Why NEXTY Award winner Fila Manila's founder can't stop smiling

We talked with Fila Manila's founder and CEO Jake Deleon at Natural Products Expo West about his Filipino-cuisine inspired brand.

Adrienne Smith, Director of Content

March 18, 2022

In this interview, two-time NEXTY Award winner and Expo East 2021 Pitch Slam winner Jake Deleon shares the secrets to launching a new brand during a pandemic, how he develops the brand's increasingly innovative product lines and where he finds inspiration. Fila Manila won an Expo West 2022 NEXTY for Best New Pantry Food. At Expo East 2021, the brand received a NEXTY Award for Best New Condiment and was a finalist for Best New Pantry Food.

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About the Author

Adrienne Smith

Adrienne Smith

Director of Content, New Hope Network

Adrienne Smith is the director of content for newhope.com and the editor-in-chief of Natural Foods Merchandiser magazine where she helps ideate and produce content for natural products retailers, brands and entrepreneurs. She also runs the NEXTY Awards, an annual program held in conjunction with Natural Products Expo West that recognizes emerging and established natural CPG brands for their innovation, inspiration and integrity.

Before coming to New Hope Network, Adrienne spent two decades writing about food and beverage products and trends for the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Trade in Madrid, Spain, as well as for publications including the International Herald Tribune/New York Times and El País. A former restaurant owner, chef and sommelier, Adrienne is passionate about food in all its forms.

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