Most food founders think fundraising means perfecting your pitch deck. Angel investor Katie Dunn says you’re starting in the wrong place.

In our conversation, Katie breaks down the three fundamentals that actually get investors to meet with you, and say yes: understanding investor thesis (and why it saves you from wasting time), leveraging warm introductions instead of cold pitching, and building a financial model that shows exactly how you’ll reach profitability.

We cover the investment basics every founder needs to know—what a safe note actually is, why angels want equity, and whether regional brands can get funded (spoiler: yes, but with different deal structures). Katie also shares her strong recommendation on why your first hire should be finance, not marketing, and how to make it ridiculously easy for investors to want to help you.

If you’re considering fundraising or just want to understand how investment actually works in food CPG, this episode gives you the straight talk you need.

Connect with Katie:

Website: katiedunn.com

Advisory Board: The Masthead Strategy

LinkedIn: Katie Dunn

Instagram: @iamkatiedunn

TikTok: @iamkatiedunn

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Building a profitable food business without investors isn’t just possible—it’s a strategic choice.

Sarah sits down with Daniel Goetz, founder of Good Pop, who’s bootstrapped his popsicle brand for 16 years by prioritizing profitability over growth headlines.

Daniel shares practical strategies that kept Good Pop alive and thriving:

* Why he sold just 4 popsicles at his “big launch” (and what happened next)

* The 3am working capital discovery that kept his business going

* Why he focused on going “deep not wide” with retail expansion

* How to get packaging and ingredient suppliers invested in your vision

Hear how forcing profitability from day one shaped every business decision—and why Daniel chose this path after watching funded peers struggle under investor pressure.

Connect with Daniel:

Website: GoodPop

Instagram: @GoodPop

LinkedIn: @Daniel Goetz

The Good Food Collective

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Sarah sits down with Shelley Elkovich, co-founder and CEO of For Bitter For Worse, to explore the financial strategy behind building a profitable specialty beverage brand. Shelley shares how self-manufacturing became a dual revenue stream through contract manufacturing, allowing her to control costs while generating additional income.

The conversation reveals practical insights on sustainable growth versus rapid expansion, how to filter customer feedback without compromising your vision, and the strategic decisions that kept this non-alcoholic cocktail brand resilient through major market shifts. Discover how Shelley evaluates each growth opportunity and makes decisions that prioritize long-term sustainability over short-term wins.

Shelley also graciously offered our listeners 20% off their products using the code Sarah20 on their website!

Connect with Shelley:Website: For Bitter For WorseInstagram: @forbitterforworseLinkedIn: Shelley ElkovichAmazon: Shop For Bitter For Worse

Join The Good Food CFO Community:

Follow us on Instagram: @thegoodfoodcfo

Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo

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Sarah shares real stories from beta testers using The Good Food CFO financial strategy software for the first time:

* A founder running five sales channels discovered their revenue tracking wasn’t set up to support strategic decision-making

* A 16-year bakery owner finally understood where profit actually goes when monthly debt payments take it right back out

* A founder learned why categorizing marketing expenses as cost of goods sold makes their numbers nearly impossible to interpret

The software isn’t just a tool—it’s revealing the blind spots that most founders don’t even know they have. Tune in for practical insights about organizing your financial foundation and unlocking better decision-making in your business.

Want this same clarity in your food business? Join our waitlist for 50% off your first month’s subscription.

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Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo

Become a Member: BABOYOT

Can you build a CPG brand without chasing unicorn status? Kelley Scanlin, founder of Pure Simple Foods (parent to Lark-Ellen Farm and Purely Sprouted), shares how she grew from farmer’s market beginnings to operating a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility—all while refusing to compromise on quality.

Sarah and Kelley dig into the strategic path most founders overlook, exploring:

* Why regional growth beats racing for national distribution

* How mission and values guide major business decisions (including which distributors to work with)

* The evolution from founder to CEO and knowing your end game from day one

* Why slow, intentional scaling protects quality and profitability

* The reality check every founder needs: you don’t have to be the next RX Bar

* Building with strategy first—not just hoping for viral growth

Kelley’s honest perspective on defining success differently offers a refreshing alternative to the “grow fast, exit big” narrative. This conversation redefines what CPG success can look like when you build on your own terms.

Join The Good Food CFO Community:

Follow us on Instagram: @thegoodfoodcfo

Connect on LinkedIn: @sarahdelevan

Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo

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Margins matter—but what’s the rest of the financial strategy that transforms good margins into actual profitability and positive cash flow?

Sarah lays out the complete three-part framework behind “Profit by Design,” the philosophy helping food founders escape the 70% failure rate. Beyond product margins, you need clarity on your true operating expenses and the ability to build financial scenarios that answer critical questions: How many units do I need to sell to break even? How much capital will this really take? How long until I stop reinvesting?

