010 Mixing It Up, with Jill Donaldson, Baker and Mix Maker

In this episode, Loretta Beiler recounts her history of home-based bread and roasted coffee business, how a surprise trip to Italy inspired her to create sourdough bread classes in her home, and how these and her family’s coffee business complement each other in bringing healthy, clean products and services to the Lancaster, PA community. She also discusses how she organizes her business to ensure she can be at her best not only for her business but also for her family life.

Loretta and her husband, Sam, have always been entrepreneurial in their professional lives. They juggle a successful social media company as well as a variety of home-based products and services. The Beilers have roasted coffee, and Loretta has baked bread to sell locally long before so many of us started trying to make these and other delicacies at home. Loretta’s early motivation was to make a healthier bread for her family with wild yeast and less processed ingredients. She was frustrated by some failed attempts along the way until she perfected her craft and started making a limited number of loaves available locally each week. With huge opportunities for growth, it was important to Loretta to keep this business a reasonable size so she could continue to prioritize her family and friends. She has created what seems to be a clear mindset and healthy balance in her life.

It was then during a surprise trip to Italy four years ago that Loretta had a life-changing Airbnb cooking experience. It was an incredible way to learn about a new culture, share a meal with new friends, and take some new memories and skills home with her. In thinking about recreating that experience for others, she recalled her personal trials in perfecting sourdough, how she could have benefited from hands-on experience, and she decided to organize her own Airbnb experience around baking bread. The result has been a nice combination of complementary bread classes and sales. And while she has the potential to grow these business streams greatly, she is content in keeping her activities relatively small and local for the moment.

You can learn more about Loretta’s coffee, bread, classes at https://www.instagram.com/retbeiler/, https://www.facebook.com/loretta.beiler, and https://courses.retbakes.com/.

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates. 

In this episode, Wendy Klinke reflects on her start-up art instruction and art kit business this past year called Blue Cat Studio. Wendy’s love of art and teaching led her in a roundabout way to home-based production, as she created and sold canvas, paint, brush, and instruction kits to her students. Classes, both in-person and online, have created a growing residual business for new kits and supplies.

With a lifelong passion for painting and crafts, Wendy studied fine art and architecture in college. Her career veered in a different direction, but she has come back to painting time and again over the past 20 years. It was during the federal government shutdown, in December 2018, that she recommitted to art as a serious focus, promising herself that she would sketch or paint every day. Then, in the fall of 2019, a friend asked Wendy to teach an art class for a Junior League event. Wendy describes the event as a “hot mess” but also a great way to bring disparate people together for a fun activity. The wheels started turning to start a new art instruction business.

With infinite energy and creativity, Wendy only needed the business skills to get her new business off the ground. She started a master’s program in business, joined a Facebook group to help new art instructors market their paint parties, and launched Blue Cat Studio. With hard work and savvy advice, 

Wendy was able to create a solid business in just a few months. A crucial part of this success—and the part in which home-based production comes in—was the creation of art kits that Wendy made and sold to her customers.

Find out in this episode why Wendy decided to make these art kits in the first place and how the combination of instruction and production has been so vital to her students’ enjoyment and her early business success.

You can learn more about Blue Cat Studio, check out Wendy’s online classes, and purchase art kits at https://www.facebook.com/bluecatstudioart/, https://www.instagram.com/bluecatstudioart/, https://www.facebook.com/groups/letspaintwithbluecat/.

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates. 

In this episode, the last of the season, we discuss seven of the most important lessons from the first season of this podcast about starting and growing a home-based production business.

Despite our best efforts, it was not possible to book guests for these last few weeks of the calendar year. It shouldn’t have been surprising, as December is the busiest for home-based production businesses. But we are still learning ourselves! Instead, we are using this opportunity to close out the year and season one of the podcast. We examine themes from our 14 guest interviews to see if there are any universals for new home-based producers to consider as they start their own businesses.

