What do you get when you have a passionate New Yorker who LOVES pizza and is VEGAN? You get a man on a mission to create a high-quality, vegan pizza cheese to not only satisfy his love of pizza, but also do his part to raise awareness about caring for the planet.
As CEO of Pleese Foods, Kobi Regev has not only set out to make the most delicious and appealing plant-based cheese on the market, but he’s also dedicated himself and his company to giving back in meaningful ways.
For every case of Pleese Cheese sold, Pleese donates a tree to be planted by the National Forest Foundation, a cause that’s close to Kobi’s heart.
Both Kobi and his wife are on this journey together. Seeing an opportunity in the lack of quality vegan pizza options available when they switched to a plant-based diet in 2014, they’ve made it their mission to offer a healthy, tasty cheese option for vegans and non-vegans alike.
Before founding Pleese, Kobi spent time in luxury jewelry sales, television production, and real estate. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in urban planning and strategic market development from The New School. Additionally, he studied creative writing at Long Island University Southampton, now Stony Brook Southampton.
Kobi is a 2022 inductee into the Culinary Institute of America’s Society of Fellows.
Kobi and his family live in New York City.
During our conversation we covered a lot of territory that only someone like Kobi could do.
Enjoy the show.
00:00 Introduction
06:15 Changes that happened
07:38 What kind of New Yorker are you?
09:50 From “Big Pizza Fail” to deciding no kid should have an ugly pizza
13:15 Fear sets in
15:45 Business mistakes to avoid
18:12 Organizations recommended for start-ups
21:00 Learning the pitch
23:45 Big challenges to overcome
26:45 Next steps in “Say Pleese” business growth
29:45 The missing link in the growth change
32:00 The Vegan Family
40:00 Wasted milk at snack time
47:30 Kobi’s Big Dream
49:00 The big idea that can transform lives
More information
http://www.linkedin.com/in/kobi-regev-founder/