Kokokai coconut yogurt was one of PlanIt's very first clients. Together, and by request, we offered services and performed tasks that were entirely different from our norm. For this reason, we have been so invested in their growth and their story- plus we just love the owners!
Read on to learn the story behind Hawaii's only locally made yogurt and one of the only mainstream coconut yogurts on the market in general!
Aline, who has had 15 years of being a chef under her belt, is the momma of Kokokai. Over the years, she witnessed a significant surge in food intolerances and It became clear to her that there must be a direct correlation between the increase in processed and unhealthy ingredients and the rise of these intolerances. Simultaneously, she noticed that the market had started to shift with growing demand of plant based options. While plant based alternative yogurts, milks, cheeses and meats started to appear on the shelves, for the most part they were still highly processed and contained lots of additives and questionable ingredients to make these products palatable and familiar.
In Aline's words, "Cooking for a living is caring for people. We were inspired to care for people by creating a great tasting functional yogurt crafted for the vegan and dairy-free consumer, but enjoyed by all who are looking for a clean product."
Nutrition has always been a large component of Aline's cooking and she wanted to bring that knowledge into her plant-based yogurt. The plan was to create a product with as few ingredients as possible, that was also full of live and active cultures to focus on gut health. With the help of their lab, they tested various combinations of cultures and amount for the best results in flavor, function, and texture. "Today" we naturally ferment our yogurt with 13 live and active cultures guaranteed billions of probiotics per serving," Aline tells PlanIt.
Aline and John began Koko Kai in mid-2020 amidst the pandemic. Starting with a grassroots approaching of participating in farmers markets, they were able to directly engage and learn from their customers, as well as gain visibility in the Oahu community.
"Our goal has always been to make our yogurt available in as many stores as possible so we pursued the wholesale channel path for our product to be available on the shelves of major supermarkets throughout the state of Hawaii," Aline tells PlanIt.
A good business owner will consult their customers- both new and loyal- for product feedback. Without this feedback, there is a block between business and customer, leading the potential of the product and the business itself to suffer. Kokokai's presence at so many markets really allowed them to get consistent and varied feedback on their flavors, packaging, texture, etc. From this feedback, they learned they needed to adjust their best selling Hawaiian Passion Fruit to show fruit at the bottom with real pulp and seeds, and to make sure there was no added pectin, sugars or fillers.
After consulting with PlanIt, we commented on their packaging and knew that more stylized and local- looking packaging would increase sales and shelf space. PlanIt worked with Kokokai to find a local graphic design and to design four new labels and a new logo for their yogurts.
A few final questions for Aline...
What is the greatest lesson you’ve learned as an entrepreneur?
Running a business and particularly bringing to life a CPG company is extremely challenging; Our timing of the pandemic added additional challenges with supply chain, delays, inflation, etc. but we learned to not give up even at low times, always thinking outside the box, never taking no for an answer. We always maintain the state of mind to focus on the solutions rather than the problems.
If you could go make a tell yourself something from the get go, what would you say?
Be ready for this wild ride, you can only go forward and through it. Focus on the big picture rather than the day to day.
What’s next for your business, or for you? Or both?!
3 years in, we are expanding our manufacturing facility in Hawaii, which will allow us to diversify, export and create new limited seasonal and limited release flavors. With that we are currently raising funds to get to phase 2 of our plan and Koko Kai 2.0.
THANKS ALINE! SO EXCITED FOR YOU!
