In this captivating episode, Doug Hardesty, the Chief Operating Officer of MycoWorks, discusses drawing on his extensive manufacturing experience to establish the diverse team, systems, and processes necessary to transition Fine Mycelium™ from a small garage in San Francisco to opening the world's first commercial-scale mycelium production plant in Union, South Carolina. 

0:03:00 - Scaling up from a garage in SF, CA -> pilot plant in Emeryville, CA-> commercial-scale plant in Union, SC

0:11:09 - Doug's reaction to first seeing Reishi

0:13:39 - Why people take career steps back to join MycoWorks

0:15:19 - Building a passionate team around a shared vision

0:18:01 - The importance of personal interaction in manufacturing

0:22:07 - Building a diverse team from different industries

MycoWorks Talks is a space to feed your wonder and curiosity for a new class of materials. Xevi Gallego, our VP of Brand & Marketing, hosts talks with people in the MycoWorks universe, taking you on a behind-the-scenes journey of unfiltered conversations about our product, technology, our incredible team, and much more.

If you haven’t already, make sure to subscribe to get the latest episodes each month and if you have episode ideas or feedback, please review. We love to hear from you! To learn more about MycoWorks, follow our journey on instagram at @MycoWorks.

“Sustainability means to me being authentic to our hearts and who we are.” 
Mehera Blum is the founder and creative director of Blumera, a company that designs exquisite, uplifting collections created with intention using natural sustainable materials and loved by celebrities like Beyoncé and Lady Gaga. We recently collaborated with Mehera to create the Poppies Octagon Wood Clutch made with Reishi™: a unique, hand-carved addition to Blumera’s popular line of wood clutches that features a perfectly fitted hexagonal Reishi™ bag. In this episode, Mehera sits down with Xevi to speak about this collaborative project, her journey to reimagine the paintings of her late mother, world-renowned painter Laurie Blum, the Blumera bag Beyoncé chose to wear for her 40th birthday, and the search for a new material that led her to her collaboration with MycoWorks.

In this episode:
2:02 - The search for a new material that led her to MycoWorks
3:15 - The search for the best carver in Bali
6:50 -  Living in a creation of love: launching Sanctuary Blumera. Creating with an intention of love.
8:09 - Her next endeavor: filming the journey of creation and her inner story of love and spirituality
9:15 - The journey that led to Beyoncé wearing Mehera’s large Anhinga brass bag and then the stylist that she wore it for her 40th birthday.
12:15 - The object Mehera and MycoWorks created together, Poppies Octagon Wood Clutch made with Reishi™
15:00 - Origin of her mother’s paintings in a devotional practice rooted in Persian mysticism
17:20 - What sustainability means to Mehera

MycoWorks Talks is a space to feed your wonder and curiosity for a new class of materials. Xevi Gallego, our VP of Brand & Marketing, hosts talks with people in the MycoWorks universe, taking you on a behind-the-scenes journey of unfiltered conversations about our product, technology, our incredible team, and much more. 

If you haven’t already, make sure to subscribe to get the latest episodes each month and if you have episode ideas or feedback, please review. We love to hear from you! To learn more about MycoWorks, follow our journey on instagram at @MycoWorks.

This fall, MycoWorks is celebrating its ten-year anniversary, and to mark the occasion, we invited Sophia Wang, MycoWorks co-founder and Chief of Culture, back to the studio for a recap and a look forward.

In this episode:

1:10 – Collaborating with Phil Ross and learning about everything mycelium can do
3:00 – What Sophia today would tell herself over 15 years ago
4:00 – Attending IndieBio as a young entrepreneur
7:25 – Writing a first set of company values as a young team
15:45 – Leadership and mentorship from MycoWorks COO, Doug Hardesty
18:00 – What does “more Sophia” mean?
23:45 – Her first consumer experience of unboxing Reishi™ products 
28:45 – A new factory in South Carolina

MycoWorks Talks is a space to feed your wonder and curiosity for a new class of materials. Xevi Gallego, our VP of Brand & Marketing, hosts talks with people in the MycoWorks universe, taking you on a behind-the-scenes journey of unfiltered conversations about our product, technology, our incredible team, and much more.

If you haven’t already, make sure to subscribe to get the latest episodes each month and if you have episode ideas or feedback, please review. We love to hear from you! To learn more about MycoWorks, follow our journey on instagram at @MycoWorks.