Of course, the answer is “no.” Everyone is different, and all entrepreneurs must approach their businesses with their own special circumstances in mind. Nevertheless, I did find a variety of common themes across interviews and discuss the top seven briefly. We call these the seven secrets for Small-Scale Business Success.

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates. 

In this episode, Torchbearer Sauces founders Vid Lynch and Ben Smith discuss how they turned seven years of weekly parties into a thriving 15-year-old sauce business. As early innovators in the flavor-based hot sauce movement, they credit their success to decisions about reclaiming the production process and putting in the time to really get to know their products and customers.

As their seven-year run of weekly dinner parties of 15-30 guests each started to wind down, Vid, Ben, and Tim had to figure out what to do with the peppers that they had been growing in their garden. The answer, well, start a hot sauce business, of course! It was the end of the growing season, though, and they needed more habanero peppers to make their first batch of sultry sauce. So, the first decision they made was to rent a trailer for a 72-hour road trip to farmers’ markets in Texas, where they were able to find only half of the markets that they had researched (the other half were no longer in existence) but still return with 666 pounds of fresh peppers. And so it began…

Don’t let these cheerful and low-key gentlemen fool you, though. They put a lot of thought into their business before starting off on that fateful journey. Their seven years of experimenting had given them the knowledge to create their first product, and a year working with a small business association and a supportive dad helped with the establishment of the business. They even won three national awards for their first hot sauce, which was produced with the fruits of that first Texas trip (yes, habanero peppers are fruits, so pun intended!).

One of the many things that is so interesting about the Torchbearer Sauces story is that they started their business working with a co-packer. However, after that partner sold the business, and follow-up with the new management was a bust, the founders decided to start making the sauces themselves! They credit this decision as transformational in the growth of their business. It gave a chance to build efficiencies into the production process and experiment with smaller batches, thereby helping to grow offerings much faster over time. 
 

Now, 15 years after their first product launch and working out of restaurant and fire hall kitchens, Vid, Ben, and their team are going strong with their own production facility in Lemoyne, Pennsylvania (sorry, I mistakenly referenced Mechanicsburg, PA in the episode, which is just down the road from Lemoyne), market penetration into local and regional stores, as well as a strong online presence with food and other merchandise, and longstanding relationship with companies such as Heatonist and Hot Ones to bring national visibility and acclaim. And, they still seem to be enjoying every minute of it!

You can find out more about Torchbearer Sauces and their incredible product lineup at https://www.torchbearersauces.com).

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates. 

This episode is the last of three episodes that attempts to answer the question, “How can I get over the initial hump of starting a home-based production business?” It describes branding, product development, and the creation of an Ecommerce website, as well as reveal the first of three home-based products that podcast host, Cory Heyman, has just finalized.

As fun as it may be to complete paperwork and prepare your workspace, the best part of a new home-based production business is the actual creation of new products. Creativity flows with experimenting and tinkering, leading to immense pride when coming up with an incredible new product that you cannot wait to share with others. This episode is the story of that process.

Podcast host, Cory Heyman, describes the conceptualization of his new home production business, decisions he has made about naming the company and its product lines, as well as his approach to research and development in creating new products. He reveals the address of his new Ecommerce website (www.triplesshops.com), the actual first three products, and plans for new products in the next few months! This includes turning his free online creativity game, Bright Idea! (www.brightidea-game.com) into a card game. 

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates.

This episode is a further deep dive into one of the most frequent questions we hear about home-based production, “How can I get over the initial hump of starting a home-based production business?” The second of three episodes, this segment discusses the nuts and bolts of the start-up process. It includes preparing the space as well as sourcing equipment, supplies, and ingredients. 

There are two ways to start a new venture. One is to jump right in—building the proverbial plane while flying it. The other is to plan and organize. This episode argues that organizing and planning ahead is a much better way to go. It gives you the headspace to experiment and improve the quality and efficiency of production.

