Week 46: Rebecca Sholiton, Wise Apple

Many parts of our lives are driven by instinct, the things that we do without thinking because we have done them so many times they’ve become second nature. While I do believe in continual growth, instincts still reign supreme, particularly those ingrained in us since a young age. From a business perspective, how do we instill in children good instincts — the kinds we read about in respected leaders, such as quick thinking, confidence, and perseverance? I chatted this week with Rebecca Sholiton, CEO of Wise Apple, about her own experiences and how they shaped what she does today. Wise Apple is revolutionizing the way parents (and kids) think about school lunches by delivering customized healthy meals and snacks for kids right to your door. The youngest of four girls, Rebecca was told that, because she was stronger than her sisters, she had to learn to stand up for herself. She was taught to fight for herself and create opportunities. Case in point: when Rebecca was eight years old, she was originally glossed over in the selection process for “gifted” children. Yet even then she knew that was a mistake, as she often felt bored in school, and demanded that the school retest her. This precociousness is palpable now as well. As Rebecca put it, growing up that way enables her now to create opportunities and more easily overcome fear than her peers can — it’s simply muscle memory.

It’s a sad truth that we are labeled from a young age, whether it be gifted, creative, athletic, smart, sassy, or even bossy. We need to instill the fighter mentality in children so that they can learn to eschew the labels put on them and go after ones of their own making. It seems fitting that a core tenant of Wise Apple’s product involves the child as a (partial) decision maker. It demonstrates how the company plans to empower the end users in this scenario, even though they are not the buyers.

Stage 👉 Seed
Location 👉 Chicago
Industry 👉 Food

“Growing up, I was never told that there were limits or that I couldn’t do something. I just assumed everything was there for the taking.”

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• Rebecca’s time spent living in Lima, Peru working with female entrepreneurs, and why she left to go to Kellogg School of Management
• How Rebecca’s friends’ experiences with “mom guilt” inspired the idea for Wise Apple
• Why Wise Apple chose to go after the consumer segment of the problem rather than the B2B side (i.e. school supplied lunches)
• Rebecca’s take on why Chicago is a great place to disrupt older industries, and her views on overall startup community (as a Chicago native)
• How Rebecca fought her way into her elementary school’s gifted program herself after she was initially passed over (as an 8 year old!)
• The importance of learning great from a young age, and how you can continue to grow even as you get older

Check out Rebecca’s pick for her favorite Chicago startup and the top people she would want to interview if given the chance (hint: one has already been interviewed on this show).

P.S. Thanks to 52 Founders alumn David Rabie for the intro!

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