Recently I had an opportunity to interview Kidfresh Founder & CEO, Matt Cohen. If you have not yet heard of Kidfresh, you need to pay attention!
Kids’ meals these days… a lot of them are downright scary and often loaded with all sorts of artificial ingredients. As a father himself, Matt decided that he needed more options for all-natural kids’ meals – the kind that are yummy and nutritious for children while convenient for parents.
Both of my children have tried the Kidfresh products. You can catch their review below:
I talked to Matt from his office in NYC on a rainy, snowy day. While I was enjoying the sun in Austin. Sorry Matt!
BCB: Tell me about your kids
Matt: I have a 10 year old son & a 7 year old daughter who is a handful. Ha!
BCB: Kidfresh has been around since 2007. What’s your story?
Matt: We opened our concept store in New York City then. We offered natural and organic kids foods, including our own, freshly prepared in our kitchen. We garnered a lot of media attention from all around the world. The store was a first time thing, it had never been done before. We were really establishing our brand and credibility. The difference with Kidfresh was it was a “Mom Brand” not just a “Kid Brand”. The store was a real testing area. We were able to try different types of meals, packaging etc. Then the economy took a down turn. We ended up closing the concept store.
BCB: So you are back on the radar, what’s different?
Matt: We had to really take the time to decide what the business was and what we wanted it to be. We decided to move from Organic to All-Natural and started working with manufacturers to make the product frozen. We are now in over 500 stores across 13 states and expanding.
BCB: Do you & your wife struggle with getting your kids to eat properly?
Matt: We discovered early on that kids use food as a way to establish some sort of control or leverage. They really only have 3 ways to express their independence. Food, Sleep & Potty Training! We decided to not battle over food. We place dinner before them and say, this is your dinner, if you want it good, if not you will be hungry. No battle. That doesn’t mean we never struggle, but we try to live by this principle.
BCB: Have you always been an entrepreneur?
Matt: No! I worked for Accenture a top management consulting organization that afforded me diverse professional opportunities. In 2000, after eight years at Accenture, I worked for an internet start-up. When the internet bubble burst, I went back to consulting. I became the Chief Operating Officer of Stromberg Consulting. I finally decided I was ready to strike out on my own and become an entrepreneur.
BCB: Does your wife work with you at Kidfresh?
Matt: She works a different job and is not involved in the daily operations. However, she is a very creative person and my go to gal.
BCB: Can you tell me a little bit about the company culture that you have created at Kidfresh?
Matt: I don’t want any corporate crap. No politics. I want employees to be responsible and accountable for what they do. We are straight forward and all working to deliver the best product.
BCB: Since I am a WAHM, I am curious what your typical work day looks like?
Matt: I wake up about 7am and then spend the next hour yelling at my kids to get ready for school. We will either grab a cab or walk to school. Then I head to the office. After the kids get out of school the nanny picks them up and does all the afternoon things with them. My wife and I get home from work around 7:30pm. We spend time with the kids, talking about their day, looking over homework, reading and then they are in bed around 8:30pm.
BCB: What is your vision for Kidfresh?
Matt: I am torn between the long term vision and daily vision of the company. I want to help parents raise healthy children by offering an alternative.
You can find out more information about Kidfresh by clicking here. On their site you will be able to find out where you can buy Kidfresh locally. Thank you again to Matt Cohen for the delightful time I had with you.
Until next time,
Christina
I agree Liz, I think it is such an amazing concept. Glad Matt started the company.
I’m so happy people are doing this. When my daughter started eating, I realized that there was a huge void in the market of “toddler bites”, and I had the idea to start a business like yours. Then I found out what you had to do to produce food, and I decided to enjoy making (and freezing) healthy foods for my kids. Thank you for putting something in our stores that we can feel good about feeding our kids!
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