Sara Cullen is the Founder and CEO of GEM, a multivitamin made from real food. After years of struggling with fatigue, inflammation, and digestive issues, she discovered she was nutrient deficient and created a transparent and sustainable solution made with nourishing whole foods. Sara is driven by a passion for sustainable farming and global agriculture.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
- [2:20] How Sara Cullen’s personal health challenges led to the creation of GEM
- [5:46] The importance of holistic, food-based nutrient sources
- [9:26] Sara talks about the development and evolution of GEM’s nutrient-rich flavor profiles
- [14:12] GEM’s “food is medicine” philosophy
- [21:06] Merging customer feedback with product innovation
- [23:02] Why GEM prioritizes DTC over retail
- [25:09] The future of GEM and its growth projections
In this episode…
The standard American diet falls short of the recommended daily nutrient intake, leading many people to be nutrient-deficient despite eating what they may consider a healthy diet. Modern supplements and vitamins don’t offer much of a solution, since most of them are little more than sugar-coated gummy bears. Find out how a CPG entrepreneur is revolutionizing traditional notions of multivitamins with a novel idea.
Sara Cullen suffered from various nutrient deficiencies for years until consuming plant-based supplements like spirulina, algae, and other seaweeds transformed her health for the better. With a strong belief that food is medicine, Sara began developing multivitamins made with nutrient-rich superfoods like ginger, orange, turmeric, and seeds. By balancing taste with health and wellness benefits, she has created an innovative product that subverts the vitamin and supplement category. Sara maintains that focusing exclusively on DTC rather than retail has allowed her to better incorporate consumer feedback into her products for continuous iterations and refinement.
In the latest episode of the Brand Alchemist Podcast, Taja Dockendorf interviews Sara Cullen, the Founder and CEO of GEM, about how she transformed her personal health struggle into a real food nutrition company. Sara shares why GEM doesn’t believe in mega-dosing, the company’s strategic growth choices, and how she developed the brand’s flavor profiles.
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Sara Cullen on LinkedIn
- GEM
- Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition by T. Colin Campbell and Howard Jacobson
- Taja Dockendorf on LinkedIn
- Pulp+Wire
- Pulp+Wire’s email: [email protected]
Quotable Moments:
- “Health doesn’t have to be complicated; the best wellness hacks are free.”
- “Wellness and health don’t need to be intimidating. GEM is about making it easy for you.”
- “Every day, you get a new surprise as a CEO, and you figure out how to deal with it.”
- “You have to be a radical optimist to survive in the world of entrepreneurship.”
- “When one door closes, another opens; it’s about being ready to take advantage of that next opportunity.”
Action Steps:
- Explore whole food nutrients as an alternative to synthetic vitamins: Sara Cullen’s story reaffirms that natural, bioavailable sources can be more effective.
- Evaluate your current diet for nutrient deficiencies: Sara’s deficiencies led her to create GEM, showing the importance of addressing dietary gaps.
- Consider creating a routine with supplements like GEM bites to ensure a consistent nutrient intake: These are easy to add to your diet.
- Embrace the philosophy of “food as medicine” in your daily choices: GEM’s approach demonstrates the potential health benefits of this mindset.
- Reflect on the importance of sustainable, clean ingredients in your supplements: Sara’s emphasis on transparency and quality showcases the value of conscious consumption.