We recently connected with Myles Powell and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Myles thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
Our mission is to inspire all of us to embrace comfort, create moments, and share memories together through our food journeys. This mission was inspired by my upbringing, which put food at the centerpiece of the family. I strongly believe in the fact that a meal is more than bodily sustenance. It can be transformative and have a huge impact on one’s mental health.
Myles, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I grew up in a family where food was the centerpiece of our bond. The moments created surrounded by homemade comfort food molded me into the person I became. Shortly after graduating college with a civil engineering degree, I decided to take my love of food to the next level. I took an opportunity to participate in a Food Network competition series called “America’s Best Cook”. It was this experience that propelled me forward on a mission to share my passion and love of comfort food with the world. And just like other busy millennials, I didn’t want my busy lifestyle to prevent me from accessing those same types of meals when I didn’t have time to cook. I wanted to encourage others to create those “food time” memories that had inspired me on my journey. The mission grew and I eventually left behind my engineering career to pursue the business full time.
Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.
I started the business in 2015 while i continued to work full time as a project engineer. Over the next 2 years, I continued to learn the CPG landscape and grow the business through online sales and local retailers. However, when I moved to DC in 2017, I decided that in order to truly grow the business, I need to take the full time plunge. Unfortunately, my growth plans didn’t pan out and as I approached personal bankruptcy, i decided to re-enter the full time work force. It was surely a lesson. And it also motivated to continue to learn the industry and grow to a point that I could take the full time dive again in the future. This happened in 2021 after successfully onboarding our products with Target and a number of other retailers! With more years of industry experience in my pocket and a stronger growth plan, I took a second plunge into full time entrepreneurship. This time, I never looked back.
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
I ran 8 Myles as a solo operation for the first 7 years. I was proud to be a solo entrepreneur but when we began to rapidly grow in 2022, it became apparent that the solo route wasn’t sustainable. I could not successfully continue to pioneer growth with all of the associated challenges by myself. At first, I began my quest for an operations manager or director. i was introduced to someone who just left their previous ops management role and was possibly open to an opportunity. After a few conversations, and some advice from one of the sharks from Shark Tank (we pitched in October of 2022), it became apparent that I don’t need a manager on the team, I need a co founder. Someone who could punch through walls with me. Someone who was more than willing to go above and beyond. Someone who would provide balance to my strengths and weaknesses. I brought in my co founder in November of 2022 because I knew she was that person. 
Contact Info:
- Website: www,8myles.com
- Instagram: @mylescomfortfoods
- Facebook: @mylescomfortfoods
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/myles-powell-5b529025/
- Twitter: @eatmylesmac