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In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, Caitlin Bricker welcomes Taylor Espinoza, founder of Unicorn Bites, a fast-emerging better-for-you snack brand known for its 100% date-sweetened, allergen-free mini cookies.
Taylor shares her remarkable journey from practicing law to building a brand that’s redefining indulgence with clean, functional ingredients designed to be school-safe and family-friendly.
Throughout the conversation, Taylor discusses how Unicorn Bites evolved from a farmer’s market concept into a shelf-ready product beloved by parents and kids alike. She reveals the product development process—refining hundreds of recipes, responding to direct consumer feedback, and navigating challenges such as ensuring product consistency and durability during warm-weather shipping.
You will also gain insight into Taylor’s retail and growth strategy, her focus on local market expansion in New Jersey and New York, and her long-term vision of landing partnerships with leading natural retailers like Whole Foods and Erewhon. The episode closes with an engaging discussion on the evolving value of certifications, ingredient transparency, and how modern consumers are reshaping the standards of trust and authenticity in the food industry.
Listen now to learn how Taylor Espinoza turned a weekend baking passion into a purpose-driven snack brand.
Listen in as they share about:
- Founder Story & Brand Origins
- Product Development & Innovation
- Branding & Naming
- Retail & Growth Strategy
- Managing Costs and Financial Planning
- Certifications, Transparency & Consumer Trust
- Community & Customer Connection
Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.
Show Links:
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- Join the Startup CPG Slack community (30K+ members and growing!)
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- Visit host Caitlin's Linkedin
- Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at podcast@startupcpg.com
- Episode music by Super Fantastics
Creators and Guests
What is The Startup CPG Podcast?
The top CPG podcast in the world, highlighting stories from founders, buyer spotlights, highly practical industry insights - all to give you a better chance at success.
Taylor Espinoza
To make a better for you cookie that was still fun, that didn't feel like you were compromising and doing something boring and just not delicious. And so that applies to adults and kids. You know, adults who maybe want to, as you were mentioning, relive the nostalgic like chewy chips ahoy cookie days. And then kids who are like, yeah, I want a good snack that I'm going to be able to take to school that doesn't feel boring. So I would say both, but the natural top market for us has definitely been kids and their parents.
00:46
Caitlin Bricker
Hey everybody. This is Caitlin Bricker, editor at Startup cpg. We are back with another founder feature. Today we're talking with Taylor Espinosa, founder of unicorn bites. 100% Date Sweetened mini cookies that are school safe and allergen friendly. As a practicing lawyer who started baking as stress relief, Taylor's legal background has been surprisingly useful for navigating everything from co man contracts to compliance concerns. As a first time CPG founder, from perfecting her recipe at farmer's markets to becoming a Shelfy's finalist in just months, she's built something that doesn't compromise on taste while being truly better for you. Unicorn Bites have earned themselves a top spot in our household sweet section and you're about to find out why. Enjoy. Hey everybody. Welcome back to the Startup CPG podcast. This is Kaitlyn and today I'm here with Taylor Espinosa, founder of Unicorn Bites.
01:43
Caitlin Bricker
Taylor, welcome to the show.
01:45
Taylor Espinoza
Thank you so much for having me.
01:46
Caitlin Bricker
I'm so excited to have you here. You are a Shelfie's finalist and that is a huge feat and we're going to get into it. But before we get into that, I would love for you to tell us what Unicorn Bites is for anybody who's listening and isn't familiar yet.
02:01
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, sure. So unicorn bites are 100% date sweetened cookies. They're mini cookies that are school safe so we don't use any of the top allergen.
02:11
Caitlin Bricker
Awesome. I'm sure I'm sounding like a broken record here, but I'm such a fan of dates. I feel like dates are the future for sweeteners. I mean, they're the present but they're definitely the future. And I'm always excited when I see a date sweetened brand. So your products became a favorite in our household than very quickly.
02:30
Taylor Espinoza
Awesome. I'm so glad.
02:31
Caitlin Bricker
So you're fairly new. When did you launch Unicorn Bites?
02:35
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, so we launched in April of this year, but I had been tinkering with it for A couple years and like started locally in my town's farmer's market, like in 2024. So yeah, but we really started in earnest, like April.
02:53
Caitlin Bricker
Wow. You have accomplished a lot, I feel like, in such a short amount of time. And I'm interested to hear about your experience at farmer's markets because from other founders that I've spoken to, they have gotten some great feedback when participating in farmer's markets.
