Vevolution 2019 - Highlights!

Vevolution is one of those events that if you are in the plant-based community you can’t help but get excited about. An event aimed to encourage those wanting to figure out how to veganise their lives through their choices with plenty of business advice for those wanting to launch vegan or plant-based themed food/beauty/wellness/zero waste or lifestyle businesses to help design our systems from the inside.

It’s pretty inspirational stuff hearing from speakers who have a slew of successful businesses behind them (Emma Sinclair and JP, I’m looking at you!) as well as some of the top food brands on today’s supermarket shelves (BOL, Plenish, Wicked Healthy and Pip & Nut). I always get FOMO at these things and find myself wishing I could meet everyone and hear all the talks. Alas, that tech hasn’t been invented yet so you’ll have to settle for my take on all I heard...

The Happy Pear

These guys manage to inject fun, energy and connection into everything they do, from building factories in the village they were born in, to opening the first vegan cafe in Dublin airport. This talk focused on the idea that community can be the antidote to loneliness and the secret to living a more connected, compassionate life. My fave fact from them this year? When you hug someone, if you both lean to the right, your hearts will touch and your oxytocin levels get an extra high dose! See? All the feels.

Plant-based Business Investment Panel - Pippa Murray (Pip & Nut), Jonathan Petrides (allPlants), Emma Sinclair (Enterprise Alumni), Michiel Van Deursen (Capital V)

Some great insights here on the process of seeking and gaining investment, with plenty of helpful tips. My top takeaways were: expect the no’s, invite feedback and make use of what is constructive whilst ignoring what distracts you from your goal, (e.g. making jam as some potential investors advised Pip at the outset); choose your investors wisely - smart, mission-aligned capital is key and don’t forget that all-important “friends and family” round - people who know and trust you - school friends (JP) and even ex-rivals (Emma). It’s all about the chemistry between you (Emma) and mutual understanding (Michiel).

Next up - The BOSH boys. One thing you are guaranteed from a presentation with these two at the helm is killer visuals and top quality videos. We were not disappointed as they presented their top 10 tips for building a Global Brand. The one that most resonated with me was the one about building a great team. “Not everyone is as lucky to have a co-founder they went to school with, but the value in having someone you know that you can trust because you have the same values is incalculable.”

At this point I needed some sustenance so after a meander around the bar and sampling of my go-to toastie filling - Follow Your Heart Jalape?o cheese; we made for the packed lunchroom. The queues were insane so we opted for the least enticing offering from Benugo - a breaded jackfruit burger. Pretty tasteless and stale bread roll. We shared it so I came back later and stuffed Planted’s salad box with beetroot, new pots and pumpkin salads and a sausage roll for good measure. It was after 3pm by then and it got wolfed! Really showed the difference between what the cafes have as good vegan food, and what pure plant-based brands can bring to the table. Let's hope that the bigger chain businesses bring in plant-based consultants, quality ingredients and brands to pump up their food and make it a no-brainer, quality choice for all!

The business of food products was next to hit the main stage and here we found brands we all know and love - BOL, Plenish, Form Nutrition, Mindful Bites and Wicked Healthy. As usual, the questions centred around what it takes to grow a brand and the effect the Beyond Meat IPO has had on growing the industry and the appetite for plant-based food. There was a fair amount of reflection; this panel included those who had been the longest in the plant-based business and all acknowledged how much things have changed, and most drastically in the last 2 years. The stresses of being a founder were palpable and when the inevitable question was asked, it was met with a collective exhale. It is clear that even when you get on the shelves, there are plenty of challenges to stay there but that the attachment to the overarching purpose is what helps to provide resilience and fortitude, whilst the bigger brands can falter from a lack of connection to their customers.

Next up, Sara Popowa (aka Shiso Delicious) is an incredible plant-based artist, author, cookbook writer and advocate for living consciously and beautifully, as her Insta page can contest. She explained the evolution of her artistic journey and how she continues to reinvent herself and her approach. Creative inspiration at its prettiest!

One of the most statistic heavy presentations of the day came from David Yeung of Green Monday and Omnipork fame. Armed with a slew of shocking stats, he illuminated us with mind-boggling numbers of pigs in Asia killed as a result of the African Swine Flu sweeping through the region that has killed 2.8m pigs in Vietnam alone. The need for an alternative has never been more palpable but the lack of people in the room showed me just how easy it is to get caught up in what is right under your nose without appreciating what opportunity may lie overseas. For those for who have global ambition, there is much there for the taking, if you are brave enough! David has taken an idea born in 2012 and taken it from HK to SG, Taiwan, Berkeley, SF and most recently Bangkok and China. It’s a slow and steady process but that’s the thing about good ideas. They don’t give up without a fight!

Next up was the Doctors panel where the truth bombs fell like rain! The panel whole-heartedly agreed that a plant-based diet offers an improvement to all diseases and is the key to optimum health no matter what ails you. Pregnancy and babies offered some interesting new info - those born by Caesarian section are x5 times more likely to suffer from allergies and much of the gut microbiome is stimulated during the natural birthing process and continued through breastfeeding which is why it is such a key developmental tool for new mothers to get to grips with. Breast milk banks and sharing of milk were both news to me but illustrate how sharing benefits everyone. 

I managed to catch the end of Derek getting the Loui Blake treatment - a fireside chat which saw the two of them thoroughly enjoying a chat about dealing with criticism and getting shit done! Next, a dash to Dominick Thompson whose story seemed to enrapture the audience and, at the end of the day, brought a tenderness to the proceedings. Last up, more searing honesty from Loui Blake again as he recounted his struggles with his own life/work balance (celebration a particular issue), talked openly about dealing with online trolls and finding it hard to find and keep staff during this period where every little thing is under such scrutiny.

Some of the best conversations I had were with the audience, made up of the brands and speakers of the future and I couldn’t be more excited for what is to come! The future is immeasurably bright!