For the month of May, which just so happens to be Celiac Awareness Month (and this week is Food Allergy Awareness Week), we're highlighting a friend of Chomps, Susie Hultquist. This month we're honored to share Susie as our Chompian of the Month. Susie is the CEO and founder of Spokin, a food allergy app and lifestyle platform on a mission to make managing food allergies and celiac easier. Chomps is proud to be a sponsor on the Spokin app as we are free of the top 9 allergens including dairy, gluten, soy and more. To learn more about Susie and her journey to creating Spokin, read more below!
Can you tell us about yourself - what you do, a bit about your story, etc.?
First and foremost, I am a mom to 3 teenagers and I am also the Founder of Spokin, an app that connects the food allergy community to safe foods, places and each other. My oldest daughter Natalie has life threatening food allergies and it was the experience of trying to figure out if Girl Scout cookies were safe for her that made me realize how time consuming managing food allergies was to check every food, restaurant, birthday cake, travel, personal care product, and more to see if it is safe. It adds up to a full year over a lifetime. I left my Wall Street career to build Spokin that not only made it faster but also fun to manage food allergies. Spokin is now the largest and fastest growing food allergy platform and we live for those magic moments to share allergy friendly finds, like Chomps, with Spokin app users!
What’s your best tip on how to stay positive?
I am definitely optimistic by nature, but as I share with my girls, especially during the lockdown, I think the key to life is to focus on what you have and not on what you don't. You can always find something to be grateful for, and it's a great way to shift your thinking.
What’s your workout routine?
Finding the time to workout is so challenging as a Founder and Mother of 3 teens but Peloton has been an absolute lifesaver. It eliminates any excuse I can come up with, too far, cold, dark, etc. and it's so fun. During the week I ride before the work day starts and on the weekends I get up early, have coffee and ride longer rides before my kids get up.
How do you consider yourself a “game changer?”
I believed that there should be an easier and even fun way to manage food allergies. Once I get a hold of an idea, I have to see it come to life. As one of my daughter's says, a goal without a plan is a wish and REALLY like to plan!
What’s the best thing you do for your personal health everyday (mental or physical)?
As Founder and mother you are in constant give mode, so finding even a little time to restore yourself is key. A Peloton ride for me is as much a physical outlet as it is a mental one and just setting a boundary for 20 minutes for myself helps me reset. As a working mom, I also need to feel very connected to my girls and while we have dinner together as a family almost every night, we are a talkative bunch so it can get very animated and loud and I make sure to sneak in one on one time to talk with each of them every day.
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What is your favorite Chomps product?
I'm going to share my daughter's since she is a huge Chomps fan due to her allergies... her favorite is Cranberry Habanero Beef Jerky, she loves the sweet and spicy combo!
How does Chomps fuel your lifestyle?
Half of the job responsibility of being an allergy mom is having safe snacks with you at all times, especially when traveling, and finding safe protein options is really tough. Discovering Chomps was a game-changer. My daughter is heading to college in the fall and I will definitely plan to send her with her favorite Chomps! :)
Learn more about the Spokin app.
