Business #26…Wild Women Truffles:  Kathie & Debbie

Denver, Colorado

720-570-1307

http://www.wildwomentruffles.com

Favorite business books:  Cathie – Chocolate and Confection by Peter Greweling

                                    Debbie – Sell your Specialty Food by Steven Hall

Start Date:  2005

Yummm.

Yummmm, was this a good interview. Debbie and Kathie are two friends that have created a business around a love and passion for chocolate.  What could be better than working with you best friend and making truffles?  After taking a cooking class and realizing she really loved making chocolates, Kathie decided to ask her friend Debbie to venture out, and create a business and sell chocolates.  If you get to speak with Debbie and Kathie, you will quickly discover their playful and fun personalities.  Because of this, they decided to name their company Wild Women Truffles, which is also appropriate for their handmade and slightly rough truffles.

After starting the company, they soon realized that it was imperative to use a commercial kitchen for the making of their chocolates for sale.  In the beginning, samples can be made in a home kitchen, but food items that are sold, must be made in a certified commercial space…for obvious reasons.  So, on a search they went, and it was not and easy one.  But eventually they found The Kitchen Network, in Morrison, CO .  It is a gluten free, 3,000 sq. ft. commercial kitchen that they are allowed to rent by the hour. 

After they found the kitchen, they were encouraged to attend a seminar at Whole Foods where they would be able to showcase their truffles.  After about a year of courting, they were finally approved by the regional offices, but would then had to get approval at each store to obtain shelf space.  They are currently selling in two Whole Foods locations, with plans to add two more.  

Other ways they have found to sell their truffles besides on their website, has been to partner with local businesses.  They do special events at the Balistreri Vineyard  in North Denver, where they do a gift basket and sell a special truffle, just for the vineyard.  They also work with English Tea Leaves  in Parker, CO, where they do a Tea & Chocolate Tasting.  They have an upcoming event on May 8^th, if you are interested.  They also do events with The Melting Pot and the Chocolate Therapist, both located in Littleton, CO.

While they have thoroughly enjoyed the experience of starting a company, establishing a consistent flow of business has been a big challenge.   They have done a good job at not overspending, or committing too much financially, but would like to build the business to a point where they can receive some financial rewards for their efforts. 

As far as strengths, Kathie is the idea gal with tons of passion.  Debbie on the other had is the talker and marketer of the two.  The big weakness for the two of them is their willingness to give things away. 

The truffles themselves are great.  They are made with all natural products, and handmade to order.  Both factors create problems in that it keeps their costs high.  Individually they sell their small truffles for $2, large truffles for $3, and a box of 4 can be bought at Whole Foods for $7.99. 

These two ladies have a huge passion for their craft and their business.  Creating income and profit will be essential if they plan to continue down the path of entrepreneurship.  They have a great product; they just need to get it to market.  I say help them out.  Order a few boxes for Mother’s Day.  And while you’re there, order yourself a box too. 

Thanks Debbie and Kathie.  You were a pleasure and a joy to talk to.  Thank you for sharing your story with us, and thanks for the truffles. 

Until next time, continue to plan, plant, and grow your business, but don’t forget to harvest!

It amazes me when I get around a large group of business owners, and the topic of marketing comes up.  Many don’t think they do much marketing or advertising, and just rely on “word of mouth advertising.”  Word of mouth advertising (let’s call it: IT) is good, and IT will cause some people to call or stop in.  But what are you doing to promote more of IT?  Can you promote IT?  What can IT do? 

I believe IT can be a strong part of your marketing, and should be, but, I don’t think you should rely solely on IT.  But if you want IT, and you want more of IT, how can you encourage IT?  Before we can talk about IT, you need to make sure IT is good IT, and not bad IT.  Bad IT can be your death.  Bad IT can drive away customers.  They say a good experience will cause a happy customer to tell 1 or 2 people and a bad experience will cause them to tell 20 or 30.  I don’t buy it.  I think reality is, unless you have an absolute horrible experience, where people will tell everyone, they just won’t come back.  AND, if they have just an okay experience, they may come back or may not.  Someone has to have an exceptional experience to talk about IT or be convinced that they can’t go anywhere else. 

