Back Label Branding

Hillary Folkvord is Montana’s hospitality hostess. She manages The Sacagawea Hotel and RSVP Motel in Bozeman. The latter, she concepted, designed, and remodeled as a very Palm Springs meets Montana vibe. With her sister as her business partner, the two manage both properties’ operations and marketing along with a recent addition - The Farmer’s Daughter cafe, a passion project she opened in 2018 featuring a menu inspired by the recipes from Hillary’s kitchen as well as her travels. 

In this episode we talk about the rollercoaster of a ride COVID has brought to her business - from giving birth to her baby boy 1 week before lockdown, having to furlough her entire staff, to sold-out bookings and record sales. Hillary a self-proclaimed “oversharer” through her blog Lady H Life, where she gives insights into her #momlife and entrepreneurship. So of course we dug into marketing on Instagram and how she has used it to build both a lifestyle brand and bring in revenue for her businesses. 

Connect with Hillary on Instagram @hillaryfolkvord or visit her blog ladyh.life 

Check out Hillary’s hospitality brands: @rsvpmotelbzn @farmersdaughtercafe @sacajaweahotel 

SHOW NOTES 

For recipe & cooking inspiration: 

@sakaralife
@eyeswoon
Sunday Suppers, The Cookbook
@annielawless (Blogger and founder of Suja juice) - who inspired Hillary to first start her blog and create lifestyle content.

Heather Howitt is a food & beverage entrepreneur and tea guru. She started and sold her first very successful brand tea brand, Oregon Chai, in 2004 after having a successful partnership with Starbucks and getting her product picked up in grocery stores around the world. Now, Heather is back in the entrepreneurial game with a newly launch product, Thaiwala Thai Tea. Claiming she stumbled into entrepreneurship accidentally, Heather is also a seasoned managing partner in a private equity investment and business acceleration firm that has supported food & beverage brands such a Dave's Killer Bread, JONES Soda, and Boyd's Coffee.

To learn more about Heather and to try Thaiwala tea, visit thaiwala.com or follow @thaiwala_ on Instagram.

Laura Gabriel is the co-founder of Paper Planes Wines. Along with her husband, Kyle, they started the brand with the idea of creating a product for themselves, really. They wanted a rosé that would fit on the shelves of the local wine shop that they frequented and that they could serve at their in Silverlake for the many dinner parties they were hosting with friends. 

Paper Planes was created in 2014 and is now one of the coolest, craft rosé in a cans in the market. In the episode, Laura and I chat about:
- Building a brand with the idea of your ideal retail partner in mind from the start.
- How they crowd-funded their brand to get it started.
- The value of partnerships and how to utilize them to help build your brand identity (we talk about some examples Laura's done with Valleybrink Road and Cuyana)
- And how Laura believes that COVID hasn't really created trends so much as accelerated existing ones when it comes to the food & beverage world.

Follow Laura at @paperplaneswine or visit paperplaneswine.com

SHOW NOTES

Partnerships & brands mentioned in the show:

@silverlakewine
@valleybrinkroad
@aplatsf
@baygrape
@shinola
@contimoprovisions

A conversation with Sarah Hendrix of Lady & Larder on the creation of a marketplace "Bodega" in the middle of COVID, and why creating a food brand that makes people SMILE is important. Sarah Hendrix is the chef behind the Los Angeles cheese shop and cheese board delivery service, Lady & Larder. (Now please take a minute to check out @ladyandlarder and see just how beautiful her products are!) Sarah founded Lady & Larder with her siblings, Matthew and Boo Simms, in 2016 and the business has since been featured in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Los Angeles Magazine, Martha Stewart Weddings, and Eating Well Magazine. In year 2 of her business, Sarah created a partnership with Williams-Sonoma to sell Lady & Larder DIY cheese board kits nationwide. In this episode, Sarah speaks a lot about how she was forced to pivot her catering business in the midst of COVID -- and how by doing that, focusing on giving back to her community, has proved dividends. We also talk about creating branding that makes people smile, designing a business in the food industry for the lifestyle you want (ie. not working dinner shifts and late nights), starting a new business while also finding out she was pregnant (no joke, her son’s first word was Cheese!), and how the secret gift from being a twin (not being able to compare yourself) helps her with parenting. Find & connect with Sarah at: @ladyandlarder ladyandlarder.com SHOW NOTES:  Marketing Tools Lady & Larder uses: Instagram - esp. Stories for sharing the daily menu of items MailChimp Squarespace Businesses that have been born out of COVID that Sarah is obsessed with: @summaeverythang (Community center with a weekly organic produce market.) @lupacotta (Sells pizza kits at the shop.) @katieemiller (Sells cookie dough at the shop.) @mayday_la (Launched a seafood company during COVID. Check out their newsletter every week for ordering.) @ayarathai - Sarah's friend Vanda is the owner and they have been creating fun, whimsy, safe activities.) Jon & Vinnys and Helen's wine - how they have found ways to do unique things. 

So you're wondering what this thing is about, huh? I'm Sydney, the host of the Back Label Branding, a podcast where you'll hear the stories behind the label from some of the leading women in the food and beverage space. As a marketer by trade, I've spent the past 7 years working with brands, influencers, and entrepreneurs in the lifestyle industry. What I've found is that we all learn best in the field and by example. From getting the story from those who've done it first, learning from their successes, and their tips for how to tackle problems. Throughout this show, I'll make it my goal to ask the questions that will give you insights into how to grow your work. You'll hear about best marketing practices, the latest trends and tips for authentic engagement, the myriad of ways you can communicate on and offline to sell your "thing", and inspiring stories from the women who are creating some of my favorite mindfully-made brands.