Do Not Give Up: Interview with Riana Lynn, Founder of Journey Foods

I recently went one on one with Riana Lynn, founder of Journey Foods.

Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth? 

Riana: Food has always been a major part of my life. I grew up in Evanston, IL, just outside of Chicago and had two grandmothers who were both passionate about growing their own food, which they educated me on from an early age. In fact, one of them was even a vegan - and at a time when most people didn't even know what this word meant. My grandfather was also very involved in "better" food, working as an organic vegetable and meat supplier in Virginia. And as I grew older and saw the divergence between how this older generation not only ate, but appreciated food, in comparison to the food system my generation was growing up with, I felt compelled to make as big a difference as possible in the space. I also grew up in a diverse town where I could take youth classes at one of the top universities in the world but also walk to the local corner store and buy a 25 cent bag of chips with physical food stamp dollars. I’m very proud and reflective of the duality of my upbringing. 

Adam: How did you come up with your business idea? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with great ideas? 

Riana: My first official venture into entrepreneurship was shortly after graduating college at UNC Chapel Hill. I was always a dorm room e-commerce builder but after graduating I officially incorporated. I began my own tech consulting firm called Rivive, alongside two juice bar locations in Chicago called Peeled. But I still felt I needed to make a greater impact. After an acquisition of Rivive to a well-known entrepreneur and investor. This led to my next venture, FoodTrace, which provided end-to-end traceability solutions for companies in the food & bev space, which I sold just two years after its inception. After working in a leadership role at one of the country’s top Food VCs,, I realized how valuable data is in the food space and its potential to truly make an impact. This led me to begin Journey Foods, with the hope that I could use data to help solve inefficiencies in food science and supply chain management and ultimately, better feed the growing population. I had a lot of food scientists tell me what could not be done at first. II would advise anyone with their own ideas and visions to first find a mentor that they admire and can help coach them throughout the initial business plan and development process. Talk to friends and other founders, get feedback. And most importantly, do not give up. There will always be people who tell you your idea cannot be done, but trust your gut and your heart. 

Adam: How did you know your business idea was worth pursuing? What advice do you have on how to best test a business idea? 

Riana: I was able to test our data and methodologies early with a true market product, Journey Bites. A smoothie-like cube that sold nationally. We then scaled for customer requests from there. 

I'm lucky enough to have my own group of mentors to draw from in terms of advice and life experience. I also conducted many market analysis and surveys - another good way to see if your idea will be feasible/accepted. Testing a business idea really depends on what kind of business you're looking to start. If it's a product, do a test run if you can and see how consumers like it. If it's a software or technology company, that's a little more difficult to do, but generally I would advise to ask experts in the space their input before going full-in on such a venture. 

Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?

Riana: Growing a business is a lot of hard work and there is no one magic formula to success. However, hiring key employees that believe in your mission and love what they do is such a vital part of a startup's success. There is a Steve Jobs quote that goes, "A small team of A players can run circles around a large team of B and C players." And this is so true. Also, when you're raising money, know how much you want to raise, not a vague number, but exactly how much and why. Investors notice this, and appreciate your diligence and execution when it comes to how you plan to spend their investment. 

Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips? 

Riana: When it comes to sales, if you have a good product, no matter what it is, it doesn't matter if you are not marketing it. Marketing is so important for any kind of business, from technology, to CPG, and beyond. We've done all types of marketing - from social media to public speaking, and of course PR.

Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level? 

Riana: There are a lot of qualities that make a good leader. One of the most important things I have found is to listen to others and with compassion and genuine interest. By doing so, not only do I learn more about my team, but also my company in general. And this gives me the opportunity to improve not only how I lead, buy how my team functions and how my company runs. Also, think empathetically about how you’re impacting the life of the person 5-10 years from now. How can you build on that for the greater good? 

Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading, and managing teams? 

Riana: Another CEO once told me, "hire slow, fire fast." While it's easy to go out and just hire, every person on your team should be filling a crucial role in your business. And at the end of the day, this should never be taken lightly. So, before you send out job offers, truly think about how this person will push your business forward, interact with your company culture, and help your mission along. And while I do believe in coaching people and giving them the opportunities to fix issues / grow, it should never be to the point of creating detriment to your company and other teammates. 

Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives and civic leaders? 

Riana: My three best tips are: one, believe in yourself. Yes, this might sound clichè, but at the end of the day, it's so insanely important as an entrepreneur to have the self-confidence to make your journey work. Two, sleep. If you are not getting enough sleep, your brain is not going to be functioning properly to work, lead, and grow. It's truly the most important thing you can do for yourself as an entrepreneur, get a good night's sleep. Easier said than done, but you will notice the difference. And three, along the same lines, eat well. It's hard when you're on the go, between calls and meetings, and in airports and hotels, but there are more and better food choices available. By eating better, you'll think better, feel better, get sick less, and this will, of course, help your company. 

Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received? 

Riana: Set personal boundaries and communicate them over and over until you feel in alignment with the people, colleagues and relationships you set in life. 

Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?

Riana: Exposure is life’s greatest professor.


Adam Mendler is the CEO of The Veloz Group, where he co-founded and oversees ventures across a wide variety of industries. Adam is also the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. Adam has written extensively on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, marketing and sales, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities and non-profit organizations.

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