So IT will only help if you provide great service, and/or have exceptional products.  When I first got my Dell Mini laptop, I could not shut up about it.  It was great.  I told everyone, and everyone was asking.  When I first got my Blackberry, it was ok.  I told no one.  I am sure you have similar experiences. 

So if we have the ability to produce good or great IT, how do we get more?  We need to ask.  We need to remind.  And we need to ask again.  No, I’m not saying we need to ask for our customers’ 3 or 4 friends that we can call to talk to that they think will also benefit from our product (I’m not a big fan of this tactic…sorry if I offend).  But I am saying we need to let them know that we want more business.  That they can help us by sharing.  If they have had a great experience, they WANT to help US, they just don’t know how. 

A great way to do this is through social media.  Create a Fan Page on Facebook.  Ask your customers to join, and to talk about their experience.  Ask your customers for testimonials that you can put on your website, and use visuals.  This can be done with a picture or a video.  You can also have them fill out review online at places like Google local and Yelp.Another great way to create a referral program.  There are a lot of ways to encourage this.  But you can’t make it look like you are buying your customers.  It needs to come off as an honest “Thank You!” Reminders can come in a lot of forms.  Staying Top of Mind is key, especially with your really good customers.  Customers that appreciate you, and want to see you succeed.  We can do this through consistent newsletters, blogging, notes of appreciation, and occasional phone calls.  I would sometime stop in to see past customers if I was in the neighborhood and I had some extra time.  It was always worth while. So let’s not hope and just wait for our customers to come back.  If you are proactive, and genuine, it will not seem pushy or salesy…I hate that.  There are a lot of ways to build the relationship, but it does take time.  If you are interested on learning about ways to use social media in your business to help you do this, please check out of class schedule of upcoming classes.  We have free and fee based classes constantly in the cue. Until next time…plan, plant, and grow, but don’t forget to harvest!

Originally posted on our blog 3-23-2010

Business #25…Capelli Floral:  John and Denise Capelli.

Denver, Colorado

720-570-1307

http://www.capellifloral.com

Start Date:  2002

The flower business is filled with strong competition.  Over the past few years, the economy has not made it easy to stay in business.  Despite these factors, John and Denise Capelli have continued to thrive and create beautiful floral arrangements and wedding décor. 

Starting as Capelli Floral and Photography, Capelli Floral has morphed a bit over the years.  This floral design business started when two “power partners” decided to meet and talk business strategies.  Before the beginning, John had run a wedding photography business, and Denise had been doing wedding florals.  While working together on Denise’s sister’s wedding, the two decided that they should get to know each other, since they could refer business back and forth.  They then decided to meet and talk shop, but over dinner there was more that was shared than photos and flowers.  As they say, that was the beginning of a beautiful relationship.  They soon fell in love, and one year after the first dinner, they needed help with their own wedding flowers and photography.

As the marriage partnership took hold, so did a new business, a merged Capelli Floral and Photography.  John took the pictures, and Denise designed the bouquets.  While the amount of business was decent, John decided that working every weekend and holiday, was not his idea of a good business life.  Three years later, John decided to get out of the wedding photography business.  For him, it was time to focus on portraits. 

As John has mostly worked with the photography side and the occasional event set-up, Denise relegates herself primarily to flowers, flower arrangements, and everything to do with floral arrangements.  Denise has a background in floral design and loves working with flowers.  When a larger event, like a wedding, needs to be assembled, then John steps in to build, and orchestrate larger displays.  When he is not busy with photography customers, John works on the business and marketing side.  With John’s photography skills, it has been easy to produce high quality photos for their website, a key ingredient. 

The focus now remains with flowers.  Flower arrangements for corporate offices, gift bouquets, weddings, centerpieces for corporate events, holiday parties, and any other floral needs.  Many of the Capelli’s regular clients include property management companies, dental offices, and some private residences that just love to have fresh flowers.  Strong industry partners have always been event planners and caterers that recommend the Capelli’s on a consistent basis.

