The LeanBox team recently invited co-founder of Bohana, Nadine a Babson Alum, to our Mass Ave mansion to talk all things popped water lily seeds and learn about this game changing superfood in a delightful puff form. Bohana is now featured in LeanBoxes everywhere and are perfect for that afternoon crunch you’re craving!
If you’re wondering what popped water lily seeds are, don’t worry we were too.
Popped Water Lily Seeds: “Popped Water Lily seeds have been an Ayurvedic superfood for centuries. Ayurveda is a holistic mind body life-science that believes that every individual is unique and no one lifestyle works for everyone. The foundation is based on listening to your body and doing what works for you. Water Lily seeds, are one of the most prescribed seeds in Ayurveda because of their alkaline character making them beneficial for all body types.”
We’ll take you behind the scenes of how the puff creators got their start and where they are going next.
How did Bohana get started?
Nadine’s fellow founder, Priyal, took a trip home to India and was reintroduced to popped water lily seeds by her grandmother. India had recently seen a resurgence of the seed snack as modern health trends became popular there. Priyal brought the popped lily seeds back with her and offered them to Nadine who immediately was in love. They saw the growth of the snack growing around the world and knew it was only a matter of time before the ancient snack hit the U.S. When Bohana first launched two years ago – they were one of the first brands to bring popped lily seeds to the U.S. market. As of today, there are nine other brand in their category.
So what’s the secret to their success?
According to Nadine, their success is an attribution of two key things – quality ingredients and consumer education. If you’re looking for the freshest popped lily seeds on this side of the pond, Bohana is the snack for you. They buy their seeds directly from farmers in India. Working closely with the farmers not only ensures a holistic way of farming the seeds but also contributes to the agricultural industry in India. By having a completely transparent supply chain and cutting out the middleman the farmers get paid more than market value for their work. They are the only lily seed company to do this – wholesale buyers are compromising on the freshness of their product.
Education is a large part of their brand strategy as well. By educating the consumer about the benefits and deliciousness of popped lily seeds they are seeing their business boom. You can catch them doing samplings in Boston and New York and even doing demos as they roll out their retail lines.
As far as competition is concerned Nadine is actually excited there are more vendors in her space now.
“Nine other brands have sprung up since we launched. It’s great, this is how you build categories – by having other brands in a market help with consumer education. But it is important to be the first to market to set the quality standards.”
What sets Bohana from the other snacks out there?
They are reinventing an old food. They are taking an ancient food that has been consumed for thousands of years and putting new spin on it. Bohana take a nostalgic snack for those from India and combines it with Western flavors such as white cheddar and snack seasoning. Neither of which are common in India. It creates an exciting combination that no one has otherwise thought of until they got in the snack food game.
What brands does Bohana admire?
Nadine is currently snacking on Hippeas and Biena chickpeas. She really looks up to the Biena founders as a source of inspiration. They introduced a snack that has been eaten for centuries in other parts of the world and transformed it into a go to snack to fit the Western palette.
Partnership with LeanBox
Nadine says, LeanBox is great for getting the word out about their snacks. They were looking to reach young professionals outside of a retail store or online, LeanBoxes demographic is a perfect pairing for them.
“Everyone in an office has access to the standard stuff – if you want to run downstairs for a bag of chips. To be able to offer something unique and healthy and value conscious, is really cool. I love that you guys are doing that and I’m so happy to be working with you.”
What’s Next?
They have just paired up with CorePower Yoga in Boston and New York. You can find them in a studio near you sampling product. Popped lily seeds and yoga have a lot in common – the seeds are an ayurvedic snack so they share the same values of yoga and meditation.
You also be able to sample new flavors soon as well. They have more traditional seeds in the works to pay ode to the history of the seeds. They’re currently testing turmeric, ginger, and za’atar flavorings.
For more information about Bohana you can visit their website or pick up a bag in your LeanBox today.