Function Meets Flavor: Ben Hewitt Of Zend Wellness On 5 Things You Need To Create A Successful Functional Foods Brand
An Interview With Wanda Malhotra
Customer service. We have learned that it is important for your client service team to have a firm understanding of the ingredients and benefits and be product experts themselves.
As the appetite for foods that offer health benefits beyond basic nutrition continues to grow, the market for functional foods has exploded. Consumers are no longer just asking for delicious flavors; they demand that their foods also support their lifestyle, health, and well-being. This intersection of function and flavor is not just a trend; it’s a movement towards a future where every bite counts towards better health. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Ben Hewitt.
Ben is a serial entrepreneur and founder and CEO of Zend Coffee, the globally sourced premium coffee brand on a mission to bring function and flavor to your morning coffee ritual. Ben has over two decades of consumer industry experience, with the successful founding of Corkcicle prior to going out to start Zend and can speak to business expertise, consumer goods industry questions, health and wellness ingredients and functional coffee.
Thank you so much for joining us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your ‘backstory’?
I went into banking right out of school but quickly realized that other people were doing much cooler things. I then had an opportunity to start a company, CoAdvantage, an HR outsourcing space. We then sold CoAdvantage and I stepped into my next venture. In 2010 I started Corkcicle when I had the idea to keep a bottle of wine cold from inside. From there I was able to build up that company and then did another deal in 2019 where I sold the company and stepped down as CEO. I then decided to do something different to combine what I loved about both of those companies. I loved consumer space and thought about what the biggest consumables were and I was faced with gas or coffee and I definitely preferred coffee. Although the coffee space was crowded the coffee subscription space was not and that’s what led me to where I am today with Zend.
Can you share with us the most interesting story from your career? Can you tell us what lessons or ‘takeaways’ you learned from that?
One of the best stories I can remember is when we originally started Corkcicle, the name was spelled Corksicle but with an ‘s’ instead of a ‘c’ after “Cork”. We received a cease and desist letter from Unilever, the company who owns Popsicle. We thought it was ridiculous and figured we would fight it. We then saw a company trying to register as Glowsicle. We reached out to them and asked if they received the same letter. They had. They indicated they were in court and were fighting it. You will notice you don’t see Glowsicle around. They lost terribly. At that moment we changed Corksicle to Corkcicle with a ‘c’. And now the name is history.
Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
- Team building was and is still very instrumental to building brands. Putting together a strong team is something that I prioritize, especially starting a business from the ground up. I’ve learned that recognizing my own weaknesses and bringing in strong business partners is the true recipe for success. When we launched Corkcicle, we outsourced everything because business is risky and it becomes expensive to have desks, space, etc.. One thing I learned is that it is important to bring things in house once you get to scale.
- Financial understanding has been something that has given me an advantage when starting businesses.I have a degree in accounting, and although I was never going to practice accounting, I knew it would be beneficial for my ambition in the business world.
- One of the most important character traits to have, especially when working for a startup is “rolling up sleeves.” It is certainly important when working for a start-up to know that you’re going to have to roll up your sleeves and get dirty. Teams are small and multiple hats need to be worn at all times. When building businesses I found that building from the top down and finding people who are willing to get messy has been a game changer and watching their ideas come to fruition is incredible. Like I mentioned earlier it is important to bring in the right team members who are excited to build their own legacy.
Are you working on any exciting new projects now? How do you think that might help people?
We are currently working on a very unique marine based collagen product that can be used as an additive into our coffees focusing on continued functional ingredients without affecting taste. We also just released a new functional blend, Pure Harmony. Pure Harmony is our first half caff blend that is a 50/50 blend of organic Swiss Water Process® decaffeinated coffee and organic naturally caffeinated coffee with added adaptogens, aminos, and vitamins crafted to help customers ease stress and combat fine lines and wrinkles. It is a medium roast blend that includes notes of cinnamon and milk chocolate for a smoother taste.
Additionally, we have future plans to expand to the B2B market as we are primarily DTC right now. We also have plans to in the future create a flagship store here in Orlando that would align with our values of wellness and functional ingredients.
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s shift to the main focus of our interview. To begin, let’s start with a definition so that all of us are on the same page. What does Functional Food mean to you?
To me, functional foods are more than just about calories and energy. Functional food must support long-term health goals as well. For example, Zend Coffee’s functional blends are created to take consistently to reach long term health goals that can not be solved by just one cup.
