Once a month, Utah Business hosts Founder Friday, a free event that showcases the wisdom of Utah-based founders. In May, Kiln hosted a conversation between Utah Business Editor-in-Chief Melanie Jones and Beehive Meals founder Allyse Jackson. This event was sponsored by Kiln and Northwestern Mutual. Here are a few takeaways from the conversation.
1. Validate your business.
Since she began Beehive Meals in 2020, Jackson has won numerous awards — Amazing Women in eCommerce 2025, Utah Business’ CEO of the Year 2024, Women Presidents Organization’s 50 fastest women-owned companies 2025, Inc.’s Female Founders 500 2025 — which have helped her legitimize the company.
“When I would talk to people about my business, it would be ‘that’s a cute little business.’ It was always Allyse’s ‘cute little business.’” Jackson says. “These awards give validation, whether it’s the business community or a customer base, that we’re a real business.”
2. Validate yourself.
After Beehive Meals experienced such overwhelming success, Jackson felt lost. At one point, she stepped back from the company entirely. During her time away, Jackson met an identity coach who helped her discover herself and how she fit with Beehive Meals.
“I recognized that what I built I deserved,” she says. “I knew what I was doing.” She had grown to trust herself, knowing that she could do what it took to make her company thrive. When she returned to Beehive Meals, she noticed a disconnect between leadership and the employees. “They don’t have what you need to be successful,” Jackson told some executives, “but they have what I need to be successful.” With Jackson back with Beehive Meals, the company went from zero percent profitability to 30 percent almost immediately.
3. Grow from hard-learned lessons.
Though it was very difficult for Jackson to rebuild herself, she is grateful for the growth she experienced and the confidence she gained. “I could 100 percent look back at everything that’s happened, whether in my life or in Beehive Meals’ time frame; it all had to happen for a reason.”