03:10
Taylor Espinoza
Totally. I mean, for me, it was so essential to developing the product into what it is today. Because when I started at the farmer's market, my product was completely different. It wasn't even date sweetened. Like I tried every sweetener, I feel like on the planet and would bring it to the farmer's market, see what people's feedback was, see what kinds of elements they were looking for in their snacks or their kids snacks. And then I refined it, I mean, like hundreds of recipes before finally, like finalizing it.
03:44
Caitlin Bricker
Who did you have for testers as you were going through all these iterations? And can I ask, like, where did you start? What was your first recipe looking like?
03:52
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, so the very first tester was definitely my husband and then just neighbors, friends. And then finally when I started doing the farmer's market, that was huge because you have people who don't know you and aren't afraid, especially kids. Like kids are going to tell you the truth if they like something or not. But the very first product, like the original concept was actually a cookie dough because I always love buying like the easy to make doughs from the refrigerated section of the supermarket. And I felt like you always had to compromise. Like if it was vegan, it wasn't gluten free. If it was gluten free, it had nuts. And then like they all had tons of refined sugar. So I was trying to experiment with like a better for you dough, basically. But that became really hard to test since it's refrigerated.
04:42
Taylor Espinoza
So then I just started making the cookies themselves, starting with regular sugar. And then I've tried monk fruit and all the all alternative sugars out there. And I felt like dates were something that people really understood. And also the taste was sometimes it's surprisingly similar to regular sugar.
05:03
Caitlin Bricker
I would have to agree with that. I do not miss regular sugar. And oftentimes or probably all the time, I would say that if I taste a product that has dates in it versus a product that is traditionally sweetened with the cane sugar, I don't know the difference. I might even like the date sweetened products. Better because I feel better afterwards. But I will always opt for regular sugar over an alternative sweetener. And I say alternative, like date, for sure, number one. But like an erythritol or a monk fruit or a stevia, et cetera, they definitely have their place, but not for me.
05:41
Taylor Espinoza
I totally agree. Some people, it kind of upsets their stomach. Stomach. I found allulose would turn the cookies kind of orange, which is kind of concerning. So, yeah, I was very happy to end up with dates. The flip side of that is, like, it's very expensive, but it's quality.
05:59
Caitlin Bricker
Totally. It's funny that you mention allulose, because when I was pregnant, I noticed that allulose I was eating. I think it's smart sweets. They're like sour watermelon bites. I noticed that when I would eat those products, and I'm assuming it was the allulose, it would raise my temperature. Like, I would literally have to, like, take my sweatshirt off because I felt like I had a fever.
06:21
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, that's crazy. I know. It just. There's something comforting about just using something we all understand, like a whole fruit a hundred percent.
06:30
Caitlin Bricker
And you get that fiber, too, which is also great because Americans don't eat enough fiber. And why not get it through a cookie if you can. So tell me about your background. I don't think you're a baker. So what have you done prior to Unicorn Bites?
06:48
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, so I. Well, I still am a lawyer. I haven't kind of left the day job yet. But, yeah, that's my background. And baking for me was a stress release. Pure amateur stress release. And I would just kind of play around with it on the weekend and really enjoyed experimenting with different recipes. I feel like that was my favorite part of the process of starting Unicorn Bites was trying something new. And, like, I wake up at night and be like, oh, my God, what if I tweak this ingredient for this ingredient? And it was just such a cool creative process, getting to develop it.
07:23
Caitlin Bricker
I bet. And I'm sure your husband was really enjoying himself getting to taste test everything as you went to. Totally.
07:29
Taylor Espinoza
I mean, by the end of it, he was like, I can't do this anymore. You gotta find more different people to ask.
07:38
Caitlin Bricker
I will say, like, I do love the soft bake concept because it brings me back to, like, the soft baked cookies that I used to have. What was it, like Chips Ahoy or one of those major brands back in the day. But this just blows it out of the water for me. And I mentioned earlier, this became a quick Household favorite for us. My daughter saw the bag. She was intrigued by the branding. First she was like, this is for me. This is not for mom and dad. Like, what's going on? And then she calls them kookas. Whenever she says kooka, we know it's unicorn bites. Literally the only cookies that she has in the house.
