Today we’d like to introduce you to Danielle Gormley.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m a mother to two little boys and suffered from multiple health issues through much of my adult life. Without getting much help from doctors, I focused my energy on healing myself through nutrition. I found several foods that were impacting me negatively and also found a ton of foods that actually improved my symptoms. The importance of nutrition was critical in my healing journey, but now I was left with minimal products in the grocery store that I could enjoy because of my restrictions.
Chia pudding was one main meal in my life where I could add in supplements, change the recipe multiple times for variety, and had a gut-healing quality that was crucial to my health. I’m a busy mom, and I like to have convenience just like everyone else. I sought out on the internet to find chia pudding that I could just buy, and it wasn’t out there. A light bulb went off in my head and took on the challenge of bringing chia pudding to the commercial market. Almost as quick as I made the decision to jump into one of the most competitive industry’s out there, I had permits, was selling at farmer’s markets, and selling out. After that, you could say it escalated quickly. I moved out of my home kitchen into a commercial one within months. Then on to co-packing thousands a year later and securing the top 2 distributors in the US. Along the way, I’ve been very diligent to staying true to why I started this company in the first place, which is to provide healthy food that isn’t over-processed and is as nutrient dense as possible. I now have four flavors of dry chia pudding mixes in individual cups: strawberry with turkey tail mushroom, blueberry with chaga mushroom, coffee with lion’s mane mushroom, and dark chocolate with reishi mushroom in over 200 stores, available on Amazon, and my website hellopuddin.com.
Has it been a smooth road?
There is no such thing as a smooth road when it comes to entrepreneurship. I’ve had challenges, so many challenges along the way. I came from being a stay at home mom with little to no work experience beyond a bartender, so there was really nothing preparing me for what I was in for. I’ve had issues with co-packing runs, orders not showing up, logistical nightmares. Those are all just part of doing business. The most important thing is that I survive them, learn from them, and put checks and balances in place to prevent them. Nothing in life comes without challenges but I stick to this mantra: if it can’t kill me or eat me, I’m good. I’m getting very good at rolling with the punches.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Hello Puddin’ Chia Company – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
I make a variety of premium chia puddings. I have an assortment of four flavors: strawberry with turkey tail mushroom, blueberry with chaga mushroom, dark chocolate with reishi mushroom, and coffee with lion’s mane mushroom. Each puddin cup is one serving, 160 or less calories, 1-2g net carbs, no added sugar, and contains 1,000mg of the specified adaptogenic mushroom. All the customer has to do is follow the directions on the side and add milk. The pudding sets up in about 30min-60min depending on the variety of milk that you use. I’m so proud that my product has real food, no fillers, nutrient dense, and has functional ingredients like the mushrooms. I’m in the breakfast aisle amongst some products that have 20g of sugar per serving.
It’s pretty exciting to me that I can be one of the brands paving the way to bring healthier options to such an iconic aisle. I really have taken care in sourcing my ingredients ethically, from people who care about food as much as I do. I think that it is a privilege to feed people. People take what I make, what I curate, and feed it to their families across the country. I don’t take that privilege lightly and I make sure that they are getting the best product that I can make. It may just seem like a chia pudding to most people, but I know better. For some this is their first introduction to a healthy habit that may spark a healthier lifestyle. For others, it is something that they can finally eat when they have had digestive issues or dietary restrictions. I make food from the perspective of a buyer’s needs because ultimately that’s why I created this in the first place because I couldn’t find any convenience foods for myself.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love LA. It’s one of the most culturally diverse, dense cities in the US. LA has the best food scene. From food trucks to restaurants, you can literals travel the culinary world right in one city!
Pricing:
- 8-Packs on Amazon – $32
- Single Cups on Amazon – $4.50
- 8-Packs on Website – $32
- Select brick and mortar – $3.99
Contact Info:
- Website: hellopuddin.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @hellopuddin_chiaco
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hellopuddinchiaco
- Other: www.amazon.com/hellopuddin
Image Credit:
Sandro Pena
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