Nuteese - Behind the brand

Behind The Brand

NUTEESE

Tell us a bit about yourself

I am a Lebanese Canadian Plant-based chef, founder, and CEO of Nuteese®. After working in Multimedia and design, I decided to find a more balanced life and started my journey in health as a yoga teacher almost 2 decades ago and founded Saucha Yoga, a company offering corporate yoga classes and yoga and meditation classes at schools in Montreal, Canada. In 2014, I moved to Shanghai and spent the next few years exploring Asia and studied with several world-renowned Raw and Plant-based Chefs.

My passions are travel, caring for animals and dance. I used to be a ballet dancer. I love hiking with my dog early in the morning, it allows me to enjoy nature and silence to start my day on a good note and cuddling with my fur babies.

What made you start your company?

Everyone’s biggest challenge in switching to a plant-based diet is letting go of dairy cheeses. I wanted to create products that are equally delicious, healthier and that can save animals without compromising on taste. That’s why I say Nuteese® is made for the compassionate gourmet.

Tell me about your product and brand?

Nuteese® offers Artisan Plant-based cheeses made from activated nuts. They are raw, fermented, seasoned, and aged in our Nuteese® cellars, which sets us apart from other plant-based cheeses on the market. The aging allows the rind to develop and the flavors to intensify. Our best seller is Cam meets Brie which is a blend between a camembert and brie. We are working on launching other products such as a plant-based mozzarella and an egg alternative. Stay tuned.

What struggles have you faced when starting up a business?

The biggest struggle is self-doubt. I would say especially when other people project their fears onto you. I started the company during the pandemic, in a big city where I just landed (I moved to Hong Kong in January 2020 and started the business in April 2020) so I had to let go of fears and doubts.

How did you get over them?

I just focused on my mission and passion instead of focusing on the result. Don’t get me wrong, you still have fears and doubts, but you just keep going forward. Focusing on the positive. I was also blessed to meet like-minded people in the city who were very supportive.

Any advice for others just getting started?

Don’t focus on the result, just do what you love and remind yourself of your mission. Even if you encounter failure, it is always a learning process you just get up and start over. When you love what you do, you succeed. And I know this sounds very cliché but trust the universe to support you in your endeavors.

Do you have a favourite quote?

“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide to not be reduced by them” by Maya Angelou

Also “Be yourself everyone else is taken” by Oscar Wilde although there’s no real source attributing this to him but I just love this.

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