Oct 22, 2025
In this episode of The Story of a Brand Show, my co-host Rose Hamilton, CEO of Compass Rose Ventures, sits down with Mike Fata, Founder and past Chairman & CEO of Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods.
Mike’s story is one of personal transformation fueling a movement.
What began with his own health journey, losing weight, regaining
strength, and discovering hemp seeds, evolved into co-founding a
company that pioneered an entire food category and scaled it all
the way to a $419 million strategic exit.
Mike shares how
belief, discipline, and governance shaped his entrepreneurial path.
From facing stigma around hemp in the early days, to building a
trusted brand on quality and education, to evolving his own
leadership from founder to CEO to chairman, Mike gives us a masterclass in
resilience and scaling with integrity.
Today, he’s paying it forward as a mentor, investor, and author of
“Grow: 12 Unconventional Lessons for Becoming an
Unstoppable Entrepreneur.”
Here are some of the key moments from the episode:
* How personal health struggles inspired Mike to co-found Manitoba
Harvest
* The power of storytelling and education in building belief in a
new category
* Why governance, values, and discipline were non-negotiable
guardrails for scaling
* The mindset shift required to evolve from founder to CEO to
chairman
* Why mentorship and continuous improvement remain at the core of
his legacy
Join us in listening to the episode and hear how Mike Fata
transformed passion into purpose, purpose into a category-defining
brand, and now, wisdom into mentorship for the next generation of
founders.
For more on Mike Fata, visit: https://www.mikefata.ca/
To buy Mike Fata’s book, “Grow: 12 Unconventional Lessons
for Becoming an Unstoppable Entrepreneur,” visit
Bookshop.org, Amazon, or wherever you purchase books and
audiobooks.
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