This is the principle that podcast host, Cory Heyman, has used to prepare his own home for his new production business. He describes how he organized his limited space and the special issues he considered while preparing to make food and personal care products, especially decisions about separating personal and business items, food and chemicals, and food with allergens from food without allergens. Cory also discusses how he has sourced new items and the challenges of buying the right amount of supplies and ingredients to get good pricing but not have too much product on hand.

Next week’s discussion, the last of the mini-series, will focus on research and development, branding, ecommerce, and the big reveal about the launch of Cory’s first products! 

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates.

This episode is a deep dive into one of the most frequent questions we hear about home-based production, “How can I get over the initial hump of starting a home-based production business?” We answer this question with personal reflections in starting up our own business earlier this year, focusing this discussion (the first of three episodes) on government permissions and requirements.

The first step is often the most precarious in any new venture. Some people feel so intimidated by it that they never put that first foot forward at all. Others move so quickly that they miss crucial pieces and put their businesses at risk in the long run. There is, however, a third approach, which includes reasonable research and action. This doesn’t have to be all-encompassing, but it does have to be thorough enough to protect yourself and your future customers.

Podcast host, Cory Heyman, discusses his experience in starting his home-based production experience earlier this year. He started by asking two questions, “What’s the best way to organize the business?” and “What do I want to produce, at least initially?” The answers to these questions then framed all his other start-up activities.

Cory created his business as a Limited Liability Company and a Pennsylvania Benefits Corporation, the latter of which emphasizes the desire to create a public good in addition to a private good. Given that he is preparing to produce food and personal care products, he also registered his home as a “Limited Food Establishment,” the state designation for an entity that is allowed to produce some kinds of foods from a home.

This episode details Cory’s exploration of rules and requirements at different levels of government to create his home business as well as the challenging new path that he had to negotiate in his community and township to gain necessary approvals. He discusses what he learned about the kinds of foods that can be produced from home as well as how to label his products to make sure there is no more governmental scrutiny than necessary. He also describes his recent home visit from a food inspector and how the inspection process has changed during the time of Coronavirus.

Next week’s discussion will then be able the other organizing steps he has taken to prepare his home for upcoming production.

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates. 

In this episode, Tony Morrell discusses one of his obsessions, home beer brewing, how his process has changed over the past eight to nine years to assure regular brewing awards, and how he is thinking about turning his past time into a commercial venture.

Tony Morrell received his first home-brewing beer kit eight to nine years ago. Excited to try it out, the results were pretty terrible. It could take a few weeks to taste one of his concoctions, and the results were often close to what brewers call “drain pour”—so bad that you have to throw it out. The learning curve was steep, and the ingredients that came in the initial kit were not the best quality. Tony was so discouraged that he stopped brewing for about a year. However, as Tony and his friends continued to test local options, he knew that he could do better. He also enjoyed drinking seasonal beers but have a wider window when these would be available. So, he studied up, bought new ingredients locally, and tried again.

One game-changer over time was access to a new yeast, from Norway, that speeded up the fermentation process. Tony no longer had to wait six weeks to test the results of his experimentation. Instead, he could try many of his beers after only four to five days, cutting the wait time by 50 to 70 percent. This miracle yeast also brought rich new flavors, called esters, that created exciting new flavor profiles. The new yeast and other procedural changes helped Tony create beers that have consistently won awards in local competitions. He is definitely on to something.

Tony enjoys brewing so much that he is contemplating opening one or more breweries. His latest two Brewers Choice awards will give him the opportunity to test his interest at scale, as he will have a chance to brew his Guava Strawberry Sour Ale in large quantities at the Pour Man’s Brewing Company. Tony will be able to use this experience and ongoing conversations with other brewers to see if he will enjoy turning his hobby into a career. He is already thinking about locations, combining a new brewery with another passion, outdoor living, as well as branding.

Tony discusses these issues as well as other thoughts about how he would set a new business up for success—some of which might seem in contrast to the advice of previous guests. Why, for example, might Tony think about starting larger brewery initially instead of a micro-brewery at a smaller scale?

You can find out more about Tony’s award-winning beers on his Instagram feed, at (https://www.instagram.com/tmorrell1/).

