In this week's Friday Conversation, we were joined by Amber Benson and Jason Budge, Co-Founders of Ruvi. Ruvi is an American Fork, Utah-based wellness and fitness company that focuses on helping individuals get the daily nutrients they need by offering fruit and vegetable smoothies. In this discussion, they share how Ruvi was founded and the business processes the company goes through.
Jason Budge got his start designing and selling food rotation systems which, after 18 years, blossomed into the largest freeze drying company in the United States, Thrive Foods. Amber Benson has worked in food and supplements for 20 years and loves the challenge of starting a new business.
One main takeaway is how Ruvi is combating waste. When fruit is delivered to our stores in Utah, it typically takes two to four weeks. In that time, the fruit that was picked pre-ripe usually becomes bland and quickly develops mold within a week on store shelves. With every grocery store having complete aisles dedicated to fruits and veggies, that's a lot of wasted food. Instead of wasting the food, Ruvi packages the nutrients and helps them last longer. According to Amber, this helped boost sales when Ruvi first started in 2022 because everyone was still building their food storages after the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more insights, watch the full conversation below:
