Jessica Young is a trained chef who left the kitchen to pursue New York’s startup scene in an effort to make a bigger impact on the food system. Jessica is founder and CEO of BUBBLE, the online health food marketplace with a cult following. Born and raised in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, she moved to NYC to attend the French Culinary Institute (ICC) and began her career at The Modern Dining Room, Hu Kitchen, and meal kit startup Ritual. Before starting BUBBLE, she was first employee and head of product and operations at Daily Harvest, where she became known across the CPG industry for her eye (and palate) for food trend.
Be sure to follow Jess on Instagram and shop your curated health food favorites on BUBBLE.
March 1, 2019
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R&S
What inspired the idea behind BUBBLE:
Jessica
I wanted to launch my own food company after leaving Daily Harvest, but realized there was a huge gap in the food space still. There wasn’t a place online that I or anyone else could easily sell foods directly to customers online or a place that had a standard of clean label products that I could get behind, so I decided to make that place!
R&S
What has been the biggest challenge in starting your own business:
Jessica
Funneling all of the opportunity. Since starting BUBBLE, there are more people who want to contribute, get involved, share our story, and sell on our platform than we can handle. Learning how to take advantage and prioritize such amazing efforts has been the biggest challenge.
View Jessica's Essentials
R&S
What do you love most about your work:
Jessica
The people, and the food of course! I work with amazing, talented and creative people at our office in SoHo, and we get to work on bettering the food system each day just by helping sell the coolest things. That, and our first BUBBLE product launches on the platform, so that is everything to me right now!
R&S
Best career advice you’ve ever received:
Jessica
To always be in a state of launch. While at Daily Harvest, our founder Rachel Drori matched me with a mentor—Andrew Black who was an ex C-suite type who headed major companies like Nike, Virgin, LEGO, Cadbury Schweppes, and Colgate Palmolive. He told me that his one major key to success was that he treated those companies like startups, and every quarter would ask “What are we launching now.” That clicked for me. Whether running a company large or small, my personal or professional life, we should all live in a state of launch. That’s how we grow.
R&S
Your most recent culinary discovery and obsession:
Jessica
Paleo Marshmallows, hello hot cocoa season.
R&S
Midnight snack of choice:
Jessica
Cheetos (they really need a healthy version).
R&S
Favorite way to stay fit:
Jessica
Eating consistently. I can easily go all day without eating—which is pretty counterintuitive for running a food company. I also see private trainer Garnett Strother, and the man keeps me in check.
R&S
What apps and gadgets can’t you live without:
Jessica
Infatuation, Spotify, Anova Sous Vide, ChefsFeed, Six Travel, FoodKick, and CitiBike.
R&S
You decompress each day by:
Jessica
Putting on Nina Simone or Leonard Cohen and zoning out in the bathtub.
R&S
What’s next for BUBBLE:
Jessica
We will be blowing up, of course ;) Our first product launched in January 2019 (check it out!), and we'll have a few collaborations with major brands in the new year.
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