Igniting a Brand & Following Your Gut with Health-Ade Co-Founder Daina Trout

Episode 202: Today’s episode is Natalie’s favorite of 2023 so far, so you know you’re in for a treat! Daina Trout, current CEO & Co-Founder of premium kombucha brand Health-Ade, joins Nat to break down all things business from her views on the role of CEO (and why she’s transitioning out of that role) to the art of hiring to communicating through packaging and brand values. Unlike the entrepreneurs that we often hear from, Daina and her two co-founders didn’t originally go into business due to their passion or need to problem solve; they fell into the kombucha space only after making the decision to start a company (open to ALL ideas at first) and after deciding to take a step back from their original concept. Daina and Natalie come full circle in today’s convo as they start and end with the importance of following your gut, which is both Heath-Ade’s mission and a general rule of thumb that both women follow as entrepreneurs. 

Today’s episode dives into:   

• Why marketing is both an art and a science 
• How promising a lifestyle rather than simply a product can lead to more brand loyalty 
• The two-fold vision and mission behind Health-Ade kombucha 
• The importance of connecting with your consumers face to face 
• How Daina’s experience at the farmer’s market influenced the trajectory of Health-Ade 
• Why a CEO constantly needs to be problem-solving and compartmentalizing, no matter which stage of growth the company is in 
• Why there are actually an infinite number of ways to do things “right” 
• The reality of facing imposter syndrome and feeling fraudulent in business 

Thank you so much for being a part of our podcast community! Please be sure to rate, follow, review, and of course, post to your highlight reel. Follow your host Natalie on Instagram @nataliebarbu and @therealreelpodcast. Follow along @heathade and find today’s guest @dainatrout. 

Thank you to our sponsors for making this episode possible. Check out these deals just for you:  

The Farmers Dog - Get 50% off and free shipping on your first box of fresh, healthy food at thefarmersdog.com/REALREEL 

Supergut - Head over to Supergut.com and use code REALREEL to save 20% off your order 

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