About us
We believe there should be a higher standard for everyday products.
There was a time not that long ago when "better-for-you" products and clean label choices weren't accessible to most people. You had to go out of your way to special stores. That's not the case today. More and more people can now access clean label products everywhere they shop. While this change is a good (okay, great) thing, people now have far more options and choices to make when shopping for everyday products than they have time to sort them out. That got our founder David Mayer thinking: In our current "there's an app for that&qupt; world, how come there wasn't already an app to help people navigate this new consumer reality?
Then David met Joe. Before becoming a Co-Founder of Merryfield, Joe led the Global Quality Standards Team at Whole Foods Market. Joe's team set the quality standards for the products sold in their 500+ stores across the country, and Joe played a key role in developing industry-leading standards like USDA Organic and The Non-GMO Project Verified program.
All of us are more aware than ever before about what goes into the food and products that we buy. People want products using ingredients that don't harm people or the planet. Most are concerned about potentially harmful ingredients or unnecessary chemicals and often we don't trust companies to be transparent or put consumer health and safety ahead of company needs.
People want products using ingredients that don't harm people or the planet.
David and Joe agree that without store-wide standards at most every grocery store, the onus is now on all of us to research and read every product label on our own. Choosing well among all these new product options has become our responsibility as shoppers. Those of us that want to know what's in the products we buy and which brands to trust are being asked to do work in stores. It's work that wasn't expected of people that shopped at those special stores. Surely, our Co-Founders thought, there already had to be an app to help people filter their options and make it easier for people to know which brands they can trust — then reward them for supporting them with their purchasing power.
Unfortunately, the only apps they saw were digital coupon apps, most of which were still mainly promoting the types of products with ingredients people are increasingly trying to avoid. That felt like a missed opportunity.
So, David and Joe decided to start a company and make an app that could help people trust what they're buying without doing hours of research and getting overwhelmed by all the information and options before them. They set out to make something new, something better, something they'd like to use themselves: An app that would reward clean label shopping. What would that look like? A few things for sure:
Trusted Brands
We'd only work with brands we've researched, know and trust. Brands that already subscribe to a higher everyday quality standard. An app dedicated to just the brands we want and trust without having to sort through information and offers on products and brands that aren't aligned with our values.
Everyday Rewards
Yes, we all want special offers to try new things. Absolutely. But we buy most of the same products every week. Wouldn't it be nice to get rewarded each and every time we buy anything from any of our favorite better-for-you brands? It's about savings, but it's also about feeling appreciated.
Purpose-Driven Companies
The best way to make shopping for clean label products easier is to increase the number of clean label options available to people. We change the defaults. We believe there should be a higher standard for everyday products. By consistently supporting those brands that subscribe to a higher standard, together we can help make clean label product options more accessible for everyone.
It shouldn't be so much work just to avoid chemicals and potentially harmful ingredients, right?
David Mayer, Founder & CEO, Merryfield.
Meet the Merryfield team.
We're just like you. We're trying to make the best choices for our families and ourselves but the answers aren't always clear — and, let’s face it, we're all stretched for time. Sometimes just trying to decide which shampoo, yogurt, bread or sunscreen to buy feels like a full-time job. That's why we made it our full-time job so you don't have to.
Each member of our team is different and has varying levels of experience, priorities and values around nutrition, health and environmental impact. But we all agree that it shouldn't require so much effort simply to avoid harmful ingredients in things we buy and use every week. If you agree, then we think you'll fit in here at Merryfield just fine. This is Merryfield.
David Mayer
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Joe Dickson
Co-Founder and Head of Quality Standards & Policy
Jennie Aleckson
Co-Founder and Head of Digital Product
Caroline Del Col
Co-Founder and Editorial Director
Brian Ploetz
Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer
Sandrine Mangia Park
Chief Marketing Officer
Roland Atema
Creative Director
Michelle Arena
Member Experience Manager
Kim McDevitt, MPH, R.D.
Director, Brand Partnerships and Quality Standards
Mark Simmons
Principal Software Engineer
Jake Quinter
Senior Software Engineer
Madeline Greene
Brand Operations Coordinator
Maxine Presto
Senior Data Analyst
Mariah Peña
Member Services Representative
Better-for-you brands.Always rewarding.
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