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates.

In this episode, Armando Lacayo explains how he transitioned from financial management to baking and the role of home-based production in opening what Bon Appetit magazine anointed the best new bakery in the country in 2016.

Three decades ago, Armando Lacayo moved to the U.S. from France to study math at American University. After starting on Wall Street and then earning an MBA, he worked for years in finance in Silicon Valley. In his spare time, Armando also dabbled in the kitchen. He had developed a love of good bread from his grandfather, who in turn had worked in his own father’s bakery (Armando’s great grandfather). Baking was a way to connect with home and his childhood traditions.

As a self-described picky Frenchman with a sweet tooth, Armando worked to perfect some of his favorite French baked goods. At the top of the list was croissants. He was fascinated that a treat that started with loose ingredients could come together with such a firm and tasty structure.

Armando started baking his croissants with guidance from a book but then honed his recipe for more than 20 years to come up with the perfect product. Approximately 10-12 years ago, two friends who did not know each other bought him the same book, How to Open a Financially Successful Bakery, within a short period. Perhaps it was a sign that he should start a new bakery. However, the book presented success somewhat deceptively as a fait acocompli. Anyone could do it by following the prescriptions in the book. Armando knew that it would not be so easy. Plus, in contrast to the book’s emphasis on broad, formulaic systems that would supposedly lead to success, Armando knew that the real secret was creating an outstanding product, made with love, and at a reasonable price. 

This episode tracks Armando’s journey from corporate finance to small business ownership. He describes important intermediary steps, such as opening a small bakery space within a café and participating in a bread baking program; and the actual bakery opening itself, in which he had to conscript his young nephew, who was on spring break, to work with him at 3:00am and then sit with coffee and croissants at 7:00am to show passersby that the bakery was open for business. Armando also describes his business philosophy, rooted in an “OSD” (objective, systematic, and disciplined) approach, which translated well from corporate finance to small business entrepreneurship. Last, he discusses the importance of customer-oriented staff as an essential key to success.

Armando shares his story as well as recommendations for home-based producers who are at an earlier stage in their journeys.

You can find out more about Armando’s bakery, Arsicault Bakery, at https://arsicault-bakery.com as well as on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/arsicaultbakery)and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/arsicault_bakery/).

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates. 

In this episode, food entrepreneurs Bev Martin and Nancy Martin, talk about their ghee production business, including expanding into a commercial facility and marketing a lesser known product.

Bev Martin and Nancy Rohrer had worked together for years in marketing when they discovered ghee, what they describe as “a better butter.” Ghee appealed to each of them for different reasons, but they both became increasingly excited about sharing this remarkable product with the world. The marketing world had been changing, and they had been interested in collaborating on a product that was that was more tangible. Ghee was it.

Nancy and Bev experimented with flavored ghee recipes in their home kitchens but knew right away that they would need to produce the ghee in a commercial kitchen. It wasn’t easy to find a kitchen at the start, though, and at a rate they could afford. However, they persevered, taught themselves how to run the business, and now, seven years later, the Ghee Gals have a thriving business. They sell locally, distribute widely, and have a strong online following.

In this episode, Nancy and Bev talk about the evolution of their business, their experiences working in various commercial kitchens—including the challenge of producing during the age of Coronavirus—working with employees, and marketing a lesser known product.

In a bonus segment, the Ghee Gals also discuss one of their biggest mistakes and share advice so other small-scale producers can avoid similarly tempting but risky situations.

You can find out more about Nancy and Bev’s company, Simply Ghee, at https://simplyghee.com as well as on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/abetterbutter) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/simplygheellc/).

For more information about the movement behind the podcast, visit our Facebook Group, at https://www.facebook.com/groups/350301745982098; follow us on Instagram, https://www.instagram.com/cotcup/, check out examples of our guests’ creations on Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/cotcup/boards/, and subscribe to our email list (https://cotcup.com/lp) and receive our living document, the Eightfold Path Plus One Guide to Success for Home-based Producers, and future updates.