We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jessica Lynch. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jessica below.
Jessica, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
Confidence and self-esteem haven’t always come easily to me. For most of my life, I was able to hide my lack of confidence by sticking to things that felt comfortable. But as most of us know, there’s not much growth in the familiar. Becoming an entrepreneur has pushed me far outside my comfort zone and taught me that lesson firsthand. While I’m still very much a work in progress, I’ve learned that even when I’m scared, I do it anyway — and it’s the doing, the trying, the learning new things — that all add up to the confidence I have today.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I’m the founder of cozystate, a vegan cashew queso company based in Los Angeles. cozystate started in my kitchen back in 2021, but its roots go further back — it began as a cozy lifestyle blog I started in 2015, all about creating warmth and connection through food and home. Years later, while running craft services for commercial shoots, I was serving a version of cashew queso my husband had created, and people couldn’t get enough of it. It was he who inspired me to take the recipe and develop it further, refining it into the cozystate we know today.
Our queso is 100% plant-based and made with real, whole roasted veggies — no preservatives, no dairy, no soy, no gluten — just big, bold flavor. What makes Cozystate special is that it doesn’t try to be “fake cheese.” It’s its own thing: creamy, craveable, and made from simple, honest ingredients you can feel good about eating.
Right now, my focus is on continuing to build a solid foundation at our farmers markets. We’re thrilled to have just been accepted into a fourth market, which will give us even more opportunities to connect with our community and share our queso in person. While expanding beyond markets is a goal for the future, being present and consistent with our local customers is what feels most important today.
At its core, Cozystate is about more than just queso — it’s about creating moments that feel cozy, connected, and joyful. That’s what keeps me excited every single day.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Three qualities that have been most impactful for me are:
1. Believing in your purpose — no one else will if you don’t first.
2. Being consistent, even when it feels boring.
3. Remembering that you get to do this, not have to do this.
Being an entrepreneur means wearing many hats, especially in the beginning. To navigate that, you have to be open to new opportunities, open to feedback — the good and the bad — and ready to come up with solutions when things don’t go your way. Most importantly, you learn to shift your perspective from ‘I have to do this’ to ‘I get to do this,’ even when the going gets tough. That mindset changes everything.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
Absolutely! We would love to partner with local restaurants and see cozystate featured on their menus. I’m especially excited to collaborate with chefs and restaurateurs who are passionate about flavorful and approachable food that bring people together. If anyone is interested in exploring a partnership, the best way to connect is to reach out to me directly through our website or on Instagram — I’d love to hear from you!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cozystate.com
- Instagram: @cozystate
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