What inspired you to get involved in the functional foods industry? How does that relate to your personal life and values?
We saw a differentiation in the coffee industry. As we all get older adaptogens are important for long-term wellness and we also recognized that for many, a morning cup of coffee is something that is already a built in habit to their routine. We thought that rather than becoming just another supplement that people will take for a few weeks and eventually forget, that we wanted to provide these adaptogens within the most common consumable, coffee to make wellness accessible and not an extra step.
Can you share your insights on the growing demand for functional foods in today’s market? How has this demand evolved over the years, and what do you attribute this change to?
There has been a shift to a healthier focus across the board and I believe that it will continue to expand with both the increase in science and realization that there can be a longer, more comfortable life.
Can you discuss the process of balancing taste with nutritional value in product development, ensuring that flavor does not take a backseat to function?
When creating our functional blends we focus on taste at the forefront because we want our consumers to have all of the benefits of the functional ingredients without changing the flavor and coffee drinking experience. A lot of coffee alternatives don’t offer the same coffee taste that coffee lovers crave so we focus on functional ingredients that won’t alter taste.
What innovative ingredients are you most excited about in the functional foods market, and how are they transforming consumer health and wellness?
We have a lot of things in the works that are very exciting as we plan to branch out into the wellness and functional foods industry even more. As I mentioned before we are very excited about our metabolic collagen product that we are preparing to launch this quarter. L-theanine is a huge ingredient that we prioritize. It is in our latest blend, Pure Harmony and will be in our collagen product because it helps promote relaxation while combating drowsiness. Additionally hyaluronic acid and biotin are two other ingredients we prioritize as well to promote beauty from within.
Based on your research or experience, can you please share your “5 Things You Need To Create A Successful Functional Foods Brand”?
1 . Understanding your persona. When creating any business, especially in the food and beverage industry it is critical to know who your customer is and how do you build a brand attractive to them. When creating our Zend persona I recognized that we did not want it to look too much different than Corkcicle. We created our “Zend Mary” customer persona who we created to be super specific down to where she shops and what kind of car she drives. It’s important to have fun with it.
2 . Look is important, and the packaging matters. While the cliche states to not choose a book by its cover, many choose what brand of food to get based on the packaging and we kept that in mind when designing each back of Zend. Everyone that has received a bag of Zend has spoken to how amazing the packaging design is, showing us it is something that consumers truly value.
3 . Taste is paramount. We found that while really great for you, so many functional foods or mixes simply taste bad. Mushroom coffee is a good example of this. Many people who have tried to switch to mushroom coffee have actually moved back to regular coffee because the taste just could not compare. The key recipe for success includes adding functional ingredients without altering the classic coffee taste that people crave.
4 . Customer service. We have learned that it is important for your client service team to have a firm understanding of the ingredients and benefits and be product experts themselves.
5 . Uniqueness. Staying ahead of competition is key and making your product stand out especially for us when we embarked on pioneering coffee different than anyone. We know how hard it can be to remember to take supplements and pills every morning, so we wanted to build functional ingredients into a consumable that is one of the most common in the country. While the coffee space is crowded, we really didn’t see another product like ours that was not a “coffee alternative” on the market.
How do you navigate the regulatory challenges associated with health claims on food packaging, and what advice would you give to new entrants in this space?
Make sure you have clinical evidence ready to go that will back whatever you are claiming on your packaging. We use clinically tested top of the line ingredients in our products that we are both personally passionate about and have seen results from. Thoroughly testing products is essential in the functional food and beverage space. By simply understanding the benefits associated with the functional ingredients, and knowing the product inside and out you will be ready to face any regulations and challenges.
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for the time you spent on this. We wish you only continued success.
About the Interviewer: Wanda Malhotra is a wellness entrepreneur, lifestyle journalist, and the CEO of Crunchy Mama Box, a mission-driven platform promoting conscious living. CMB empowers individuals with educational resources and vetted products to help them make informed choices. Passionate about social causes like environmental preservation and animal welfare, Wanda writes about clean beauty, wellness, nutrition, social impact and sustainability, simplifying wellness with curated resources. Join Wanda and the Crunchy Mama Box community in embracing a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle at CrunchyMamaBox.com.
Function Meets Flavor: Ben Hewitt Of Zend Wellness On 5 Things You Need To Create A Successful… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.