John’s strengths seem to lie with talking to customers.  It is easy for him to talk and get to know each and every person that walks through their door.  This has helped him really become a part of their neighborhood as nearby store owners and residents frequently come in.

Marketing typically falls on John’s shoulders.  He decided several years ago that advertising dollars seemed to be a big waste, so instead of spending money on radio, print, or other high dollar items, the Capelli’s started to host events at their shop.  They have about 2000 sq. feet, so it is a great space to host art showings, wine tastings, and educational seminars for kids and designers.  Due to the fact that they always have gorgeous flowers filling the space, their space is always ready for a crowd.  They also rent out the space for private parties like corporate events, baby showers, and small weddings.  The unique space provides the perfect backdrop for a great party.

Other marketing activities include being active in the Arapahoe LeTip networking group, local chambers of commerce, farmer’s markets, and giving to charities for community service exposure.  While their business relies heavily on repeat and referral customers, it is a continual effort to re-introduce themselves and stay top of mind on all those fans. 

When I asked what has been the biggest challenge, it was no surprise that they have been hard hit by the economy.  In 2008 alone, 40 retail floral stores closed their doors.  On top of that, the Capellis have had to deal with stronger competition from grocery stores.   Hardest his has been the corporate clients and regular flower shoppers.  Companies and individuals just can’t afford to have fresh flowers all the time.  John believes that their biggest edge against the competition has been their high regard for design and the quality of their flowers.  I would propose, however, that their lasting success has something also to do with their level of commitment to their customers, their personal touch, and the strong relationships they have built in the community and with their entire customer base.

One way John would change their business, if he could, would be to allow their customer to experience the process more.  Not to just receive the flowers, but to have a chance to watch the creative process. If money was no object, they would also like to hire more employees so they could provide even better customer service.  On a regular basis, the Capelli’s host student groups to learn about the design process, and they thoroughly enjoy sharing their craft.

 One thing some may find surprising is that they have done weddings from New York to California, and all the way to the Bahamas.  Their customers that know them, won’t trust their weddings to just anyone, even if it is out of state.

 Thanks guys for sharing your story with us.  It is a beautiful love story that began with just flowers, but has brought the two of you together, and continues as you share your love with your customers.

 Until next time, continue to plan, plant, and grow your business, but don’t forget to harvest!

As a small business owner, how do you get up and do the “not-so-fun” stuff that no one else is there to delegate to?  How do you put a smile on your face when the phone won’t ring, and no one is saying “yes” to you best offer?  How do you keep doing what you know you have to do? 

The other night, I was playing soccer.  We were playing this team that was so bad, that I was put in as goalie.  I touched the ball twice all second half.  It was an easy bet.  They didn’t shoot.  They didn’t pass.  They didn’t even talk much.  It was so weird, that I just kept thinking about it while I was driving home.  I decided that they beat themselves.  They had plenty of guys.  They even had guys that could dribble and pass the ball.  What they did not have, was a positive attitude. 

I think this is a lot like some…no, many small business owners.  They beat themselves before they get into the game.  It is evident in the way you dress.  It is evident in the way you talk.  It is evident in the way you respond to customers.  Get excited.  Get fired up.  Get motivated.  We’re out here to win, not just survive.  I don’t want to just survive.   I want to take Denver small business by storm.  I want to be the best at what I do, and I want everyone to know it. 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8ZuKF3dxCY]

Next time you go to a meeting, or an appointment and you are feeling discouraged, I want you to think of Nick Vujicic.  He is amazing. Please watch.  It is all about attitude!

Are you bitter?  Are you happy?  Are you thankful?  We have every opportunity in the world. 

Now go.  With everything you’ve got.

Today I’m trying something new.  Here is a video on the two essential pieces needed to start a long standing business.  Let me know what you think.  You also get to see my new lack of hair style.  Let me know your thoughts on that as well.

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PW6O0_R2GNs]

White Girl Salsa is definitely a bold name for a product.  But in order to compete with the giants on the shelf, Julie had to be bold and impart some of her own personality into her product.  The best part about the name is that it leads into the story, the story about Julie and her Hispanic friends in California.

