Ep 248 | Caron Proschan

Written By Yasmin Nouri

How This Founder Disrupted an Industry From Her Kitchen, Took Action Without Overthinking & Hustled Her Way Into Whole Foods

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Caron Proschan is the founder and CEO of Simply, a premium confections brand known for its unusually simple and clean products.

In 2013, when Caron was switching a lot of her personal, beauty and cleaning products to more natural/clean options, she realized one thing she used often – which was gum – was a category that was never disrupted. She dove into the research to learn more about what goes into conventional chewing gum and was surprised to find that most gum on the market uses a base that has plastic in it, usually called “gum base” on the labels. She also found that the FDA allows gums to have several artificial ingredients like aspartame, plus artificial flavors and colors as well. She made it her mission to do something about it, and her first product, Simply Gum was born at that time.

The gum was a huge success, and after seeing the demand for Simply’s unusually simple ingredients, the brand has evolved its product portfolio to include a wider assortment of premium confections, including mints, Really Real Gummies, and Chocolate Date Bars. 

In this week’s episode, Caron talks to us about how she created Simply’s first ever gum from her small NY kitchen experimenting with chicle, a natural alternative to gum base, for over a year. She also shares her experience pivoting from her finance career to running her own business later in life, what it takes to create a strong brand and how she got the product out there through pure hustle in the early days, which ended up landing her in Whole Foods. We get into the details of how she manufactured the product from her apt to then expanding to a commercial kitchen and now their own factory, and the biggest learning and mistakes she’s made along the way. Caron also tells us how she got into nationwide retailers, the importance of patience, why you shouldn't take rejections personally, and so much more!

Show Notes:

  • Building resilience early in entrepreneurship. [03:12]

  • Caron’s unconventional post-college journey. [05:03]

  • Transitioning from corporate to entrepreneurship. [06:46]

  • Conceptualizing and experimenting in her kitchen. [09:26]

  • Using Kickstarter and working with deadlines. [11:59]

  • Developing a food product with no industry experience. [13:35]

  • Perfecting taste and the role of feedback. [16:50]

  • Establishing brand presence on Amazon. [18:40]

  • Getting into Whole Foods and lessons learned. [20:05]

  • Navigating production and team building. [23:28]

  • Raising capital from angel investors. [25:25]

  • Advantages of a dedicated gum production factory. [26:49]

  • Managing relationships with co-packers. [30:25]

  • Lessons from large retailers. [31:32]

  • Patience and persistence in entrepreneurship. [33:10]

  • Founder vs. corporate pay perspective. [35:17]

  • Challenges as Simply matures. [37:57]

  • How Caron maintains her mental health. [40:01]

  • Balancing motherhood and entrepreneurship. [41:54]

  • The messy truth in starting a business. [43:30]

  • Pursuing additional funding for brand growth. [44:40]

  • Simply’s new products. [45:49]

  • Creating new products amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic. [47:19]

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Ep 249 | Dr. Stacy Sims
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Ep 247 | Loren Castle