Real Food Brands

Real Food Brands Helping natural food & farm brands shake up shopping carts! Listen to the podcast to build a meaningful & memorable brand.

06/05/2026

This is clearly NOT a training video 😆😅 I bought treats at because I met Jean, their Chief Growth Officer through our National Board work last year. We co-lead a committee together and I love to support my friends!

Turns out, Bailey does too. She couldn’t even keep it together to film a good video these treats were so tasty to her. Despite this excitement of a new treat, she’s a good girl and loves to train 😆

Check out Shameless Pets— and they use upcycled ingredients, which I love!

06/04/2026

Strategy brings clarity, but making it happen creates momentum! When you’re “done” with strategy you’re really just beginning, and that’s exciting… every day and every decision is an opportunity to bring your vision to life💡🛒

Here’s a preview of what you’ll hear in Ep 189 of the podcast 🎙️

Make sure you’re on my newsletter list to get your activation worksheet on Friday🚀

It was hard to get a good picture, but FaB Wisconsin’s member meeting last week was fantastic. This panel moderated by J...
06/03/2026

It was hard to get a good picture, but FaB Wisconsin’s member meeting last week was fantastic. This panel moderated by John Miller of was packed with insight and inspiration!

They all shared many great nuggets but one thing I took from each of them (note: my interpretation not quotes)…

💡Stay the course—if your current strategy is working don’t get distracted by what others say you could/should do especially when it’s a different model of distribution, etc not just a line extension - from Amanda Kroener of re: non alc options

💡A good idea can come back around when the time is right based on market conditions and shifting consumer habits …stay open to opportunities. - from Shelly Stayer of re: The Sizzling Sausage Grill (bonus from Shelly was a lovely shoutout to her husband and company founder, Ralph, for believing in her at every step)

💡Don’t pigeonhole yourself to stay safe when it can limit your potential and the impact you were meant to make. Taking what could be a risky career move in an intentional way and trusting what someone sees in you that you might not see yet can unlock BIG dividends. - Shawna Nelson from re: moving from being an “HR person” to an unrelated part of the company that unlocked her new passion and ultimately her path to CEO.

Thanks to Gina and Emily at FaB for a great member event!

I’m so proud that my daughter knew to point out this “before and after brand refresh” example 😉 We were at and this tim...
06/03/2026

I’m so proud that my daughter knew to point out this “before and after brand refresh” example 😉 We were at and this time from 👏

I like that it’s a subtle evolution (ie recognizable by keeping existing brand equity), and like we mentioned recently on the podcast about making “bison” a lot bigger…venison and ancestral blend pop more now.

The other big thing in terms of reinforcing key messages are the pasture raised and supporting message of lifelong access to pasture. This is an example of making sure that your communication hierarchy on package aligns with your brand strategy.

I don’t know the brand strategy here, but I have to imagine they realized that it wasn’t clear enough to consumers, or changed sourcing and wanted to clarify.

The logo lock up changed too, and works well on the new design.

I wish I had taken a picture of the back!

🛒Do you like seeing these before and afters? If you see any you want me to share my strategic thoughts on, let me know!

05/31/2026

You’ve got your Brand Strategy Playbook created, now what? We align the team and activate the plan! 🚀

In Ep 188 of The Food Business Marketing Podcast we are talking all about how to build trust with your fans/community and key stakeholders. Clint and I both offer one of our top trust building factors — and we’d love to hear yours! 🎙️

And yes, we like to have fun on the show and in day-to-day work. Sometimes when my high schoolers have off of school, they can hear me laughing up in my office and ask me what the heck is going on. 😂😅

Serious doesn’t have to be stuffy!

I hope you’ll take a listen and let us know if you have any questions or comments.

And make sure you’re on my email newsletter list through the link in my bio because every Friday you’ll get a brief email directly to your inbox to help you make aligned decisions and bring your ideas to life 📧💡

Who wants to build trust and shake up shopping carts with me?! 🥰👏🛒

05/28/2026

Brand Pillars versus Content Pillars…have you wondered the difference?

Let me know if you want me to give you some example, or want a whole podcast episode on this topic!



05/27/2026

We’ve talked about “define” in the last few episodes and now we moved into “align & activate” and how we can lean into consistency and cohesiveness to build trust with our brands.

Please listen, share, and let us know what you think!

05/27/2026

It looks like this line of ready to bake frozen food from Magnolia Table launched in Q4 last year, but yesterday was the first time I saw it in my Target store since I don’t usually shop in that section but I was scouting for new items.

I lean towards thinking the positive brand equity from the Magnolia Home brand can extend to their line of baked goods (ie that it would look good and be be pretty good quality) because it’s a “lifestyle brand” not just decor anymore…but also I am curious what you think! 🤔

As the season shifts, whether you are going into summer like I am or on the other side of the globe heading into winter…...
05/27/2026

As the season shifts, whether you are going into summer like I am or on the other side of the globe heading into winter…

…the same concept holds true—we need to be thinking about how to leverage shifting habits with a change of season.

☀️This is not to shift your whole strategy, just how you keep your brand relevant to be someone’s relevant, trusted go-to brand in every season!

Some examples of these shifts to consider include:

1) availability of local food/farmers markets
2) less structured days without school for those with kids or are teachers…or shifting to summer camp mode.
3) the types of foods and recipes/usage ideas based on these schedule shifts/what feels good to eat this time of year.
4) being on-the-go outdoors while the weather allows it
5) youth sports seasons and travel that comes with it

Those are just a few examples to highlight what I am talking about.

What could you talk about to stay top of mind this season?

—————
I’m Katie, your food brand strategist using my years of corporate brand management to help early stage brands shake up shopping carts…if you like thinking through things like this and prioritizing all the ideas in your head, subscribe to my weekly strategy newsletter! Link in bio🔗

5 more podcasts to add to your queue to build your food business! This wasn’t a formal series, however, we did have a w...
05/26/2026

5 more podcasts to add to your queue to build your food business!

This wasn’t a formal series, however, we did have a word to guide each episode (starting with 182)…value, luck, success, listening, and focus.

These words guided us through talking about how you can use brand strategy to build your business — using it as your guide to strategize ideas and prioritize decisions.

We’d love to hear which one was your favorite?!

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