Sarah shares the story of a baker whose scenario modeling revealed she’d need to bake cookies around the clock just to break even—saving her from launching an unsustainable business. Learn why planned losses are easier to navigate than surprises, how to know if you’re on or off track each month, and why having this complete financial roadmap transforms entrepreneurship from constant uncertainty into strategic execution.

This is the missing link between understanding your margins and building a food business that actually works financially.

Join The Good Food CFO Community:

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Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo

Become a Member: BABOYOT

Farmers markets offer food founders the chance to capture high margin sales —but it only matters if you know how to make them profitable. In this episode, Sarah sits down with Catt Fields-White, nationally recognized farmers market expert and founder of the InTents National Farmers Market Conference, to answer real questions from Good Food CFO listeners about maximizing farmers market revenue.

What You’ll Learn:

* Why Catt told one cookie vendor to raise prices five times before adding production capacity

* The margin advantage of farmers markets vs. wholesale distribution (and why it matters for cash flow)

* Logistics for selling at 7+ markets weekly: staffing, delivery, and storage solutions

* Simple display changes that directly impact sales (including the pricing psychology most vendors miss)

* What to do before walking away from an unprofitable market, and more

Thinking about launching, growing or revamping a farmer’s market business? This episode is for you!

Join The Good Food CFO Community:

Follow us on Instagram: @thegoodfoodcfo

Connect on LinkedIn: @sarahdelevan

Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo

Become a Member: BABOYOT

What if the secret to massive food business profits isn't growing revenue first? Sarah reveals a counterintuitive "grow last" strategy that transformed a seasonal business from $19K to $107K monthly profits in just two years.

This client's 14% gross profit margins were a ticking time bomb – every new sale was actually creating bigger losses. But instead of the typical "sell more" advice, Sarah implemented a radical two-year approach that flipped conventional growth wisdom upside down.

Year 1 Strategy: Fix everything inside the business first. Sarah walks through the unsexy but profit-generating work that most founders skip. Revenue stayed flat while profits more than doubled – proving the model worked before scaling.

Year 2 Strategy: Revenue growth. But rather than finding new customers or opening a new locations, the goal was to maximize customer value.

Tune in as Sarah breaks down her profit assessment process and all the details of the financial and operations strategy that resulted in 5X profit growth.

Join The Good Food CFO Community:

Follow us on Instagram: @thegoodfoodcfo

Connect on LinkedIn: @sarahdelevan

Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo

Become a Member: BABOYOT

What if the secret to a profitable food business isn't scaling bigger, but growing smarter? Sarah challenges the "grow fast or fail" mentality that's crushing food entrepreneurs, revealing why 75% of VC funded businesses fail and sharing a proven approach to sustainable growth.

You’ll meet two food founders who made the counterintuitive decision to right-size their businesses - one contracting from national to regional distribution, another strategically eliminating sales channels. The result? Better cash flow, higher profit margins, and businesses they actually love running again.

Discover the three warning signs that your business needs right-sizing, why gross profit margins below 50% slowly drain your cash flow, and the specific financial tools Sarah uses to help founders evaluate whether contracting could transform their bottom line. You'll hear practical strategies for building a financially sustainable food business that works for you, not against you. Plus: inspiring updates on where these founders are today- including one successful business exit and a beautiful rebrand that's thriving.

Financial Strategy Software is coming soon! Get on the waitlist now at thegoodfoodcfo.com/waitlist

Join The Good Food CFO Community: 

Follow us on Instagram: @thegoodfoodcfo 

Connect on LinkedIn: @sarahdelevan 

Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo 

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While most founders obsess over store count, Kartik Das, Founder of Doosra is building repeatable revenue systems. Rather than chasing new accounts Kartik focused on just 15 core retail partners and developed a multi-channel strategy that generates predictable cash flow.

Sarah and Kartik dive deep into Doosra’s financial playbook: the 90-day cash flow planning system that breaks large expenses into daily decision points, strategic use of 0% APR credit cards for working capital, and community crowdfunding. Discover why Kartik deliberately turned down major retail opportunities and how he validates market demand through methodical testing rather than expensive guesswork.

From creative funding solutions to building systems that scale without burning cash, this episode delivers financial insights food entrepreneurs can use to build financially sustainable businesses.

Learn more about Doosra

Website: www.eatdoosra.com

Instagram: @eatdoosra

Join The Good Food CFO Community: 

Follow us on Instagram: @thegoodfoodcfo 

Connect on LinkedIn: @sarahdelevan 

Watch on YouTube: @thegoodfoodcfo 

Become a Member: BABOYOT