The reality of selling a food item is that you not only have to come up with a great tasting product, but you have to come up with packaging that compliments the brand.  Julie has not only done a great job with making a great product, but also has done a fabulous job packaging it.  In fact, as I did a little research, I found another blogger in blogging land that was talking about how well she has branded her product.  You can read about that post at:  http://www.brandchampionsblog.com/my_weblog/2009/10/brand-champion-of-the-day-julie-nirvelli-white-girl-salsa.html

Before you can sell it though, you need to make and package it.  Julie had to find a certified commercial kitchen to make her salsa in, or have a co-packer make it for her.  Julie decided on the latter, in order to focus her time on the business of selling her salsa, and not as much time on the manufacturing of it.

This is a tomatillo

One of the big stumbling blocks for Julie was the cost of her product to make.  Since she has all natural produce and no fillers or preservatives, it was a challenge to keep the cost down.  Add to that the fact that tomatillos are more expensive that tomatoes, and that making smaller batches compared to the big producers, and you have even more trouble.  Julie also had to deal with buying jars for her product in smaller quantities than her competion.  It is no wonder that she was the most expensive salsa on the shelves of Whole Foods.

We all go into business to become a success, but one of Julie’s big surprises so far has been to amount of demand she has seen.    The second surprise was how much the taste of her product changed after having to package it.  To make it shelf stable, the jars are heated to 185 degrees.  But, people still loved it, so it wasn’t a big concern.

Julie has loved the process of building her business, but most enjoys the interaction with customers when they try her salsa.  When she was first testing the concept at a farmer’s market, people would have a great reaction first to the name, which is way fun, and then would just love it after they would try some.

I had noticed that Julie was trying to use some social media links on her website, and she reported that it has been a great way to get people to come out to demos at Whole Foods.  She would like to do more of it and realizes that it will help her build a strong brand.

If you go to her website, you will notice that she was featured in Paula Dean’s magazine.  It was the old, friend of a friend that knew someone, kind of thing.  She sent him some salsa, the friend followed up on it, and then they called.  They informed her to pick up a copy of the magazine and sure enough, she had made the special edition.  The exposure did not result in any direct orders, but did earn her some street cred, and bragging rights, which has turned into some sales.  Julie has had several people talk to her at markets and relay that they had read about her salsa in Paula’s magazine.

Julie is like most entrepreneurs, she has strengths in marketing, pr, and operations, while “hates” accounting, and financials.  With only selling her product for about 10 months, Julie is doing a great job of building her brand and establishing her niche in the market.  Even though she is weak with the financials, she has done a good job of keeping her costs in check, and her overhead low.  Her spokespersons on her promo videos is her 2 year old daughter, which saves a ton on endorsement fees.

Her advice for new and aspiring entrepreneurs is to use farmers’ markets.  It is a great way to test and launch a product.

Thank you Julie for your fun story.  I hope it keeps growing and makes you wildly successful.

Until next time, continue to plan, plant, and grow your business, but don’t forget to harvest!

Business #24…White Girl Salsa:  Julie Nirvelli.Golden, Colorado

720.470.7690

http://www.whitegirlsalsa.com  

Start Date:  May 1^st 2009

You know it is going to be a fun story when the company and/or the product has a fun name.  When I read a blurb about White Girl Salsa in the Denver Business Journal, I knew it was a company I wanted to hear about, and an owner that I would just love.  I was not disappointed.  Julie Nirvelli of White Girl Salsa was a blast to interview.  And I am excited to share her story. 

Julie, who now lives in Golden, was living in California.  While there, she had built a very close relationship with a Hispanic family that went beyond just “hi, how are you.”  They got close enough to cook and eat together; share lives and share recipes.  When Julie moved to Colorado a few years ago, she kept making her Mexican dishes and when she would bring a bowl of salsa to parties and friends’ houses, it would be devoured.  She could never make enough. 

