SMARTBITE COLLECTIVE

ENGINEER + ANALYST + LOVE FOR CHOCOLATE = 9TH & LARKIN CRAFT CHOCOLATE PERFECTION

May 24, 2020

It’s no secret that we are professional snack makers and equally professional snack eaters and chocolate definitely tops our fave snack list. During our January business trip to San Francisco, we found ourselves looking for #beantobar and #craftchocolate on Instagram while waiting to check into our Soma hotel. We soon discovered the diversity of the chocolate-making scene in the west coast and noticed the concentration of chocolate-making companies in California.

Then we stumbled upon 9TH & LARKIN’s Instagram account and quickly fell in love with the brand’s sense of aesthetics. We immediately put this SF based bean-to-bar chocolate maker on our “to-try” list and had our first taste a couple of days later and oh boy, was it GOOD. We loved this chocolate so much that we partnered with 9TH & LARKIN on a giveaway and invited Lan to tell us more about .

Because we wanted to hear more about Lan’s chocolate story and the wonderful world of craft chocolate making, we asked her to answer all of our burning questions for May edition of Smartbite Collective. We think you’ll really enjoy e-meeting Lan.

Planting a Better Future Together: Get to Know Brieanne Biblow from TreeEra

April 17, 2020

Recently we came across the following quote: "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." We took the advice contained in this old Chinese proverb and decided to start planting trees with TreeEra. TreeEra is a Canadian based company founded in 2016 which goal is to provide simple, convenient and affordable carbon offsetting while facilitating conversation about the current state of our environment. TreeEra has an ambitious goal: to plant one billion trees. We want to help TreeEra reach this milestone and engage our customers in the process. That’s why we pledge to plant one tree for five Smartbite snacks sold.

We talked to Brieanne, a community manager at TreeEra about the environmental impact of planting trees, what makes her smile and her advice to anyone who wants to make our planet a better place.

IF YOU EVER WONDERED WHO IS BEHIND OUR DESIGNS, HER NAME IS KAYLA AND SHE IS AWESOME

February 28, 2020

Little story time: When we were looking for a graphic designer to join our tiny but mighty team last year, Kayla’s application was the very last one that made it into our inbox. After going through all 319 resumes and after picking a couple of hot candidates, we decided to click on Kayla’s email at last and we are so glad we did.

Who is Kayla? The short answer: a Vancouver based graphic designer who is behind the majority of Smartbite Snacks promo designs and who is about to start working on our US product packaging.

To give you the long answer, we caught up with Kayla one rainy Saturday morning at our favourite local cafe DALINA to talk about her creative process, drawing inspiration from her life, and her advice to aspiring creatives in an ever-changing digital world.

Empowered Women Empower (And Inspire) Women: Meet Mandy Tan

January 28, 2020

When you add more women to any equation, there is always a return on equality.
At Smartbite Snacks we believe that a woman alone has power while collectively women have impact. Raising each other up and channeling the power of collaboration is truly how we’ll change the equation.

That’s why when Mandy from Women in Leadership reached out to us with the sponsorship opportunity, we quickly jumped on board. Women in Leadership (WIL) is a student organization where women are the majority, but men feel welcome and comfortable. WIL serves undergraduate and graduate students at the Schulich School of Business and focuses on enhancing the understanding and appreciation of women's role in business, while assisting members in reaching success in their chosen field.

We talked to Mandy about everything from the first woman she looked up to, her number one favourite place on Earth to how she practice being brave and manages doubt.

V in Travelling is for Vegan: Meet the Inspiring Couple Behind The Veganary

December 01, 2019

Travelling the world has never been easier. Cheaper flights, wallet friendly accommodations and more countries that opened up their borders for curious wanderlusts. Yet, for some who want to see the world there's still one stumbling block that leaves them hesitant about seeing the world – their diet. If you ever fretted about travelling the world as a plant based eater, then rejoice dear plant/animal/planet loving friend because we have a perfect solution for you. If your passport and _____ (insert your fave vegan snack, dish or a restaurant) had a baby, it would be The Veganary, your next vegan BFF. The Veganary’s mission is to empower both vegans and aspiring vegans to live their travel dreams to the fullest while meeting like-minded people along the way. We were curious about how this amazing project started and we desperately wanted to meet the humans behind it. So we invited them for a brunch at our fave vegan café (shout out to Olive + Ruby) and it instantly felt like meeting old friends.

Get to know Natan and Shani and learn more about The Veganary, below!

KEEPING UP WITH MARTINKA DORKINOVÁ: Q+A WITH OUR 🍫🍫🍫 OBSESSED RECIPE DEVELOPER

November 28, 2019

Meet Martina Dorkinová: a self proclaimed dreamer, chocoholic, schizo Gemini, nature lover, food photographer, blogger, triple author and also… OUR RECIPE DEVELOPER. We’ve been drooling over her amazing Instagram page for a while, and are THRILLED to be working together since 2018! Martinka’s personality is just like her photography style – original, lovely, fresh and sprinkled with a healthy dose of quirkiness.

YOU’RE GOING TO WANT TO KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR THIS LOS ANGELES BASED ARTIST

August 17, 2019

One Saturday evening I found myself aimlessly scrolling through Etsy when Spotify put on Ari's 2019 hit single "7 Rings.'

I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it (yeah) – I hummed.

This prompted me to type Ariana Grande into Etsy search bar and my laptop screen got flooded by countless images of the pop queen. One of them stood out right away and lead me into the Gotchilnk art shop. The shop is the brainchild of Ariel Gotchi, a 24 year old artist hailing from sunny LA who makes digital art of iconic characters for stickers and prints. I reached out to Ariel and by Sunday evening we were nailing down the details of our Smartbite Snacks x GotchiInk collaboration.

MEET THE UBER TALENTED ARTIST BEHIND SMARTBITE SNACKS' FIRST STATIONERY PIECES

July 15, 2019

I first met Kelly Graham at a Vancouver event for female entrepreneurs. There she was sitting behind a table displaying her eye-catching card creations with a huge smile on her face and a childlike excitement in her eyes. I knew instantly I needed to work with her on some creative project for Smartbite Snacks.

Upon checking Kelly’s Instagram (which I highly suggest you follow cause it is a beacon of positivity, creativity and a dream of every stationery aficionado) and asking for her business card (which I kept until this day as it is a little work of art), the deal was sealed. Couple months later I found myself walking (okay, running) to Prado café on Commercial Drive to sit down with Kelly to discuss the upcoming project we were working on as well as rack her brain on what she does daily to stay creative. This gal is nothing short of inspirational and I am so happy we connected that evening.