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“I started Sweet Loren’s because of a personal need that made me realize that everyone I met actually also had this need too.”
This week on the Entreprenista Podcast, Loren Castle, the founder of Sweet Loren's shares her inspiring journey. You'll hear all about how Loren built her brand, an allergy-friendly baking and snacking company that has changed the food industry.
After surviving cancer at 22, Loren realized that conventional food options didn't meet her wellness standards, and so, Sweet Loren's was born. From these challenges to her long and winding journey (both personal and professional), Loren shares it all.
Get ready to hear about the challenges Loren faced in the early days, including countless recipe trials and the leap into the world of CPG (consumer packaged goods). She shares her key strategies for growth, her lessons learned along the way, the mindset that fuels her success, and of course her biggest business secret.
You can listen to the podcast here on Spotify and Apple Podcast.
Here are a few moments from the podcast:
Her path into entrepreneurship became clear after trying to follow more traditional roles:
“So I tried to get other jobs. I tried to work in finance, a PR company, a food, restaurant. I was miserable. And that's when I realized that unless I did something on my own terms and something that really had meaning for me and something that I was so passionate about that I was so excited to wake up every day and give my all, I was never gonna be happy. And so that's when I realized I didn't want to be an entrepreneur. I had to be an entrepreneur. Like I was kind of unemployable and just not employable.”
She moved forward with early opportunities before the business was fully built:
“I had no package product then. I didn't have a business plan, but I had like a one cheater I created that kind of said what Sweet Lawrence was about, why the story behind it and the types of ingredients I would only use in our recipes. And I got some big package in the mail, a beautiful box with chocolates in it. I took out all those chocolates and instead I put my cookies in this beautiful box so it looked presentable. And I went and took the meeting and just made a commitment to show up 100%.”
In the early days, customer interaction played a central role in shaping the business:
“Every single week, I would take a rolly suitcase with my toaster oven and go to Whole Foods and demo in the refrigerated dough section where it was freezing. But I would make these warm cookies with Sweet Lawrence cookie dough. And it was incredible because I would meet hundreds of people and I heard enough positive feedback that I really knew that there was a need in the market for this.”
Customer feedback quickly reinforced the broader impact of the product:
“from day one of launching Sweet Lawrence, I started getting emails from people across the country that would say, your product has changed my life. I believe in food again because of Sweet Lawrence. I can't tell you how much better I feel eating Sweet Lawrence. You're the only cookie dough that doesn't hurt my stomach.”
Her advice to founders centers on building something with real demand:
“I have so many things I would tell them, but I think like the top three things are make sure you're not just jumping into something that's trendy. Like make sure there is a real problem you're solving, a big why, and a really big white space. Because it's such a hard industry to break into if you're really solving a big problem your business will be received, it will grow, because people need it.”
You might also like:
- Andrea Lisbona, Touchland: Secrets Behind The Brand That Sold For $700M
- Rachel Huntington, Bonjour Fête: Lessons Learned Scaling a Product-Based Business and Launching in Target
- Maryellis Bunn on Scaling Creativity with the Museum of Ice Cream
Exclusive for Entreprenistas! Use code Entreprenista15 for 15% off your Sweet Loren’s order.
Connect with Loren:
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of The Entreprenista Podcast - the most fun business meeting for women founders and leaders. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts.
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Relay is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Thread Bank member, FDIC.
Updated on: May 1, 2026
Guests
Loren Castle
Hosts
Stephanie Cartin
Co-founder of Socialfly and Entreprenista.
Stephanie Cartin is the co-founder and CEO of Entreprenista, an all-in-one platform – which includes a private community & business membership called The Entreprenista League that's made up of over 2,000 women founders at all stages of business, a weekly newsletter received by 60,000 readers, two podcasts, in-person educational & networking events, and an award program – that women founders at all stages can turn to for everything they need to grow.
Stephanie is also the co-founder of Socialfly (acquired by Truform Media Group in 2024), Markid, and Pearl Influential Capital. She has won countless awards, including the SmartCEO Brava award, which recognizes the top women CEOs in New York, and a Stevie Award for Women-Run Workplace of the Year. She has also appeared in Bloomberg, Forbes, Entrepreneur, Refinery29, and more.
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