Episode Overview

An entrepreneur from Halifax, Nova Scotia is making kefir, but with a twist. After curiosity got the best of her, Linda Peers used her background in marketing to create a business that makes lactose-intolerant friendly coconut kefir.

Since graduating from the University of Western Ontario in 1985, Linda’s career was largely in the marketing field. The marketing world appealed to Linda because of her life-long wish to one day be associated with a unique product or service which could benefit society. 

After working in Toronto with some of Canada’s largest advertising agencies, Linda moved back home to Halifax where she gained more experience with companies providing utilities (electric and natural gas), and in the hospitality and newspaper industries. 

After having established a Marketing consulting business, the entrepreneurial spirit in her was awakened. This led Linda to start The Cultured Coconut in 2015, making probiotic coconut milk kefir. 

Recently, Linda and her company were also named the winners of the Atlantic regional scale-up pitch competition at the 2020 Canadian Export Challenge.   

“Really making a difference in peoples’ lives is just the best feeling in the world and that’s pretty bottom line for us.”

On this week’s THRIVE Podcast, sponsored by the Business Development Bank of Canada and Scotiabank, Peers discusses her personal motivation behind starting her own kefir business and how she navigated entrepreneurship in Atlantic Canada.

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