noodo: Nonna's sauce, evolved 🍅 Slow simmered with grass-fed bone broth Two textures, endless possibilities
- KLS
- 6 hours ago
- 5 min read
For the 244th feature of our "Together Talks" campaign, we collaborated with noodo and Co-Founder, Liana Krasnow. Premium jarred sauce inspired by the way Nonna cooked, using a smooth tomato base, finished with grass-fed bone broth, and made for real-life cooking.
"Together Talks" feature 244: noodo presented by KLS - Your Trusted Shipping Solutions In The USA
What separates you from your competition? What have been the biggest challenges? Goals for upcoming year + Next phase of the company?
What have you learned since becoming an entrepreneur? What aspect of entrepreneurship do you appreciate the most? What is your why?
Story of how it was created?
I'm Liana Krasnow, the co-founder of noodo. We started the company based on a family recipe—my grandmother’s recipe.
She came from the southern region of Italy, and we wanted to bring her traditional way of making tomato sauce to life. It’s known as a passata-style sauce. In Italy, families would grow tomatoes in their gardens, harvest them at the end of the season, and run them through a food mill to remove the skins and seeds.
The goal was simple: capture the tomatoes at their peak and preserve that quality throughout the entire year. They would can the tomatoes and then use them to make their Sunday sauce.
That’s essentially what we’re doing—just with a slight evolution. We’ve enhanced the recipe by adding bone broth, which brings added depth of flavor and a boost of protein. It complements the sauce in a way that makes it taste like it’s been simmering on your stove for hours with homemade meatballs.
What separates you from your competition?
Our biggest differentiators are the bone broth and the quality of the tomatoes.
We use restaurant-quality tomatoes sourced from a tenth-generation farm in California. Most brands in the category use tomatoes that come in large industrial drums, often mixed with other tomato pastes. We’ve taken a different approach by prioritizing premium ingredients from the very start.
Beyond that, we still follow a traditional cooking method. We simmer each batch of sauce for a minimum of two hours. It’s an old-school approach, but it’s what gives the sauce that authentic, homemade flavor people are looking for.
What have been the biggest challenges?
One of the biggest challenges has been wearing multiple hats. As essentially a solo founder, my days can vary drastically—one day is packed with meetings, and the next I’m out doing deliveries or creating social media content.
It often feels like managing six different jobs at once.
Another major challenge is capital. We’re currently preparing for a pre-seed fundraise, so making sure our financials, projections, and overall story are tight and compelling is a big focus right now as we prepare for the next phase of growth.
Goals for upcoming year + Next phase of the company?
For the remainder of the year, the goal is to get into as many retail doors as possible. We have a very ambitious target we’re working toward by the end of 2026.
Looking ahead to 2027 and 2028, we want to focus on distribution—getting into the right channels at the right time.
Then in years four and five, we’re planning to explore club retail, like Costco. We’re being very intentional about timing that move, making sure we’re fully prepared to meet demand and that we’ve built the brand awareness needed to succeed at that level.
What were your concerns to transition to starting your own business?
I’ve been working on noodo full-time since October 2025. Before that, I was in pharmaceutical advertising—so a completely different industry.
Initially, I was balancing both, running the business on the side while maintaining my corporate job. But things started moving quickly—especially with trade shows and growing demand—and it became clear that I couldn’t do both effectively.
At that point, it made sense to go all in.
What have you learned since becoming an entrepreneur?
One of the biggest lessons has been the importance of leveraging your network—especially through platforms like LinkedIn.
Sharing milestones, progress, and updates keeps people engaged in your journey. When it comes time to raise capital or ask for support, they already understand what you’re building.
I’ve also learned the importance of raising capital earlier than you think you need it and working with the right partners. I’ve been working with a consultant on the West Coast on a contract basis, and it’s been incredibly valuable to have someone to gut-check ideas and guide our go-to-market strategy.
It’s also taught me that hiring doesn’t always mean bringing on full-time employees—there are flexible ways to get the support you need.
What aspect of entrepreneurship do you appreciate the most?
No two days are the same, and I really value that. There’s a level of flexibility, but also a constant push.
Right now, we’re in that challenging phase—growing from zero to a few hundred thousand in revenue and pushing toward that first million. It’s an uphill climb, but it’s also incredibly rewarding.
What is your why?
I think this is something I’m still figuring out.
At this stage, I’m not necessarily building toward an exit. I’m more focused on creating a profitable, sustainable business—something that could potentially remain family-run, especially within the Northeast, and then expand thoughtfully over time.
If the right opportunity comes along, I’m open to it—but the priority is building something meaningful and lasting.
Do you have a moment that brings you the most joy?
Expo West was a standout moment.
We had done around 60 R&D sessions over four to five months in the kitchen, refining the product. So being able to finally put it in front of consumers, buyers, and distributors—and seeing how much they genuinely loved it—was incredibly rewarding.
It validated everything we had been working toward and reinforced that what we’re building has real potential.
Piece of Advice
Get out and network as much as possible.
For me, being based in Connecticut and having access to New York City has been a huge advantage. I try to attend as many events as I can—especially within the CPG space, like Naturally New York and similar communities.
Meeting other founders, investors, and buyers not only opens doors but also makes the journey feel less isolating. Connecting with people who are in a similar stage of building can make a huge difference.
Promo Code
Purchase from their website, noodo, and use the promo code below:
KLS10 -> 10% off!
Community Callout
Talene & Lily - Benita Studios
Nicole Krasnow - Many Thanks Consulting
In Closing
KLS wants to thank noodo and Co-Founder, Liana Krasnow, for today's "Together Talks" feature. Follow along for their journey with their social handles below!