Nasty Vegan provides “Plant-based shakes for a killa vegan diet”. Made for vegans by vegans. Natural, allergen-free, sugar-free, and certainly not nasty for our taste buds.

They are multi-award-winning, were crowned as the “UK’s Best Vegan Powdered Drinks Brand” by Global Vegan Awards and recently won an SME Northamptonshire Business Award: Gold in the Best Customer Service category.

Rob Henson is their co-founder and was kind enough to sit down with us and have a chat.

V-Land UK (V-L): Hi Rob, firstly we have got to find out the reasoning behind the name Nasty Vegan?

Rob Henson (RH): Ha, good question! We just wanted something that was memorable and unique. Our name is a bit Marmite – some people love it, some hate it, but either way, you don’t forget it! Plus, we’re committed to only ever making plant-based products, so we wanted ‘vegan’ to be in our name, so it’s clear what we stand for.

V-L: What was the inspiration behind creating Nasty Vegan? 

RH: The company is run by me and my friend Alix. To be honest, it was Alix’s brainchild. He’s been a vegan his entire life and was constantly trying different brands of vegan protein shakes but hated all of them. We’d been friends for years and always wanted to start a business together, so we thought let’s make a vegan protein shake that the industry can be proud of!

V-L: What makes your plant-based protein powder offering unique? 

RH: First and foremost, it’s the quality. There are lots of cheap plant-based protein powders on the market, but they all have their problems. Ours is a premium product – we pack in a high amount of protein (25g per serving, while most rivals only put in 20g or thereabouts), we use three sources of protein to ensure a diverse amino acid profile – the building blocks of protein (most rivals use a single source of protein to reduce costs), we use 100% natural ingredients (so nothing artificial, like sucralose), and our shakes are free from sugar and all 14 major allergens (rivals often use soy as a cheaper protein source; however, it is a major allergen). Plus of course, our powders are Super Shakes – which means they’re not just protein, they also pack in 25 vitamins and minerals!

V-L: Congratulations on your awards. What was it like accepting the Best Customer Service Gold Award?

RH: It was fantastic to win the SME Northamptonshire Business Award for Best Customer Service. They issue a Gold, Silver, and Bronze for each category, and we hoped we might get a Bronze, so we were absolutely thrilled when they read out that we’d got a Gold!!



V-L: What are your tips for delivering extraordinary customer service?

RH: The main tip is simple – aim to ensure every customer has a good experience. We do whatever is necessary to make the customer happy. Even if they have a problem, we aim to fix it quickly, so they leave with a positive experience. It sounds like common sense, but so many companies don’t do it! It’s the little things, like getting back to people quickly, addressing issues without a fuss, being polite, etc. And we take the time to get to know our customers, so there’s a personal approach to it all.

V-L: We saw you support Animals in Need, was there a reason behind supporting this particular charity?

RH: We’re a Northamptonshire business, as are Animals in Need, and we both have a passion for animals, so it seemed like the perfect fit. They provide a great service, rehabilitating and rehoming all kinds of animals, from dogs and cats, to hedgehogs, pigs, turkeys, bats and everything in-between. And they have a fantastic vegan café on site too! Give them a visit!

V-L: How did it feel to be featured in Vegan Life and PlantBased?

RH: We were delighted! They’re both mags that we love, and the team behind the scenes are so friendly and nice to work with. It was fantastic that they chose to showcase us.

V-L: Do you have any new products coming out soon?

RH: We’re working on a handful of new products at the moment, but we can’t say too much at this stage! We won’t run with all of them, but we’re developing them now and will pick the strongest ones to roll out. We’re hoping we’ll have 2 or 3 new ones out by the end of 2022. They’ll be brand new products, rather than a variation of existing ones, so it’ll be interesting to see how they’re received.

V-L: Where do you hope Nasty Vegan will be in five years?

RH: In five years’ time we’d love to be a leading figure in the plant-based supplement industry, with a wide range of unique products and a wide range of leading stockists. We’re getting there step-by-step, but it’s a slow process for an independent SME when we’re competing against major multinationals with very deep pockets.

V-L: Where can we buy your plant-based protein from?

RH: The best place is our website, and we’re offering customers 20% off their first order, just visit this link. We’re also on other websites such as Amazon and The Vegan Kind, and a range of independent health stores on the high street – shout out to our favourite local store, Daily Bread Co-op in Northampton!

Thank you for taking the time to chat with us Rob. We will be stocking up on Nasty Vegan’s protein shakes and wish you all the best for the future.