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Meet Kate Havness of Havsies Popcorn in South LA

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Kate Havness.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
From when I was a kid, I was always obsessed with popcorn. Everyone knew Kate’s house meant bowls on bowls of what we now have dubbed “The OG” for obvious reasons. Growing up, my mom was a chef and owned a cafe and cheesecake company, and she taught me everything about flavor. When you’re a kid growing up in a restaurant, you are just surrounded by creativity and a passion for food. Popcorn was the best canvas to bring that flavor to life and it just stuck, I was hooked. People always ask me why popcorn? My response is always, why not? Who do you know that doesn’t like popcorn?

College rolled around, and I read this article that was talking about Entrepreneurship. It asked one simple question that changed my life: What is one weird thing that you are better at more than anyone else you know? Without hesitation, the first thing that came to my mind was yes, popcorn. I remember sitting in some massive Econ auditorium, laughing at myself and how ridiculous that sounded in my head and didn’t think about it again until five years later. Looking back at that simple yet defining moment, it’s serendipitous realizing that one little question planted a seed that took life, it just needed time to be watered.

I started Havsies in a garage in the Valley in 2017. I had started coming up with flavor concepts back in 2015 and I just could not shake the little voice in my head that kept telling me to go after it- if not now, then when? Luckily, every once in a while, that little voice is so wise, so here we are three years down, and a popcorn factory later, I’m really grateful that I took that chance.

Has it been a smooth road?
Starting a business of any kind is extremely challenging. If you want a smooth road, I highly suggest not becoming an entrepreneur. I think the biggest struggle for me looking back was to trust my gut. Coming from a background where I knew nothing about business I would always second guess myself and my own common sense. Since I didn’t finish college, I developed this complex that everyone knew something I didn’t, and I overlooked common sense and my own instincts. I have since been able to silence my inner critic and trust that I know what’s best for my company and that has made a world of difference. You will always have roadblocks; running a business is about not getting too high or too low on yourself so you can maneuver every challenge with a level head. We have had every struggle you can imagine from funding to manufacturing challenges, losing of virtually all of our clients when the pandemic hit…you just have to remember that everything has a solution. If you can’t find a solution – pivot.

Always be calm, develop a brain trust with people you respect, humble yourself, ask questions. My favorite quote that’s attributed to multiple people that everyone knows is: “If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room”. Be a sponge, listen. Then, once you’ve listened, what does your gut say? What is the right move? At the end of the day, when your head hits that pillow, you and you alone must deal with yourself and your decisions. So, don’t let people make them for you but be humble enough to hear what people wiser than you have to say.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Havsies Popcorn story. Tell us more about the business.
Havsies is a popcorn company, think willy Wonka meets popcorn. We specialize in bringing gourmet flavors to general market. We felt like there was a gap in mainstream consumer popcorn, you either had stale big bag brands with no flavor or had extremely gourmet popcorn that you couldn’t eat every day. We bring gourmet flavors to everyday snacking. Havsies is most well-known for our flavors- they truly are an experience. I’m most proud of how in the face of everyone telling us we were crazy to manufacture and urging us to co-pack (which is what 90% of food companies do) that we chose to manufacture our product start to finish.

Contract manufacturing or co-packing is when you have an idea for a product and bring it to a company that makes it for you. Less startup cost and headache but overall, it does compromise your product and poses a myriad of issues down the line. It was a very expensive and bold decision for a startup to manufacture in-house, but I am grateful every day for that decision (this is an instance where I DID listen to the little voice in my head). Having full control of the process allows us to ensure that our product is living up to our high expectations for quality and taste. This is what sets us apart from the competition: an obsession with bringing the best tasting, highest quality popcorn to market.

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I see the snack industry getting more inventive and experimental over the next 5-10 years, the emergence of health-conscious snacks is absolutely insane right now. I think the consumer wants to be heard and have new flavor experiences which is what we strive to provide with Havsies. The overall snack category in general is experiencing a downward trend while popcorn specifically is on the up. I attribute that to people being more health conscious, and I think that will continue over the next 5-10 years. I do believe, and this is personal I can’t attribute this to anything other than my gut instinct, that people will grow weary of the super restrictive low-calorie options. I think calories are important, and we are a very calorie and health-conscious brand, but I think the trend will level out and people with really want that satiating flavor back while also being health conscious.

I believe that there is a common ground that will arise in 5-10 years once people accept that sometimes sacrificing ALL the calories/fat/carbs doesn’t really satisfy your cravings. I believe in eating what you’re craving to get that fix while still being moderately health conscious is where it’s at. We all know that feeling when you’re on a diet and you’re trying to eat flavored ice essentially when you’re craving ice cream– it just doesn’t cut it. I personally used to eat massive bags of “skinny” popcorn when I was really craving something satisfying. I would eat the whole damn bag because there was little to no flavor and end up eating three times as many calories than if I just had what I was craving. I do believe that this low fat, “skinny” trend will level out, and people will be more inclined to be healthy but also satisfied. The adage of ‘everything in moderation’ is something that comes to mind.

Pricing:

  • “Share” bags retail at $3.99
  • “Mini” bags retail at $1.29

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Betsy Winchell, Tara Berg

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