;07 - 00;45;27;02
Djenaba
That is so cool Congratulations to that. So we've come to the end of our time together. So I'd love for to share with our listeners where they can find you and learn all about Sherpa CPG.
00;45;27;21 - 00;45;57;07
Victoria Ho
Sure, I find me on Linked in. You want to connect with me directly there. That might have even been where I first semi socially stopped you because you were amazing. So yeah. You're free to connect with me there. Victoria J Ho. I think it's the backslash and then Sherpa CP G. Our website to learn a bit more about innovation can email me directly as well.
00;45;57;29 - 00;46;23;07
Victoria Ho
Victoria Act Sherpa, CPG dot com and particularly if you find yourself planning to come to any fancy food shows or to expo out West, please feel free to reach out. Reach out and give me a poke. It's just really fun to connect in person when we have the chance to.
00;46;24;21 - 00;46;42;28
Djenaba
It's great. Thank you so much for taking the time to be with us and we will have to have you back soon. Thank you. The Food Means Business podcast is produced by Hudson Kitchen. It's recorded and edited at the studio at Carney Point. Our theme song is by Damian de Sandys, and I'm your host, Ginger Robert Johnson Jones.
00;46;43;09 - 00;46;55;21
Djenaba
Find out more about Hudson Kitchen by visiting the Hudson Kitchen dot com or follow us on Instagram at the Hudson Kitchen. Listen below and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. Until next time.