The Secret Sauce: CEO Starr Edwards' Journey from Teenage Recipe to National Brand

STARR EDWARDS is the Founder & CEO of Bitchin’ Sauce, which offers vegan almond dips now in nearly 7,000 stores nationwide (Costco, Target, and Whole Foods).

You invented the original Bitchin’ Sauce recipe at age 16. What inspired the ingredients you chose?

At 16, I was trying to follow a raw, vegan diet, but there weren’t a lot of great options for food. So, I decided to use what we had in the pantry to create something that tasted good.

My parents were the typical, fun ‘70s hippies. My name is Starr—yes, it’s my real name!

Growing up vegetarian, we always had nutritional yeast and Bragg’s Liquid Aminos on hand, which we used on popcorn. My mother was ahead of her time.

Combining those ingredients with the basics I knew about food, I created what I felt was a well-balanced dressing or dip.

At what point, did you realize this could be a profitable business?

When I was 22, I was planning on becoming a personal chef. I thought, “I’m a pretty good cook and I can make these fun vegan delicacies.”

So, my idea was to go to farmers markets, give out samples of the things I made, and then get clients that way. At my very first market, I sold out of Bitchin’ Sauce.

I realized I could create a business out of it. Plus, I could be on my own time preparing the product in advance and selling it, rather than being on someone else’s time as a personal chef. It was a very quick pivot for me.

How did you land your products in major retailers like Whole Foods and Costco?

After a year of doing farmers markets, I started pursuing local mom-and-pop stores and then local chains.

Eventually, we got into Whole Foods, which was so cool.

Costco discovered us at the farmers markets and invited us to do road shows, which are fun pop-up events they hold in their stores. Many people avoid these because they’re expensive, but for us, it made perfect sense. It was like having a farmers market indoors!

We grew organically from there, eventually reaching stores across the Rockies, the East Coast, and major chains like Kroger. It’s been a meaningful journey!

What inspired the name for your brand?

I was really just goofing around.

My branding for my personal chef business was very fun and retro, and I wanted something with the same playfulness.

I didn’t want to call it “vegan almond dip,” because I thought that would be too polarizing. 

I was going to call it “awesome sauce,” but then I realized that name was already taken. It’s funny. I had no hopes of any kind of IP protection there.

I started brainstorming other names that conveyed the same idea. In Southern California, surf culture is so big, and I stumbled upon “bitchin’” while looking for synonyms for “awesome.” I thought it was so fun, and I just ran with it.

The first label had “bitchin’” on everything. It even said something like “8 bitchin’ ounces.”

At first, so many people told me the label was terrible. They said I needed to get it redone. But I stuck with it, embracing its quirky, captivating “ugliness.”

In the long run, I think that’s helped us stand out, rather than getting swept away by the trend of everything being so perfect and pristine.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I would say to my younger self:

Don’t be afraid of anything. It’s okay to make mistakes.

It’s important to have a bit of grace for yourself, be willing to try new things, and accept that they might not go perfectly.

Your headquarters offers free childcare and a paid volunteer time off program. What are some lessons you've learned about leading a team and building company culture?

Leading our team is super fun! It’s a family business, so that’s at the heart of it.

I started the company to take care of my own young family, and I love being able to offer that same care to our employees.

We’ve gone from having just friends and family involved, to a team of over 80 people. Staying connected is a really big deal.

Recently, we realized that so much of our workforce is remote, and many of them weren’t able to use our childcare options.

So, we revamped the program. Now, we offer a subsidized reimbursement program, so people can get care, in-house help, or even lessons for their kids. We’ll reimburse those expenses too.

It’s fun to evolve and try to meet the needs of the time. So much has changed in the past few years, and being able to adapt to that is really important. 

What advice do you have for young women who want to create a business and secure funding?

We had a different path, because we grew organically and didn’t take on any funding.

It can be challenging to have limited resources, but it also gave me a lot of respect for the money we have and taught me to be thrifty.

For those trying to secure funding, there’s a lot of money out there and many people willing to help.

But, be diligent about reading and understanding deal memos. Sometimes people think they know what they’re agreeing to, only to be surprised later on.

If you want to get a partner, you should try to find someone who can add value in a meaningful way, whether it’s operational assistance, mentorship, or distribution.

What has been your proudest accomplishment?

I’m very grateful for my family.

It’s such a blessing to be able to work together and hang out together. That’s what I like the most about my job!