08:13
Taylor Espinoza
That's so funny. I love hearing what kids call them. One of my friend's kids calls them Balls. Whenever he wants them, he's just like, balls.
08:23
Caitlin Bricker
All right. Imagine if that was your brand name. And speaking of which, like, had you ever thought of different brand names for unicorn bites, or did you always think it was going to be unicorn bites?
08:34
Taylor Espinoza
Honestly, it was something I found or thought of and stuck with very quickly. It's not even that I thought, okay, this is going to be ultimately what I go with. It's just I was thinking about the concept of naturally magical, and then unicorns, and they were small and bite size, and it just kind of came together. And I felt like I couldn't change it because people gravitated towards it, especially kids, which is funny because I don't have kids yet. I'm expecting one very soon, but it wasn't intentionally, like, oh, kids love unicorns.
09:09
Caitlin Bricker
I love that your future little one is going to have a direct pipeline to unicorn bites. That's probably, like, my daughter's dream right now.
09:18
Taylor Espinoza
I'm really excited to also one day use her for taste testing as well.
09:24
Caitlin Bricker
So cool. So talk to me about the branding more. Like, how did you land on your packaging? How did you land on the font? How did you land down the mascot that's on your package?
09:35
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah. So I started with my own logo that I designed in Canva, and I have my little. This was my original logo here, shout.
09:44
Caitlin Bricker
Out to Canva, making everyone a graphic.
09:46
Taylor Espinoza
Designer, and made stickers. And kids really liked that. And so I decided, okay, like, maybe I'll. I'll stick with the unicorn concept. And then through startup cbg, actually, I met another founder, Joyce of Joyfuls Shout Out. And I loved her packaging, and she recommended a branding agency that's right in the town, right next to me. So I went to them and I basically said, like, hey, I want a unicorn kind of mascot that's more professional than this. And they helped me kind of build it into what it is now. And so this is the new unicorn.
10:25
Caitlin Bricker
I love it. And I feel like that unicorn is how I feel like after I sit there and just house an entire bag of unicorn things.
10:34
Taylor Espinoza
I know. I mean, I Also loved the early drawings that they did because they remind me of my dog. My dog is like this white, like thick little terrier. So I associate her as the inspiration.
10:48
Caitlin Bricker
That is so funny. So I'm excited to learn more about you building your brand. I love that you have found designers through the startup CPG Slack. What have you run into as a first time CPG founder? Like you have a product that I assume is probably being soft baked is probably kind of fragile to deal with. What have you run into in your process with iterating and shipping and all that fun stuff?
11:16
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, the soft element is such a challenge and it's great because it's kind of a distinguishing feature. A lot of especially allergen friendly natural treats can be crunchier. So it's great. I love that they're soft, but it was very challenging in the summer because when they were sitting out in the heat, whether it's because I shipped them or at the farmer's market, they could really disintegrate. So that was a surprise and something that I've kind of spent the last few months trying to fix, making tweaks with my co man and trying to get it ready for really next summer. But ultimately just make it a more durable product so that it can withstand a lot of shipping because you never want people to get their order and then be disappointed by it.
12:06
Taylor Espinoza
And like we kind of tried to preempt that a little bit by telling people, first of all, if you get your product and it's too crumbly, like you can send it back or keep it and get a refund, no problem. But the other idea that we would kind of promote on social is like if you just have some crumbs at the bottom of the bag, like they make a great yogurt topper. They make a great ice cream topping. And that was kind of fun to see how people used the product in that way.
12:32
Caitlin Bricker
That is a really great idea to give your customers an opportunity to maybe just like not waste what's left at the end of the bag. I definitely like the sound of putting it on yogurt. Spice it up a little bit. I'm warning, like, why not? And it's guilt free. Like I wouldn't have to feel like I'm putting a traditional cookie topping on top of my yogurt.
12:52
Taylor Espinoza
Totally.
12:53
Caitlin Bricker
I can still head to the pool and feel good about myself.
12:55
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, it's like a granola alternative. The vanilla cinnamon one especially. I mean even in the chocolate chip, like those chocolate chips are 100% date sweetened, so I definitely don't feel guilt having them in the morning.
13:10
Caitlin Bricker
We always keep date chocolate chips in our pantry. That's like our treat at night when we feel like we just want, like, a sweet snack, that's what we reach for. Totally. And I will say I had been ordering Unicorn Bites all throughout the summer. Never had an issue with melted packaging, melted cookies, et cetera.
