From Apprentice to Food Founder: Alex Epstein and Messyface

What does it really take to bring a genuinely new food category to market? Alex Epstein is the founder of Messy Face, a delicious, clean-label spread made from grape molasses and sesame tahini. His route to founding it took in business school, two software exits, a stint on The Apprentice with Lord Sugar, a failed hair care company, a decade building a business from a broom cupboard to a £300m sale, and one transformative moment in the unlikely setting of Utrecht.

In this episode, Alex talks candidly about what it actually feels like to launch a genuinely new food category from scratch: the manufacturing nightmare of working with an allergen, the 50/50 polarising early reactions, the loneliness of the solo founder, and why deliberately staying small is a competitive advantage.

Listen to this episode to find out:

• How a Turkish grocery shop in the Netherlands became the unlikely origin of a new food brand
• What Alex learned from watching himself on the Apprentice
• How consumer research helped Alex validate his concept before spending serious money
• Why being made redundant from a £300m software business was one of the happiest days of Alex's life
• How Alex is getting the word out but staying agile and adapting to the UK palate 

Chapters

[0:01:15] What is Messy Face?

[0:02:20] Career background: Martin Port, Big Change, and the Apprentice

[0:05:38] The moment of inspiration

[0:10:45] Consumer validation before launch

[0:11:52] Current range and what's in the pipeline

[0:13:01] The problem with finding a manufacturer

[0:14:47] Sales strategy and early consumer feedback

[0:21:02] The life of a solo founder 

[0:22:29] The hardest parts of starting a food business

[0:24:18] The Apprentice, ingredient labels, and Ultra Processed People

[0:28:14] Goals for the next 12 months

 

Links and References

Connect with Alex on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexhadleyepstein/

Buy Messy Face online:
https://www.messy-face.com/

 

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My name is Jo Densley, and I help food and drink businesses grow with joined-up sales and marketing. There’s a wealth of free webinars available on my website, where you can also explore my services and read my case studies as well.