INTERVIEW: Natalie Jaconetty, Founder of Herb and Seed LA

What are Herb and Seed? How do you make it a sustainable and regenerative business?

Herb&Seed is a healthy and plant-based meal delivery service based in Los Angeles. We focus on the nutritional content of our meals including macro and micronutrients, in collaboration with nutrition experts. Keeping flavor-forward unique recipes, our menu changes every week. We take special care in building a sustainable and regenerative business by using plastic-free packaging and kitchen products. Also, our food scraps are composted and used to grow greens and herbs for our meals.

Businesses have faced not just failure but extinction during Covid. What has your experience been in regards to starting a brand during Covid?

Covid-19 was a huge challenge not only for Herb&Seed but I’m sure every business. Learning proper protocols and preparations was huge for the food industry during the pandemic, but I felt great that we could provide Covid friendly meals to people during that time.

As a CEO of your company, what leadership style do you adopt?

I would say I’m more of a democratic leader, I love to share ideas and give everyone a voice in the process. I think of my business as a family so I’m grateful to have some really amazing people involved.

Can you share the most important learning that you’ve had while establishing Herbs&Seed?

A big lesson so far would be learning to scale the business, and how to do that in the most cost-effective way. Something that really helped was planning ahead in stages, making sure you have always thought of the next possible outcome before it arrives. Of course, the business is very new so I am always learning, mistakes are inevitable but the ability to grow from them and use them as a tool is very important.

What message or learning would you give to your younger self?

Always keep a clear vision of where you see your business or brand going. Creatively it helps spark ideas and keeps you on track to reach your goals. This could be a written timeline or even a vision/mood board that can change as you and your business evolve. Also, starting something new and unique is key to standing out amongst a crowd. For Herb&Seed it was creating a new standard for sustainable and regenerative practices. Offering something new to our eco-conscious customers that sets us apart. Whatever your product may be, finding something special to offer people can be the biggest tool in your belt.

What are some trends you see in the plant-based meal space for 2021?

Businesses have really perfected the meat, cheese, and egg alternatives in 2020. I think people might be looking towards nutritionally beneficial alternatives. Not sacrificing flavor for nutrition is something I think is becoming more important to the 2021 plant-based consumer.

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