Episode 193: Building a Retail-First, National, Values-Aligned Brand with Ibraheem Basir of A Dozen Cousins
Ibraheem Basir, the founder and CEO of A Dozen Cousins, joins us for episode 193 of the Food Biz Wiz Podcast! If you haven’t heard about A Dozen Cousins, then you’re in for a special episode. A Dozen Cousins is the national bean, rice, and sauce company bringing Creole, Caribbean, and Latin American flavors to consumers in easy-to-cook meals.
You won’t want to miss hearing about…
🫘 Why he focused on launching in retail first
🫘 How he leveraged his food passion and industry experiences
🫘 What values A Dozen Cousins stands for and how they weave them into their work
🫘 Their process for hiring diverse, values-aligned team members and building team culture
We mentioned LOTS of resources in this episode. Find them below!
➡️ Project Potluck, the mailing list and online community for CPG food founders of color
➡️ Episode 166 of the Food Biz Wiz Podcast with Kathleen Casanova, the director of Project Potluck, and Cynthia Billops, the VP of Operations, Membership & Belonging at One Step Closer & J.E.D.I Collaborative
➡️ Naturally Network, the network to support conscious business practices in the natural products industry
📨 Ibraheem’s wisdom in navigating the CPG scene is invaluable. Send me a DM on Instagram or on LinkedIn and let me know what you thought of this episode.
🔗Join us in the Food Biz Wiz Facebook group as well to join our conversations on CPG topics and podcast episodes.
MEET IBRAHEEM BASIR:
Ibraheem Basir is the founder and CEO of A Dozen Cousins, a natural food brand making beans, rice, sauces, and more inspired by traditional Creole, Caribbean and Latin American dishes. The brand is influenced by Basir’s childhood spent in the culinary melting pot of Brooklyn and is named after his daughter and her 11 cousins.
Basir grew up in a big family where food was the center of all celebrations and gatherings. A Dozen Cousins was born from the comforting, flavorful recipes he grew up eating with his family after he noticed a gap in the market for authentic cultural foods that were also nutritious. The brand’s flagship beans have become the #1 item in their category on Amazon and are sold nationwide at retailers including Whole Foods, Sprouts, Target and more.
Prior to founding A Dozen Cousins, Basir served as Associate Marketing Manager at General Mills where he was first introduced to the natural product world while working on brands like Larabar. His growing passion for the industry led him to join Annie’s Organic as Marketing Manager. In this role, Basir fell in love with the brand’s mission and was instrumental in leading new product innovation.
Find A Dozen Cousins on their site here or on Instagram! You can also find Ibraheem on his LinkedIn here.
SPONSORED BY: OUR MINI REORDER CHECKLIST!
This episode is sponsored by our mini Reorder Checklist! This checklist is a list of ways to onboard a new retailer so that you’re more likely to sell off those shelves and receive reorders. You can find our simplified version at the link here OR, if you’re a Retail Ready® student, you can find the longform version and training directly within our course platform!