The family that shared how to make their salsa however, made it quite differently.  They had made a red salsa, and Julie wanted to be different.  She experimented with a lot of recipes, but came up with one that did not use vinegar, because Julie did not like the way they tasted.  She also incorporates a more expensive fruit called a tomatillo, instead of tomatoes.  This gives her salsa a unique green color.  

Julie has been making her salsa for friends and family for about 12 years, but after she had a baby, and was wondering what to do, she was encouraged by all here friends to sell her salsa.  This idea is much harder than one would think,  Julie included.  She soon realized that in order to go from small personal batches, to large quantities, she had to hire someone to “batch up” the recipe.  After finding a chemist that could do that, she was pleasantly surprised to find out that the chemist could also create her nutritional panel as well.  For each item, she had to pay $200 for this process.

Before we go too far into the nuts and bolts of her business, I was very curious about where the name came from.  It is a great name for branding and getting interest.  I’m sure I would not have contacted Julie if she had called her salsa: Julies Green Salsa, or Tomatillo Salsa, or Colorado’s Best.  After earning the respect of her Hispanic friends for making a great salsa, it was they that started calling it White Girl Salsa.  I asked Julie if she got a lot of questions or comments on the name.  She told me that all her non-Caucasian friends love the name, and talk about how great it is.  It is only white folks that have any negative comments or questions for her.  Well, I love the name.  You go, white girl!

To read more on Julie’s white girl salsa, stay tuned, and I will conclude the story within the week. 

Until next time, continue to plan, plant, and grow your business, but don’t forget to harvest!

Founder and head White Girl

As business owners, or worse, as entrepreneurs, we are full of ideas.  I joke with my friends that I get a great new idea about every 20 seconds.  But what are they worth?  When you come up with an idea for a business, or a new way to market, or even just the idea to do something you have always done, but different.  What is that worth?  I would suggest that it is worthless.  There is no value in an idea.  Absolutely none.  If there was, I would be wealthy beyond all belief, and so would a lot of other people I know. 

To illustrate, let me tell you about some of the great ideas I’ve had.  I thought when I was little that there should be a way to use a power drill to screw in screws.  At the time, there were no such things as Dewalt cordless drill.  A few years ago, I thought it would be great if there was a way to make a strand of Christmas lights that used LED lights.  They last longer, and would be safer.  They are making them now, I just saw them at Home Depot.  When I was in about 6^th grade, I thought it would be awesome if I could bottle up water from our lake house in Wisconsin and sell it.  But who would pay for water?  That was just silly.  I am sure there have been more of them, but these are just the ones I can think of now.   

I’ve never made a dime on any of those ideas, or any other ideas that remained only ideas.  I can say that I thought people would pay a premium price for a high end painting services…and they did.  I can say that people would be willing to use an automated website to estimate, schedule, and pay for painting services, because they do.  And I can say that small business owners and entrepreneurs are willing to pay for useful, honest, and affordable education and advice.  The things that I have done, after having the idea, are the things that have value.  It is the steps that were taken and the commitment to the idea. 

I tell my clients that an idea is worth nothing, it is only the steps and actions one takes after the idea, that have value.  And sometimes, those steps are not easy.  If fact, most of the time, those steps are not easy.  The hard part of starting and running a company is not in the one or two really tough days that we have, but it is in being consistent, and taking the steps to move forward in a direction that get us anywhere at all. 

I will say that even though an idea does not have value; an idea PLUS ACTION does have worth.  Everything I have ever done has started as an idea.  But it by itself has no value.  Take a step with the idea, see where it goes.  Put a direction to your new marketing campaign; write it down and commit to it, then do it.  I meet a lot of entrepreneurs that talk a great game.  But until you apply some effort to your idea, you can just keep on talking.

Do you have an idea that has gone nowhere?

