Growth during Uncertainty

I want to talk about blooming in uncertainty. As earnings season unfolds, some of the world's biggest companies including General Motors, American Airlines, Snap, Mercedes-Benz, and Stellantis have begun pulling their financial outlooks for the year. Even with recent changes in auto tariffs, the message is clear: executives are facing tremendous difficulty forecasting growth. The lack of visibility across global supply chains and macroeconomic indicators has created widespread uncertainty. And yet, in that space of unpredictability, I see something else blooming—opportunity. Especially in food, the next five years hold incredible potential for those of us willing to build what we can't yet fully see.

This came into focus for me while attending the GLAAD Media Awards. I was there representing StartOut, having recently joined the board, and showing up as my full self: a queer entrepreneur building at the intersection of innovation, equity, and nourishment. At a table I hadn't expected to be seated at, I found myself sitting next to Doechii, arguably the most electric force in music right now. She complimented my hair, which led to me sharing how I had been meditating in a garden earlier and felt inspired to transform my head into that very garden—a simple 15-minute fix, completely free. In that moment of genuine connection, I told her she has limitless areas of growth beyond everything we could imagine. A true moment of connection between two people seeing the potential in each other.

It reminded me how limitless our potential truly is, even when the broader world feels unsure. There's something powerful about how we each tend to our gardens—ideas, businesses, communities—and how, when we do it together, the impact multiplies. Despite economic clouds, I see a full bloom of food innovation, ethical supply chains, and new models of ownership on the horizon. Now is not the time to shrink back. Now is the time to add color, add flavor, and cultivate the world we want to live in.

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