Founder Spotlight: Santiago Stacey (LiveKuna)
Meet Santiago Stacey:
LiveKuna is a vertically integrated superfood company with a vast portfolio of natural products including gluten-free flours, pastas, cereals, seeds, grains, and snacks.
Location:
Toronto, Canada
What led you to where you are today?
Carlos Gutiérrez and I (Santiago Stacey) Co-Founded the company in 2014. LiveKuna was founded when 99% of chia seeds grown in Ecuador, our home country, were being exported. After coming across chia seeds for the first time in 2013, I was hooked on learning more about the ingredient – I even started incorporating it into my own diet. I learned that Ecuador, a powerhouse food producer, was a major supplier of chia seeds in Latin America at that time, but only used them for export. We weren’t taking full advantage of these amazing seeds. Powered by curiosity and passion for chia seeds and nutrition, I teamed up with my friend Carlos and started our mission to utilize the locally-grown crop in new, accessible ways. From the start, sourcing quality ingredients from our home community was a top priority and today we lead people towards a healthier life by giving them better food choices.
What do you wish you knew before embarking on your entrepreneurial journey?
That focus, patience, and perseverance are key to success.
What is the most difficult decision you've had to make regarding your business so far?
To stop distribution in a major retailer because the investment to maintain our products was higher than the growth potential. Choose your battles.
What can you help the VEGPRENEUR community with?
I love the process of launching a new product, the conceptualization, and the logistics. Happy to help on those fronts.
How can the VEGPRENEUR community help you?
Creating communities.
Fun fact about you:
Used to play drums in a punk band ;)
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