DFW CPG has begun publishing profiles of its members as a way to share their successes and journey in building a business. “Brand Profiles” was launched over the summer – and in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, the spotlight was pointed to Barmalade, which was founded by Jorge and Amber Alvarez. You can read about Barmalade’s journey, growth and development here (LINK). Also, thanks to all of our DFW CPG’s Brand Profiles so far – and we look forward to showcasing many other members in the months ahead.
Congratulations to DFW’s Kaurina’sDark Chocolate Kulfi for winning FIRST Place in the Healthy Frozen Dessert category at the World Dairy Expo. The winning companies will be afforded the unprecedented opportunity to promote and market their products as “the best of the best” in North America. Kaurina’s delicious Rich Chocolate Kulfi received a composite score of 99.95! Fantastic!
DFW’s STRYVE (NASDAQ: SNAX), an emerging healthy snack and leader in the air-dried meat snack industry in the United States recently reported that net sales for the second quarter were $18.4 million, a 30% increase from the year-ago period. Chris Boever, Chief Executive Officer, announced a “major restructuring plan to build on the positives, accelerate gross margins, and deliver a profitable business in the future.
The GO TEXAN team presented an incredible State Fair of Texas Preview night last week in the Go Texan Pavilion at the Pioneer 1851 General Store. Be sure to drop by while visiting the fair now through Oct 23 and see many of our members’ products for sale including It’s Jerky Y’all, White Rock Granola, and others. Watch for more about the fair in our next issue.
Attention Minority Business Owners: two amazing opportunities are coming up with HEB.
First, HEB is hosting an online meeting on Oct. 13 at 8:30 am to help introduce you to the basics of doing business with them. HEB is one of our region’s largest grocery store chains with more than 340 stores throughout Texas and Mexico. Register now to be a part of this informative Zoom.
Secondly, on Nov. 3, 8:30 am till 1 pm, the H-E-B Supplier Diversity Team is presenting their 12th annual and 3rd virtual Opportunity Exchange and Expo. This year’s theme is Growing in Community: Driven by Ownership with a focus on I.D.E.A.: Innovation/Invest, Develop/Discovery, Education, and Acceleration. Participating businesses can submit an optional video to include information about their companies. Click here for more info and to register (by 10/28 at 5 pm) for this free opportunity.
What would a $15,000 boost mean for your small business? Stacy’s Rise Project is now accepting applications from women-founded businesses in the food and beverage industry until October 21, 2022, at 6 p.m. ET. Apply for a $15,000 grant today! To be eligible, you must be a US CPG brand and at least 50% woman-founded, with sales of between $25,000 and $1M. Click here to read more and apply.
Another amazing opportunity for women-owned businesses in Texas… Looking for help to start your own business? Want to expand an existing business and need resources to do so? The Center for Women Entrepreneurs at TWU’s StartHER Grant Program helps women business owners, current or aspiring, to undertake new and innovative projects. A total of 25 business owners will be selected to each receive a $5,000 grant. Apply here by Oct. 22.
The Emerging Brands Summit is a one-day event in Chicago on October 23 designed for growing brands seeking to scale their manufacturing operations and evaluating in-house and outsourced manufacturing and packaging solutions. Speakers include emerging brand leaders who have successfully scaled through both contract and in-house manufacturing and expert advisors with decades of CPG experience will be available for discussions about your operations, along with suppliers eager to work with emerging brands.
The Consumer VC Summit will connect consumer packaged goods investors with emerging brands to learn more about the CPG landscape from the venture capital perspective. It will be a mix of panels, live podcast recordings and networking events on October 13th, 2:30pm – 5:00pm (Happy Hour to follow), in Austin. Produced by Mike Gelb (The Consumer VC Podcast) and Marc Nathan (Texas-Boxed). Click here to learn more and to register.
Venture Dallas is hosting an in-person conference on Nov. 3 at the George W. Bush Presidential Center. Local and national venture capital firms will provide keynote and panel presentations about the early and growth stage investment climate in DFW. For more information or to purchase a ticket, visit www.venturedallas.org/register.
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