How She Does It EP 81: Late July & Nixie Founder Nicole Bernard Dawes: Why Building Brands Is Her Extreme Sport
Creating a company with beloved products from scratch is no easy task, and Nicole Bernard Dawes has pulled it off twice. At 29, she launched Late July Snacks, which are famous for their flavored organic, non-GMO tortilla chips. When the $100+ million company was acquired by Campbell's in 2018, Bernard Dawes decided to do it all again. This time, she set her eyes on the competitive beverage business. In 20219, she launched Nixie, a line of organically flavored sparkling water and organic zero-sugar sodas.
Nicole Bernard Dawes had a unique entrée into the world of entrepreneurship, which led to her two gigs as a CEO. Her father was Steve Bernard, co-founder of the Cape Cod Potato Chip Company. She grew up visiting the company’s factory in Hyannis and learning the business from him. After college, she worked for her dad and launched the brand's most popular product, their reduced-fat chips. The mother of two shares how those early business experiences shaped her, why she loves brand building, and her commitment to creating healthy food and drinks that are also tasty.
💬 In this episode, we explore:
- Why Nicole Bernard Dawes is obsessed with grocery stores, and what she’s looking at that the average customer may miss
- How Nicole Bernard Dawes’ mom, who ran a health food store in the 1970’s, influenced her tastes
- The reason she believes a store selling out of your product is not a good thing, especially in the food & beverage business
- Why she considers herself always on the clock, but has a very different set of expectations from her team
- The reaction she has when she sees her products out in the wild - including spotting her favorite Peloton instructor enjoying one of her beverages
Resources:
💻 Learn more about Nixie
📸 Follow Nicole Bernard Dawes On LinkedIn
📸 Follow Nixie on Instagram
📸 Follow Nixie on TikTok
📸 Follow Nixie on LinkedIn
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