Isabella Hughes: Cofounder and Chief Revenue Officer of Better Sour

Isabella Hughes: Cofounder and Chief Revenue Officer of Better Sour

From Second Life by Second Life

August 24, 2026 · 49 min

About this episode

Isabella Hughes discusses her journey from the arts to cofounding the sour-gummy brand Better Sour.

Isabella Hughes is the cofounder and chief revenue officer of the sour-gummy brand Better Sour. However, before founding her candy company, Hughes, who was born and raised in Hawaii, began her career in the arts, curating and coordinating exhibitions for a variety of organizations in the United States and UAE. She always had an interest in entrepreneurship, so in 2014, she started her first company—a Middle Eastern–inspired ice cream brand called Lezzetli. Around the same time, she came up with the idea for her second business, a Hawaii-grown herbal iced tea brand called Shaka Tea, which was acquired in 2022. After the acquisition, Hughes and her lifelong best friend Semira Nikou cofounded Better Sour. As daughters of Iranian immigrants who both grew up in Hawaii, Hughes and Nikou used their shared cultural backgrounds to inspire their flavors. Today, Better Sour is in over 4000 stores, including Erewhon, Whole Foods, and Sprouts.

People in this episode

Guest: Isabella Hughes

Topics covered

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Better Sour, Lezzetli, Shaka Tea, Erewhon, Whole Foods, Sprouts

Places: Hawaii, UAE

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