Food Empires
Behind the scenes with the recipe influencers you love. An interview series that breaks down how the top creators in food uild their audience and business beyond the highlight reel. Each guest shares the real playbook: the experiments, routines, mindset shifts, and monetization choices that got them from “a few steps behind” to massive reach.
2 Years, Zero Growth...Then 2M Instagram Followers In 18 Months.
Grow Traffic, Capture Emails + Sell More Stuff: https://grocerslist.com
In this episode, Ben sits down with Lexi Harrison, co-founder of Crowded Kitchen, to break down how she and her mom built one of the most recognizable food creator brands online.
Lexi shares how Crowded Kitchen evolved from a college-era Instagram account into a multi-platform business with millions of followers, and how her time at The Feedfeed shaped her understanding of the creator economy.
The conversation dives into what it really takes to scale a food media company—from producing high volumes of co...
She Beat a Michelin Chef on Guy's Grocery Games
Grow Traffic, Capture Emails + Sell More Stuff:
https://grocerslist.com
In this episode of Food Empire, I sit down with MacKenzie Smith, the creator behind Grilled Cheese Social, to break down how she turned a simple grilled cheese blog into a full-fledged food creator business.
McKenzie shares the story behind starting her blog while studying counseling psychology at Columbia, when she realized the career path she was on didn’t feel right. What began as a creative outlet built around grilled cheese recipes eventually evolved into a thriving brand powered by SEO, social me...
She Spends $2M/Month on Creator Campaigns. Here's What She Looks For.
Grow Traffic, Capture Emails + Sell More Stuff: grocerslist.com
In this episode, Ben Jabbawy sits down with Erica Eckman, founder and CEO of Ecko, one of the leading creator marketing agencies in food and CPG, and co-founder of FlavCity, the fast-growing wellness brand now sold nationwide at Target.
Erica shares how she went from food creator to agency founder to CPG operator, and breaks down what actually makes creator marketing work today. From story-view benchmarks and pricing frameworks to retail awareness and DTC performance, this episode is a masterclass in how modern food brands can...
He Quit Cooking for The Rock to Go All In On Instagram
Grow Traffic, Capture Emails + Sell More Stuff, visit grocerslist.com
In Episode 2 of Food Empire, Ben Jabbawy sits down with chef and creator Josh to explore how he transitioned from award-winning restaurants and celebrity private chef work (including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt) into a full-time content business.
Josh shares what it takes to win online in food content: consistency, speed, and making recipes feel familiar, plus how he built a real business model behind the views.
In this episode, they discuss:
The reality of cooking for celebrities (high volume, high...1M Followers She Still Responds To Every DM
This episode is presented by grocerslist.com, the growth platform for the top content creators and brands in food.
In the debut episode of Food Empire, Ben sits down with Gaby Dalkin, founder of What’s Gaby Cooking, to explore the entrepreneurial journey behind her multi-platform food brand.
From private-chef work to New York Times bestselling cookbooks, CPG expansion, and restaurant ownership, Gaby shares how she scaled strategically while maintaining deep audience connection.
In this episode, they discuss:
Leveraging unconventional early opportunitiesBuilding brand equity through content and communityLaunching and scaling Dalkin & Co. in...FOOD EMPIRES IS COMING
A behind-the-scenes interview series that breaks down how creators build their audience and business, beyond the highlight reel. Each guest shares the real playbook: the experiments, routines, mindset shifts, and monetization choices that got them from “a few steps behind” to massive reach.
