If you’ve ever considered your salad dressings too sweet, too creamy, too high in fat, too caloric or simply not healthy enough, Bold Palate Foods’ dressings are what you need! Founder Kate Mann knows salad – she was a food blogger for years – and spent countless hours creating 100 percent plant-based salad dressings that are good for you. What’s more, Bold Palate uses glass bottles and eco-friendly packaging, so that you feel good about that too.

Read all about Kate Mann, then try out a few of the delicious dressings from Bold Palate on TheWMarketplace.

Bold Palate salad dressing shop women owned

 

Why did you start Bold Palate?

Years ago I wrote a food blog called Salad Every Day. I got lots of feedback through social media, most of it positive. But some of my followers questioned the calories and fat content in my dressing recipes. That got me calculating the nutritional profile of my salads both with and without the dressing. I quickly learned that classic dressings, even if homemade, can sabotage the nutritional value of a salad.

So, I began experimenting with unorthodox ingredients such as plant based milks, vegetable broth, herbal teas, puréed fruits and veggies - anything healthy and tasty that was in the cabinet or fridge was fair game! A lot of the experiments went down the drain. But there were some major hits, too. The "hit" recipes, though delicious, were too complicated and time consuming for most home cooks. That's what inspired the launch of Bold Palate Foods.

How long have you been in business and has it changed since you started it?

We began researching the business in 2018. Our first production was in the spring of 2020. Our business has evolved from an e-commerce model to one that includes brick and mortar, too, as most people purchase condiments at grocery stores.

What has been the most exciting or rewarding part of owning your own business?

Hearing customers react to our products is hugely rewarding. Also, having a team of ambitious, super talented people who are devoted to helping the brand grow is more exciting and rewarding than words can describe.

What is something you know now that you wish you knew when you started Bold Palate Foods?

It would have been great to know about how to handle pandemic related issues. For example, how do you demo your product in an environment that - for safety reasons - can't allow demos? It took a long time for us to answer that question, but we did!

Why did you decide to join TheWMarketplace?

The thought of supporting other ambitious women in their business ventures, plus my own experience as a customer on the site, convinced me to join TheWMarketplace.

Do you have any advice for other women who are getting started in business?

It is very important to be able to distinguish between what you know and what you don't know, as actual facts. And before investing, form an advisory board of industry veterans. Yes, there are many people in all fields who enjoy mentoring others! You just need to do a little networking in order to find them.

Do you have mementos on your desk that inspire you each day?

A tiny scrap of paper I pulled years ago from a fortune cookie reads: "If you know what you're doing you're not learning anything." I keep that in full view on my desk as a reminder to always push myself outside the comfort zone.

 

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TheWMarketplace

Launched in 2020, TheWMarketplace is a nationwide e-commerce marketplace for women-owned businesses to sell their products and professional and personal services. Offering favorable terms to its sellers, it also is a supportive community of women entrepreneurs that have access to learning opportunities through the trademarked HER-Commerce™ programs. With over 500 women-owned businesses selling 4000+ products and services ranging from home goods to coaching, in over 35 states, TheWMarketplace empowers shoppers with a new way to find the communities they want to support, including Black-woman owned, Latina-owned, AAPI-owned, Veteran woman-owned, and more. The Her Story Q&A is one benefit TheWMarketplace provides to sellers.

Her Story Q&A: Kate Mann, Founder of Bold Palate Foods

Her Story Q&A: Kate Mann, Founder of Bold Palate Foods