cover of episode Lily’s Sweets: Cynthia Tice

Lily’s Sweets: Cynthia Tice

2024/9/30
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How I Built This with Guy Raz

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Cynthia Tice's journey began in retail with a natural food store, spurred by her own health transformation. Facing competition and burnout, she transitioned to consulting, advising conventional grocers on incorporating natural and organic products. A pivotal seminar featuring Whole Foods Market solidified her expertise in this growing market.
  • Cynthia's father initially discouraged her involvement in the family's clothing business.
  • A chance encounter in college sparked Cynthia's interest in natural foods.
  • The Alar scare in 1989 significantly increased public awareness of food safety and natural products.
  • Cynthia's consulting work focused on helping traditional grocers adapt to the rising demand for organic and natural products.

Shownotes Transcript

When it comes to launching a multi-million dollar brand, Cynthia Tice was a late bloomer. Nearly 60 and looking for a healthy way to satisfy her love of chocolate, she set out to make an indulgent, sugar-free version, sweetened with stevia. After some disastrous early recipes, Lily’s Sweets launched nationally in Whole Foods, with just four employees. Cynthia correctly predicted that a growing number of shoppers would willingly pay for healthier treats, and just ten years after launch, Lily’s Sweets caught the eye of Hershey’s, which acquired it for $425 million.

This episode was produced by Sam Paulson with music composed by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant, with research by Katherine Sypher. Our engineers were Robert Rodriguez and Kwesi Lee.

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