13:28
Taylor Espinoza
It was all good. Good. I'm so glad to hear that.
13:32
Caitlin Bricker
Of course.
13:33
Taylor Espinoza
Of course.
13:34
Caitlin Bricker
So where are you now with Unicorn Bites and where do you see your brand going?
13:39
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, so, I mean, I'm at a kind of pivot point right now where I'm starting to think about retail. From April to now was just, let's launch it, let's see how people react to it, react to the new branding, focus on the website, and that's been great. I do see this ultimately as a product on the shelf. And so now I'm like, trying to learn as much as I can also from the startup CPG community about how different brands approached that. Whether it was working right away with a broker versus going themselves to independence and pitching it and starting very slow. Slow and ramping up.
14:18
Taylor Espinoza
So that's kind of what I'm focused on next, is how do I kind of expand distribution in a way that's healthy financially because, like I said, dates are expensive, so our margins aren't exactly where they need to be yet to have distributors and brokers and a 3 PL. So we kind of have to move a little bit slowly.
14:40
Caitlin Bricker
I totally get and understand, not from a founder perspective, but I understand it. And I see that struggle with founders a lot, where they have this opportunity to get into, say, like, their dream store or their dream distribution. But it's hard to scale, especially if you get ahead of yourself, then you kind of shoot yourself in the foot. So it's good that you're thinking about that now. And I'm sure you've probably seen that as a common theme throughout our slack too.
15:07
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah. I mean, and that's always comforting to see other people dealing with the same challenges. Like, sometimes it's easy to get psyched out seeing brands that just seem further along who have figured it out, but there are so many brands in the same position. And, like, it's also a weird experience when you start getting people reaching out to you for advice and you're like, I can't be giving advice. I'm like, brand new to this, but it's a great community.
15:34
Caitlin Bricker
You know something that I am curious about your perspective on Is your target market? Is your target market kids? Is it adults? Is it both?
15:44
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah. I mean, and that's something I've struggled with too because like I said when I started, it wasn't intentionally about kids, but that was so natural like that kids and their parents gravitated to it. So I'm not gonna ignore that. That's something I've definitely leaned into a bit. I would say the goal for this originally was to be like, to make a better for you cookie that was still fun, that didn't feel like you were compromising and doing something boring and just not delicious. And so that applies to adults and kids. Adults who maybe want to, as you were mentioning, relive the nostalgic like chewy Chips Ahoy cookie days. And then kids who are like, yeah, I want a good snack that I'm going to be able to take to school that doesn't feel boring. So I would say both.
16:35
Taylor Espinoza
But the natural top market for us has definitely been kids and their parents.
16:42
Caitlin Bricker
I ask that because I think brands who are trying to target kids as their consumer or trying to capture the parents attention to, then give it to the kids struggle with this. But for you, I don't think I saw the word kids on your packaging or on your website, but I saw kids on your Instagram eating the cookies. And for me, as a consumer of the product, when I got it, I was like, oh, this is kid friendly for sure. I pulled it out of the package. The packaging is bright and colorful. And then when I pulled it out, I was like, oh, I could give this to my daughter, no problem, and she would enjoy it. And she did. And I think that you've achieved something really great where you're able to communicate that message without even saying it.
17:28
Taylor Espinoza
Thank you. I mean, yeah, it is one of those things that happens sort of unintentionally. And maybe it's also like coming from a legal background, I get a little nervous about like trying to directly target kids. So I'm glad that it sort of happened naturally.
17:45
Caitlin Bricker
That is a layer, honestly, that I never even considered until you just said it. That is such an interesting perspective to add to the conversation. What kind of legal issues do you see on a daily basis? Are you even allowed to talk about it? Like, what kind of lawyer are you?
18:03
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, I mean, I right now am in house counsel, so I deal with like a whole bunch of corporate issues. I negotiate contracts, which is helpful when I'm kind of negotiating with my co man and then I advise on product issues as well. Not so Much food though. But it just kind of impacts the way you think. And it's been difficult sometimes because I've had advisors who are like, you have to take risks early on and say no sugar or something, or blasts like gluten free on the front of the package. And I want to wait until I have the certification and I want to be very clear that there's sugar, it's just not added sugar. It's like very hard for me to take those risks and hopefully ultimately it pays off. But there is a tension between your new brand.