Lärabar:  Lara Merriken Continued

Denver, Colorado

720.945.1155

http://www.larabar.com 

Sorry to leave you hanging for a few days.  The interview I had with Lara was a lot of fun, and she provided a ton of information.  I usually only speak with folks for about 25 minutes or so, but Lara and I spoke for almost an hour.  Here is more from our conversation…

Larabar

Lara had a lot to figure out along the way.  As usual, when we go into business, there is a lot we have listed and realized would need to be done.  However, as we get into the “doing” of our business, we discover there is loads of more things to do and learn.  One of those things for Lara was to figure out packaging.  What would it look like?  Where to buy it from?  How to get it on the bar?  She also had to figure out where to buy the ingredients for her bars.  After trial and error, she figured out that buying nuts from different places resulted in a different taste.  Therefore, she had to find really good suppliers, and stick with them.  She found the answers to a lot of these questions while she worked at Whole Foods.  She had access to vendors and people in the know.  

When we start our companies, we always dream they will grow, prosper, and thrive.  To do that, it usually takes a big break or series of breaks and opportunities that present themselves.  For Lara, one of the big opportunities came in the form of Costco.  They had been growing at a rapid pace, selling in Whole Foods, then King Soopers/Kroger stores.  When Costco called, they required her to come up with new packaging. Lärabar had never been sold in multi-packs.  With only a few weeks to prepare, Lara pulled it off, and was able to grow the company to record sales of over $30 million. 

When Lara first came out with Lärabar, people were instantly drawn to it.  It was different.  Nothing like it had ever been offered.  When you look at the ingredients of one of the bars, it list only three ingredients, and it tasted great.  This helped Lara build her marketing around in-store demos.  She knew that getting out, talking with customers, and educating them on the product would be an easy sell.  Today, Lärabar has a whole team of people that travel around the country that do this.  If you go to the website (www.larabar.com), you will notice how they have carried through the education and interaction piece to encourage a dialogue with their customers. 

Lärabar originally started with just 5 flavors, but now have 16 flavors of the Lärabar, a dark chocolate line of 6 flavors, and a kid’s line with 5 flavors.  They have tried to stay innovative with all their products. 

Starting her company has been one of the most rewarding things Lara has done.  Because of her passion for health, fitness, and natural foods, it was a fabulous fit for her.  There comes a point however when you are building a company, that you need more help.  I asked her about how it went with hiring her first employee.  At about 6 months in, Lara started to feel very overwhelmed, but things were very exciting.  She was making deliveries, answering the phones, doing product demos, as well as about a hundred other tasks.  She had just started to think about hiring someone, when a phone call came in.  He wanted to know if she was hiring.  He was a friend of a friend, and had heard about what she was doing.  His background was as a chef, but was willing to do whatever she needed.  The timing was right, and she hired him.  He helped any way she needed in the beginning, and quickly became her right hand man.  He is now in charge of product development for the company.  If only my first hire in business would have gone so well.

From early on, Lara started to receive offers to buy her company, which she never really took seriously.  In year five however, General Mills came a calling.  Lara had never intended to sell her company, but when they pursued her, she continued the conversation.  In 2007, they met, and Lara knew from the beginning that they would be a good fit, “They just understood who we were,” Lara recalled. 

The hardest part of selling the business for Lara was the fact that she had to keep it a secret from her employees.  From the beginning she had shared most things with them.  But in order to keep the deal together, no one could know.  Once she announced it, they all celebrated with a big party.  Lara told me that she has never second guessed the sale.  They have kept the integrity of the company, and the team in tact.  Lara in fact has stayed on as the Creative Director and Founder.  It is a role she has continued to love.  Recently Lara had her first child, and the freedom she enjoys with her new position has definitely made it worth it.  Before the sale, her life had gotten a little out of balance.  She was just working all the time.  Even though she enjoyed it, she had started to lose a little bit of who she was.  Selling the company has given her not only great financial rewards and personal freedoms, but she even has an opportunity to work in other areas of General Mills, and impact the large company in some significant ways.  Ways Lara would never have dreamt a few years ago.

It is amazing when you think of how successful Lara has been, taking a concept from a weekend hike to a $30 million industry leader.  To accomplish this, Lara made a lot of wise decisions, was strategic in her planning and implementation, and built a team that believed in what they were doing.  Lara’s parting advice to young entrepreneurs is to follow your passion, but to do your homework and not get too far ahead of yourself.  Great advice from one of the most passionate people I have ever spoken to.

