Founders Everywhere: Emily Groden
Emily Groden is the founder and CEO of Evergreen, a frozen waffle company dedicated to providing families with access to nutritious breakfasts made with real ingredients.
Welcome to Founders Everywhere, where we highlight the incredible people behind the companies we’ve backed at Everywhere Ventures, a global pre-seed fund supported by a community of 500 founders and operators.
Only 10% of kids in the U.S. get the recommended daily amount of vegetables, a gap that carries real health consequences. Just one extra serving a day can reduce the risk of chronic disease by 7%, yet most breakfast options lack the nutrition families need. Evergreen was created to change that. Their frozen waffles are packed with protein, fiber, real fruits and vegetables, offering a convenient, delicious way to start the day with food that truly nourishes. Evergreen isn’t just making mornings easier, they’re redefining what healthy, kid-friendly eating looks like. Their waffles have a full serving of fruits and veggies, no refined sugars, no preservatives, and no seed oils. Evergreen is also focused on continuing to innovate in clean-label, nutritious breakfast products. They’re currently developing new items beyond their two waffle lines, so stay tuned!
Emily Groden, founder and CEO, is a Harvard Law graduate and former corporate attorney. She never expected to become a food entrepreneur, that was until she became a mom and struggled to find convenient breakfast options she felt good about serving her daughter. Frustrated by the long list of unrecognizable ingredients in most frozen foods, she began making her own waffles packed with whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. What started in her home kitchen quickly grew into a nationwide brand. Emily leads Evergreen with a deep commitment to transparency, nutrition, and helping families wake up with a win.™
What’s Evergreen’s North Star?
My goal every day is to give parents one reliable win by making breakfast easy, nutritious, and stress-free. But I’m also deeply passionate about tackling the broader issue of America’s broken food system by helping kids get more of the fruits and vegetables they need to thrive.
How does Evergreen inspire “customer love”?
We get love from all types of parents, even those who never used the frozen food aisle until now. Our waffles convert people who would usually make breakfast from scratch, but want something convenient that checks all their boxes without compromise. One of my favorite trends is moms secretly eating the waffles they bought for their kids. We’re making life easier and tastier for kids and adults alike!
Tell us about a recent milestone Evergreen crushed.
We’re now in 8,000 stores nationwide including Whole Foods, Sprouts, select Targets and Walmarts, and we just launched at Kroger. Next month, we’re premiering our second product line: Thick & Fluffy Waffles at Whole Foods. They have the same special sauce that makes Evergreen unique, except now the veggies are fully hidden, they are bigger, and they come in more familiar waffle flavors like chocolate chip and blueberry. They’re perfect for the whole family!
How has your background influenced you as a founder?
Having a legal background is incredibly helpful, especially when it comes to understanding contracts. But even more significant was my early pivot from corporate law to becoming General Counsel at The Alinea Group after cold-emailing the founders. Alinea is famous for pushing the boundaries and working there taught me to question every assumption. That same mindset helped me look at something as ordinary as frozen waffles and realize, "There has to be a better way."
Favorite podcasts or books?
I love How I Built This and Acquired. Both are incredibly inspiring and informative for founders. I also read cookbooks cover to cover and enjoy biographies of food entrepreneurs. One recent favorite is Ina Garten’s memoir, Be Ready When the Luck Happens.
Fun Fact:
I was a collegiate distance swimmer and later completed multiple marathons and even an Ironman triathlon. That endurance and grit has prepared me well for the life of an entrepreneur!
Listen to Emil Eriksen with David Ronick on the Venture Everywhere podcast: &you and me. Listen now on Apple & Spotify and check out to all our past episodes here!