18:49
Taylor Espinoza
You have to stand out and you also need to do right by your customers, especially if it's a kid's product.
18:56
Caitlin Bricker
These are all really good things to consider. You mentioned certification. Is that something that you're going to go for?
19:02
Taylor Espinoza
I have gone back and forth on it a million times because it is an investment. I do think it's a worthwhile investment. I just don't know if it's happening for me in like the next quarter. I think, like, first I really need to figure out my margins, how I'm going to do retail and then probably get funding and then do certifications.
19:24
Caitlin Bricker
Totally. We actually just had this conversation, myself and some other founders out in Asheville for that grocery run event. And were talking about certifications. And I'm always curious what that means for consumers because to me, no offense to anybody who's getting certifications or anybody who's giving certifications, the ingredient list means more to me than a certification does. That's the first thing I go to. I am not the type of shopper who will pick a product up off of the shelf because I see X certification on the bag. I'm more interested in like the ingredients themselves and of course, does the product tastes good, what the founder story is and then reading the ethics of the founder on their website. That's just me personally.
20:07
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah. And I think that's a lot of people too. I mean, I think maybe a few years ago certifications were more of a shortcut, but it feels like more and more people aren't taking the shortcut. They're always reading the ingredients. So we'll see. I'll kind of play the certification thing by ear.
20:24
Caitlin Bricker
I'll be interested to hear about your journey because I think there's also a lot to be said about people who just get the marketing aspect of it. Like that label does mean a lot to them. That sticker on the front of the product does mean a lot to them. Sometimes it might even mean more than the ingredient.
20:41
Taylor Espinoza
List.
20:41
Caitlin Bricker
So I'd just be curious to hear your journey with it and then other founders too. If anybody's listening, please reach out to me because I want to hear about it.
20:49
Taylor Espinoza
Yeah, I'll keep you posted.
20:51
Caitlin Bricker
Cool. For sure. So what does your strategy look like for retail? You said that you're looking to roll that out. Are there any specific retailers or even collaborations that are on your dream list?
21:04
Taylor Espinoza
I mean, I, I have very similar dream lists, I think, to a lot of people in the natural space. Like, of course, I, I could see it in a Whole Foods. I could see it in an erewhon. But those for me are longer term. I want to start with the right independence. That make sense? I started a little bit, like locally. I live in Montclair, New Jersey. There are a couple of great small markets around here that carry the product. And so that's exciting. But I do want to start expanding also in New York. I think I'm like 30 minutes away from the city. It's a natural kind of first step, I think. So that's probably my initial strategy. And then once the financials work out, I'm definitely going after the dream accounts.
21:48
Caitlin Bricker
As you should, for sure. Well, I'm really excited to see where Unicorn Bites goes. They're definitely going to keep holding a place in our pantry and in my daughter's heart for sure. But before we go, can we try to get Unicorn Bites into more people's hands? And can you tell us where we can find you online?
22:06
Taylor Espinoza
Oh, thank you so much. Yes. So my website is tryunicornbikes.com. You can order them there. We are also available on Fair and Bubble Goods.
22:16
Caitlin Bricker
Perfect. We love all these places where you can grab Unicorn Bites. Well, Taylor, thank you so much for your time. It's been great getting to talk to you, especially us being such big fans. It's always great to hear the founder's story and your perspective. And I think you just maybe gave the community a lot to chew on.
22:39
Taylor Espinoza
Love the pun. Thank you so much, Caitlin. This was so fun and appreciate your support and your daughter's support. Support of the brand.
22:46
Caitlin Bricker
Oh, anytime. Seriously. Well, good luck with the rest of your pregnancy. I'm excited to hear more updates on that and we'll talk soon.
22:56
Taylor Espinoza
Bye.
22:58
Caitlin Bricker
All right, everyone, thank you so much for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, do us a solid and leave us a five star review on ratethispodcast.com startup cpg. I'm Caitlyn Bricker, the host of the Five Founder Feature Series and editor at Startup CPG. Feel free to find me on LinkedIn or reach out to me on Slack and get on my radar. I'm always keeping my eyes peeled for new and emerging brands to spotlight. If you're a potential sponsor who would like to appear on the podcast, please email partnershipstartupcpg.com and finally, as a reminder for anyone listening, if you haven't already, we would love for you to join our free CPG community Unity on Slack. You can sign up via our website@startupcpg.com see you around.