 Thank you Lara for sharing your story with us, you are an amazing person.

Until next time, continue to plan, plant, and grow your business, but don’t forget to harvest!

Business #23…Lärabar:  Lara Merriken

Denver, Colorado

720.945.1155

http://www.larabar.com  

Start Date:  April 2003

Every now and again you hear of an amazing story of triumph and success.  The following story in a fabulous example of the entrepreneurial dream:  have an idea, start a company, grow a company, and sell a company.  All while loving what you do, and all within 5 years.  Lärabar is the true American Dream.  All started by Lara Merriken while on a hike in the Rocky Mountains.

Lara was on a hike one day, and realized that it would be nice to have something to snack on.  The problem was there wasn’t anything she could buy that was super portable and natural.  Lara had started a lifestyle that included eating right, and being active.  She didn’t just do it to stay fit and trim, she did it because it was a way of life; a lifestyle of feeding her body, a love for exercise, and a passion for staying healthy.  Then it hit her – she should try to make something herself that was portable and healthy that she could take with her.  Off to the kitchen!

When she went home, she got out her food processor, and started to experiment with different fruits and nuts.  How did they combine?  How did it taste?  Could she get it to stay together?  Her inspiration came from cookies and pies, but wanted to keep it healthy…no sugars, no preservatives…NOTHING but good stuff.  Then she would try her creations on her friends for feedback. 

Lara thought it might be fun to learn about natural foods and the industry, so Lara got a job at Whole Foods.  She worked at Whole Foods for two and half years while she learned how to make her creation, and how the industry worked.  She was so successful in her position that she at one point almost decided to stay on and forget about her dream to create a product. 

It all started in Lara’s 500 sq. ft. duplex.  The problem with selling a food product however, is that it must be made in a commercial kitchen.  Once she figured out what to make, she had to decide on how to make it.  She could either rent a commercial kitchen, or outsource the production to another company.  Lara tried it all.  First she found a company to make them, but it was hard to get the right quality and consistency.  Then, she bought equipment to make the Lärabar herself.  Too much demand created the need to outsource once again, and finally she found a company in Boulder to produce them that was the right fit.  The challenge was so great for her because her product required specialized equipment that not every company had. 

The good news, and I wish this for all companies, Lärabar was profitable within the FIRST year!  Almost unheard of in the food industry.  Because Lara and her partners kept their overhead low, and did not get greedy with big salaries, they were able to continue their rapid growth pattern.  They actually stayed in the 500 sq. ft. duplex for 4 years, absolutely busting at the seams when they finally moved into a commercial space.

Lara also attributes their early profitability and success to investing in a great logo, branding effort, and marketing.  She knew it was imperative for a premium product to also have a premium look.

Loving the whole process, Lara, is one of the most passionate business owners I have spoken with.  She loves the  challenges, the long hours, the excitement of selling in new stores, but mostly the look on the customer’s face when they would try her bar for the first time.  It really has been a labor of love for her.  She is so passionate about it because it fits who she is.  It is all natural and healthy, something Lara has focused on most of her life.  She also comes from a family of entrepreneurs, and always thought she would own her own business, despite the fact that she went to school to be a social worker.

Lara considers her intuition and tenacity to move forward as her biggest business strength.  It has served her well as they have taken chances, as well as held back for fear of moving too fast.  Her weakness has been in delegation.  It has been hard to let go of important aspects of owning her business.  The reality is she would not have been as successful if she hadn’t learned how to do this effectively.  She had to create a training program to ensure high quality standards, and she had to learn to mentor her team.  Lara has been surprised at the whole thing.   To think, from just an idea, now millions of people enjoy her bars every year. 

I have much more to share with you about the success of Lara and Lärabar.  Stay tuned, and I will tell you how she sold her company, who bought it, and what she got paid! Well, maybe not the last part.  But there is much more to the story.

Until next time, continue to plan, plant, and grow your business, but don’t forget to harvest!