Cookies for Recovery with Kelsey Moreira of Doughp

Sep 29

After getting sober in 2015, today’s guest, Kelsey Moreira, set off on a journey to make the world a little sweeter by starting Doughp Legit Cookie Dough, a company that makes edible, bakeable, and ridiculously tasty cookie dough.

You’ll hear about Kelsey’s lifelong interest in marketing and how her ambition drove her to use alcohol to relieve stress before reaching a turning point that changed sobriety from a ‘should’ into a ‘must’. Her huge life change left her with the capacity to pursue a new endeavor, and she began baking as a hobby until her entrepreneurial spirit led her to transform it into a business and pitch it on Shark Tank to find an investor.

Doughp has an eCommerce segment, as well as physical stores in San Francisco and the Las Vegas strip, which Kelsey chose because of her focus on addiction recovery. We explore the power of the message behind the brand to grow a community, and Kelsey reveals more about the non-profit piece of the company, donating one percent of total sales to a different organization each year, with She Recovers as this year’s non-profit.

Kelsey shares plenty of actionable advice with listeners today, and points us in the direction of her podcast, Soberpreneur, where she interviews innovative business owners who have recovered from addiction. We hope you tune in to be inspired by this force for good today!

Key Points From This Episode:

Kelsey’s company, Doughp, and the edible, bakeable cookie dough products they make.
Their focus on addiction recovery and mental health, sparked by Kelsey’s journey to sobriety.
The brownie cookie dough Doughp produced with Regrained flour and other partnerships.
Kelsey’s lifelong interest in marketing and how she worked at Intel from the age of 16.
How she came to rely on alcohol to relieve the stress of building a career in tech marketing.
What she learned from Intel’s focus on doing good by fighting online harassment.
Kelsey’s journey to sobriety and the turning point that took her from ‘should’ to ‘must’.
Her nickname, Monsterbaby, and the sweet tooth that led her to baking after she got sober.
How her entrepreneurial spirit and love of baking sparked the start of Doughp.
The best way to consume Doughp cookie dough: half baked.
Flaxseed as a substitute for eggs, allowing you to eat the dough raw.
How Kelsey pitched to go on Sharktank and ended up being chosen to appear on TV.
What it was like to appear on Sharktank and how questions about health arose.
The investor that came through shortly after and how they made it onto the 500 list.
Her two locations in San Francisco at Pier 39 and on the Las Vegas strip.
Why she chose to set up a store in Las Vegas; a hotspot for addiction.
How the message behind the brand has changed lives and built a community.
The non-profit component, with one percent of sales donated to an organization in the space.
This year’s collaboration with She Recovers Foundation, which supports women in recovery.
Doughp online, Doughp stores, and stocked at convenience stores.
7-Eleven’s Brands with Heart campaign focusing on mission-led companies.
Kelsey’s advice for entrepreneurs: hire for what you suck at, never say no to an introduction, and try to be a good human with what you’re building.
How she prioritizes self-care: incremental softness with herself and what she calls her mental health recipe card, which includes yoga and calling her mom.
How she benefited from taking a full vacation, feeling completely recharged from the break.
Kelsey’s actionable tip: the Hatch Restore light clock’s wind-down routine.
Her podcast, Soberpreneur, where she interviews recovered business owners.

Tweetables:

“We make edible and bakeable and ridiculously tasty cookie dough, ship it across the country, and try to do some awesome stuff along the way.” — @kelsey_moreira [0:01:18]

“We are unashamed to be a delicious, indulgent, awesome cookie dough.” — @kelsey_moreira [0:19:51]

“Even if it’s one person’s life that we touched and impacted – absolutely worth it! It’s been amazing for the growth of the brand to have something more to talk about.” — @kelsey_moreira [0:23:26]

“One percent of all of our sales are donated to a non-profit that works in the space. We’re supporting She Recovers Foundation for 2021. They support women that are in or seeking recovery from mental health challenges, life challenges, and substance use disorder.” — @kelsey_moreira [0:25:56]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Kelsey Moreira on LinkedIn

Kelsey Moreira on Twitter