Today we’d like to introduce you to Nate Cooper.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I had been working in the restaurant industry for 6 years – helped start LYFE Kitchen in Chicago, and decided to go back to business school at Kellogg. I was invited to speak during their Food & Ag week and after received an email from an attendee – asking if I would meet Rebecca (who became my business partner) because she was thinking about starting a food business. We sat down a few weeks later – and she approached me with the problem that she was trying to solve for her friends – many of whom were having children and felt like they were not living up to their expectations as parents-mainly around food (lunch). They wanted to create a business to solve the problem. what we settled on- nearly a month later was ‘Blue Apron for kids lunches’.
Fast forward a month or two and we decided we needed to see if strangers would pay for it. We posted to a local mom’s Facebook group and built a basic webpage- hoping to get 10-15 responses over the course of the week. The next morning we woke up in shock to 400+ responses- we knew this had legs. Fast forward to today, we have built a team, created a proprietary packaging system, and delivered almost 200,000 lunches to families throughout the Midwest – and are excited about our retail launch. We think we have created the 21st century ‘Lunchable’- but a version that is fresh, healthy, and parents can feel good about feeding their kids!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Anything but! Like any new venture, we have been turned down 100’s of times and been told this wouldn’t work countless times! We started this business in my kitchen, and our first commercial kitchen was during the off hours in a bar/bowling alley… looking back on it now, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
At the bowling alley – there were a lot of early mornings – getting in around 2 AM when the bar was closing and working till 12 PM when they were opening for lunch. It got to the point where we were doing more business out of there than the actual bar was!
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Wise Apple – what should we know?
What started as a solution to a problem for our friends – getting their kids out the door with food that they’ll eat – and is also good for them, has evolved into a solution for a problem faced by millions of moms (and dads), all across the country!
Wise Apple is a new way for families to pack on-the-go snacks and meals for their families, with clean ingredients and delivery at home or via traditional grocery. With our mix-and-match packaging, parents can pick a favorite lunch or they can build their own for picky eaters.
In early 2018, after much demand, we decided to pursue retail as a natural extension of our brand. We launched at a few local retailers in Chicagoland in mid-February 2018, and have been the fastest moving CPG product in their store. Retailers are excited about us as the ’21st Century Lunchable’ – a billion $ product that has been around for 30+ years and has never really been challenged. We have an opportunity to replace a legendary product that by all accounts is stale and needs a refresh.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Never taking yourself too seriously.
Humility
Integrity
and NEVER being the smartest guy in the room!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.getwiseapple.com
- Email: info@getwiseapple.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getwiseapple/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wiseapple/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/getwiseapple
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