# Bonus Episode: Khalil Khamis of Crafty Ramen

- Show: [The Startup CPG Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast)
- Published: 2026-05-02
- Length: 25m
- Episode: 301
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-05-02-bonus-episode-khalil-khamis-of-crafty-ramen
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/2b56faf0

## Summary

Khalil Khamis, CEO of Crafty Ramen, explains how the brand scaled from a 24-seat Canadian restaurant to nearly 3,000 retail doors by leveraging a 'fresh frozen' puck format that avoids plastic trays. He details the challenges of adapting Michelin-trained recipes for mass production, the strategic use of the restaurant as an R&D lab for new SKUs like Brisket Birria, and the complexities of cross-border logistics and Costco's 13-week rotation model ahead of their U.S. launch.

## Outline

1. Introduction and Product Overview
2. Origin Story: From Restaurant to Retail
3. Manufacturing Constraints and Plastic-Free Packaging
4. Scaling Production and Kaizen Philosophy
5. SKU Development and Flavor Innovation
6. U.S. Expansion and Costco Roadshow Realities
7. Advice for CPG Founders and Community

## Topics

- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Logistics & fulfilment](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/logistics-and-fulfillment)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Crafty Ramen (product)
- UNFI (company)
- HelloFresh (company)
- Costco (company)
- Advantage Solutions (company)
- Expo West (other)

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- [What It Really Takes To Build a Food Business: Part 1](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-10-18-what-it-really-takes-to-build-a-food-business-part-1) (How I Built This)
- [317 - The Salsa Queen makes what type of salsa?!? Hear the story of this fire brand!](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2025-07-09-317-the-salsa-queen-makes-what-type-of-salsa-hear-the-story-of-this-fire-brand) (People of Packaging)
- [Advice Line with Pete Maldonado and Rashid Ali of Chomps](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-02-19-advice-line-with-pete-maldonado-and-rashid-ali-of-chomps) (How I Built This)
- [Advice Line with Katlin Smith of Simple Mills](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-23-advice-line-with-katlin-smith-of-simple-mills) (How I Built This)
- [Advice Line: Scaling Strategies](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-22-advice-line-scaling-strategies) (How I Built This)

## Citing this page

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