Spill The Beans – Food Industry Insights for Start-Ups & Entrepreneurs – Monday 22nd April 2024

UPDATE : Tickets are now sold out! We look forward to seeing all who managed to get tickets!

Spill the Beans is an entrepreneurial, inspirational and motivational networking event aimed at food and drinks start-ups and entrepreneurs from ethnic minority communities. Our co-founder Mex Ibrahim is delighted to be on this panel taking place on Monday 22nd April, 2024 from 7pm-9pm.

What to expect

⏰2+ hours of innovative, industry content

📚Hear inspiring and motivational stories from the panel

🤝Meet industry experts and network with exciting new brands

🔗Make great connections

🙏🏽Event offers support + access for undeserved entrepreneurs

🧑🏿‍💼Get your product reviewed and showcase your products to industry experts

✍🏿Tasting stations where attendees can sample and provide feedback on the products offered by independent producers

📈Discuss supply chain management, sourcing ingredients, and other practical aspects of running a food business

Refreshments and a goodie bag are included in the ticket price!

Who should attend?

• Black & ethnic minority founders of new food and drink brands interested in hearing from inspirational start-ups

• Industry experts keen to give back to the industry, inspire and educate the next generation of black & ethnic minority entrepreneurs

• Early-stage food & drink entrepreneurs, looking to understand opportunities within the industry

• Team members of fast growing food & drink brands looking to improve and gain industry knowledge

• Scaling food and drink brands looking to network and secure their next BIG supermarket stocklist

The Panel is chaired by 

Indie Gordon, Early stage angel investor & international motivational speaker

Indie is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur, government consultant, UN delegate, and global speaker. She is the founder of Halo, a cutting-edge safety app ensuring continuous protection for women, students, and solitary workers, set to launch in Q3 2024.

Simultaneously, she serves as the Head of Programs and Community for an international platform, fostering connections and opportunities for entrepreneurs while championing diversity. When not engaged in these roles, Indie spends a significant amount of time as an angel investor for early-stage founders, a transformational coach for anyone or any business looking to develop and grow, and finally, as a global speaker, she travels the world teaching and motivating individuals with dreams who just need a little help to get started.

Who’s on the panel:

Saskia Roskam – Co-Founder The Biskery

The Biskery is an online-only biscuit bakery. The Biskery create bespoke artisan biscuits for everyone wanting to get their message across in the sweetest way – businesses and consumers alike. Their focus is on quality, a personalised service, and sustainability in all areas. Their core mission is to connect people by spreading kindness in biscuit form. All whilst empowering women and working mothers by normalising part-time employment, and family-friendly approaches to work.

Read Saskia’s feature for us – The Biskery – Bespoke, Personalised Biscuits Brand led by Mothers

Monique Farquharson, Founder, The Matcha Yaad

Monique Farquharson is the visionary behind The Matcha Yaad, a ground-breaking Jamaican Matcha company based in the UK.

With a career spanning over a decade across diverse industries, including Education, Insurance, Hospitality, and Food and Beverage, she brings a wealth of experience from her work in Jamaica, Japan, the USA, and the UK.

Her journey was ignited by a deep appreciation for both Japanese and Jamaican cultures, culminating in the creation of The Matcha Yaad, where cultural fusion is celebrated through the art of tea.

Nikki Garg, Founder, The Good Pea Co

Meet the Pea milk brand born out of lockdown. The Good Pea Co. was founded by Nikki & Su when they realised that the current range of plant milks on supermarket shelves lacked nutrition, taste and sustainability and were full of oils.

So they decided to created their own, que…The Good Pea Co., made with the goodness of Yellow Split Peas and Coconut Cream. With 34g of plant protein per carton and zero oils, The Good Pea Co. has a great sustainability story and are spreading happeaness everywhere!

Lauren O’Donnell, Founder, Oatsu

Oatsu makes it easy to enjoy a healthy breakfast on-the-go with their freshly-prepared overnight oats.

Lauren launched the business after struggling to find any convenient breakfasts near her office. They’ve since delivered 30,000+ breakfasts to 3,000+ customers. Their breakfasts have been endorsed by BBC Dragon Steven Bartlett.

In 2023, Oatsu was selected to join Co-op’s Apiary scheme. Oatsu has since closed an oversubscribed Seedrs crowdfund, raising 250% of their target!

Jagir Mankodi & Nirali Buch Mankodi, co-founders, Superfoodio

Superfoodio are a husband wife team who have invented the world’s first Peanut Butter Buttons.

Their buttons take the indulgence of a spoonful of peanut butter and transform it into an on-the-go snack. No Jars, No Spoon, No More Butter Fingers!

All of their snacks are made with natural ingredients, packed full of plant protein and high in fibre. The seed for Superfoodio was first planted during their backpacking adventure around South America. They are proudly stocked in retailers such as Whole Foods Market, Planet Organic and secured their first national retailer with Co-op.

Mex Ibrahim Co-founder, Women in the Food Industry

After almost 8 years as Head of Social Media & Marketing of the UK’s fastest growing food website, Great British Chefs, Mex has delivered a variety of award-winning digital marketing campaigns & now runs her own freelance social media, content creation & digital strategy business. Passionate about women’s equality & female empowerment, she co-founded Women in the Food Industry in April 2019 which became a Community Interest Company in July 2023.

Mex is also a Trustee of School Food Matters, a member of the Guild of Food Writers, sits on the Editorial Advisory Board for New Food Magazine and is an Associate of the Royal Society of Public Health. Her expertise includes sustainability, food entrepreneurs, equality within the food industry and ethical eating.

Ameen Hashedi, Founder, Hamdan Coffee

His entrepreneurial journey has been nurtured by the invaluable support of organisations such as Well Grounded and TERN.

In every cup of Hamdan coffee, whether it’s a single origin or a global specialty, they promise the essence of fresh beans meticulously roasted to deliver a full-bodied, flavourful experience.

Ameen is deeply committed to making a positive impact on communities and endeavours to channel his passion for finely crafted brews into a social enterprise.

HOW TO BOOK:

Visit Spill The Beans Eventbrite page to book tickets  – Women in the Food Industry’s latest newsletter (April 2024) contained a discount code which needs to be entered to get your tickets for only £9.99 + £1.54 booking fee. You can subscribe to our newsletter here. Any problems getting the discount code, please email mex@womeninthefoodindustry.com. However the discount is on a ‘first come, first served’ basis – only a couple are left!

We look forward to seeing you there.