Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sexton. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Sexton, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
Well, it really all started when I was 22 and decided to sell my belongings and backpack across Southeast Asia.
During this time I traveled to The Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia and Hawaii. I usually traded my labor for food and a place to lie my head, working in places like yoga retreats, fruit farms, hostels, hotels, places like that. I often found myself working in the kitchen, and my love for plant-based cooking started to really bloom.
When I began, I was a long-time vegetarian but a BIG lover of cheese. While traveling, I tried a vegan cheese in Thailand that blew my mind. From then on, I knew a good vegan cheese was possible.
I landed in late 2019, and soon, the world went into lockdown. During this time I worked to perfect my vegan cheese recipes, starting from scratch. I ordered all kinds of ingredients, blenders, and cashews. I joined an online community of vegan cheesemakers, and we bounced ideas and recipes off each other. My recipes were starting to get really good, and one day I posted a video of my vegan cheese online- where it went viral.
Soon, a local vegan food truck called Revolution Vegan Kitchen invited me to sell my cheeses at an outdoor, masked popup in their food truck park. It was early 2021, and people were starting to go outside again.
I made my cheeses, wrapped each one individually in parchment paper and tied them with a bow. I had no logo, no name, I wasn’t a business yet, this was just my creation.
To my surprise, I quickly sold out of every cheese I made! Suddenly food trucks, pop ups, and markets all over Austin were reaching out to try my vegan cheese!
At this point I was teaching English online. I decided to step back and dive into creating my business, Peace Cheese. I formed an LLC, in early 2021 and embarked on the craziest journey of my life.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Peace Cheese started as a values aligned small business to promote a delicious alternative to dairy cheese. There are so many benefits to replacing dairy in your diet- for the animals, for the planet, and for your own health.
Our flagship product is our meltable, shreddable Muenster cheese. This is the staple, and the first recipe I truly perfected. Our Boursin style cheeses are also incredibly popular, especially our Garlic Truffle Boursin.
Besides those, I create alternatives to almost every kind of popular dairy cheese there is. We produce a variety of cream cheeses, marinated mozzarella, The Chedd (our take on cheddar) Parmesan, Spicy Queso, Burrata, Blue Cheese and more.
I’m extremely proud of my Pesto Burrata. I invented the technique to create it one night in the moments before falling asleep, and the next day my experiment worked exactly as I expected it.
I even create Brie and Camembert cheeses, however these are extremely small batch and rare, so I don’t usually sell them at markets.
Peace Cheese does not have a brick and mortar. For the 5 years we have been in business, we have exclusively done pop up events. Think Farmers Markets, Art Markets, Earth Day Fair, and other outdoor events. Since we are entirely owned and operated by one person (me, Sexton) our business, much like our cheeses, is ephemeral in nature.
Peace Cheese loves to donate our goods to local events and organizations that are values aligned. We see our product and mission as more than a business, but as a commitment to changing the world through dairy free cheese.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Peace Cheese has been incredibly resilient, and weathered many storms over the last 5 years. My business has taken on many shapes- from solely selling at 1 Farmers market a week, to being in 4 on any given weekend, wholesaling to local grocery stores, and providing cheese to a number of restaurants and chefs.
So I’ve done both- I’ve scaled, and I’ve scaled back.
Most of all, I’ve run this business as an openly Transgender person living in Texas. This has come with many risks, challenges and difficulties, due to the unsafe environment the U.S. and Texas government has created. During my 5 years in business, safety for the Transgender community has gotten significantly worse.
I have had to navigate being unable to acquire an accurate drivers license, passport, birth certificate or social security card all while being the sole operator of a growing business. It is also dangerous for me to exist in public in many areas of Texas. Violence against Trans people is increasingly common, and facing that violence while being the face of our business has been a huge personal hurdle. There has been hate, harassment, scapegoating, bigotry and even defamation directed at me and my business from all sides. The violence, fear and uncertainty that the state perpetuates is mirrored even within our own communities, and the lack of secular education, mental health resources, stable housing and job prospects in Texas certainly doesn’t help.
They say anyone who achieves any level of success will inevitably encounter those who dislike them, and our fast paced internet culture of disposability has increased this ten-fold in the modern era. For Transgender people of all kinds, the success part isn’t a requirement. Hate floods in from all sides.
Despite these immense and unique challenges, Peace Cheese has continued to grow and achieve success. When faced with navigating difficult challenges, our business stays true to its values; integrity, curiosity, compassion, responsibility, discernment, connection, complexity, creation over consumption and growth over perfection. Most of all we cling to our mission- creating a more accessible cheese that reduces the harm caused by dairy. By no means have I been perfect. I’ve made mistakes, said or done the wrong thing, and regretted my choices. But by continuing to act in alignment with our values and mission, Peace Cheese have been able to overcome every challenge.
On the flip side of visibility ≠ safety, there is also the impact we’ve had by showing up in the world regardless of hate and bigotry. We have received hundreds, if not thousands, of messages and comments naming the positive impact our business has had on individuals and families. Whether that be through providing meals during a busy work week, providing a cheese that the whole family can eat or simply making space for authentic conversation at the farmers market. These are the moments that keep me going. It’s especially touching to hear from other Trans people- who have never seen a Trans person own a business. Who have never seen a Trans person run a booth at the farmers market. Or who have never seen a Trans person be not only happy, but also successful. Providing that representation within the community, especially in Texas, has been life-changing for so many. And if I can show just one Trans youth that there IS a future for them- and that future can be bright- then everything has been worth it. If I can show just one Trans youth that they can do anything they set their mind too, that they can dream big and believe in themself, then Peace Cheese has truly achieved success.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
While navigating the challenges I mentioned above, I developed many physical and mental health issues. These issues were so detrimental that at one point, in 2025, I had to pause Peace Cheese operations entirely.
Stepping back from my business to focus of my health and recovery was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make. I was terrified that we would never come back, we would lose all our customers, and that markets and popups would reject us.
While I did lose some markets, partnerships and customers, what happened when Peace Cheese returned was ultimately amazing. Our return was met with immense love by those that missed us, and our remaining customers demonstrated an even greater loyalty to our brand and products. It was like myself and our brand had shed the weight of those for whom acceptance was conditional, support was transactional, and integrity was flimsy. What remained were customers, partners, markets and friends who live in alignment with our shared values and would ride the Peace Cheese wave until the very end. This newfound support from others helped heal much of the suffering I was personally experiencing, and gave Peace Cheese the ability to strengthen business practices and restructure itself in a much more sustainable way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://peacecheese.square.site
- Instagram: @peacecheese_
- Facebook: @peacecheeseATX
Image Credits
Mozzarella by Hannah Kaminsky