Photo / Courtesy of Maine Center for Entrepreneurs
From left, Naomi Neville of the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs and Mark Ozimek, who will lead the SmartLaunch for CPG accelerator program.
Updated: July 1, 2025
Boost for new Maine brands, from cookie dough to canned fish
Photo / Provided
Jessie Muhlin is the owner of Buba OG LLC, a Bangor-based frozen-cookie dough startup that will be participating in a new accelerator program via the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs.
Less than a year after starting a frozen cookie dough brand in Bangor called Buba OG, Jessie Muhlin is looking to take her business to the next level via a new accelerator program at the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs.
Buba OG is among 11 food and drink brands in the inaugural cohort of a new program at the Maine Center for Entrepreneurs funded by FocusMaine. (Scroll down for the full list.) It aims to help early-stage brands get off the ground.
Called SmartLaunch for CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods), the program will run for more than 12 weeks this summer, with a mix of workshops, mentoring sessions and hands-on data analysis exercises, according to Naomi Neville, the former sales director of Allagash Brewing Co. who manages the center's food programs. She joined the center in 2024.
“Launching new products is inherently risky. Small and mid-sized food brands often rely on gut instinct or personal preference when developing new products,” she said. “SmartLaunch bridges that gap by providing a data-driven framework and expert guidance, ensuring these brands go to market with a clear strategy and a solid understanding of their category’s potential.”
Mark Ozimek, an industry expert who has worked with brands from Tyson Foods to Scott & Jon’s, an Auburn-based maker of frozen seafood meals, will lead the program as an independent contractor.
For Buba OG’s Muhlin, a seaweed ecologist and faculty member at Maine Maritime Academy with no background in business or food, the program follows her participation in the center’s Top Gun program this past spring.
“My Top Gun experience was transformative to me, in terms of providing me with knowledge, resources, mentorship and enthusiasm for Buba OG frozen cookie dough, and SmartLaunch seemed like a logical continuation to learn and grow,” she told Mainebiz.
Data-driven insights
Neville told Mainebiz that the program aims to help participants use data-driven insights to tackle consumer needs, uncover gaps and opportunities and evaluate and size and potential of the target category.
“Through market analysis and competitive benchmarking, we hope to provide participants with the knowledge of their category to enter with confidence,” she said. “Whether looking for investors or talking with retailers, it's always good to know category strengths and trends.”
Full list of cohort members
- Batambang Bistro: Authentic Cambodian ready-to-cook meals
- Buba OG Cookies: Frozen cookie dough balls in limited-edition Maine flavors
- CHUH: Shelf-stable matcha beverage
- Maine Canned Fish: Locally sourced tinned seafood
- Maine Garum: Fish sauce made from the invasive green crab
- Maine Gravy: Plant-based Worcestershire sauce
- Mar Mar Noodle: Gluten-free glass noodles using Maine-grown kelp
- Mousam Valley Mushrooms: Freeze-dried and dehydrated mushrooms
- Seafood Mama: Frozen kids’ meals featuring local seafood
- The Fishermen’s Net: Seafood sauce
- Union Bagel: Frozen sourdough bagels
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