Ep #180 Going For 10X with Jessica of Fireworks Butters

In the four years Jessica, founder of Fireworks Butters,  and I have worked together we have never recorded a podcast together...that changes today!  Hear her 8-year journey of starting her business and keeping it going with a busy household of three kids and husband and then COVID. 

Each year she has made significant growth, but "it isn't for the faint of heart", as she likes to say.  After Master Your Business and clarifying her 10X goal in 2023 she is now in 17 states wholesaling her butter. The Faire platform is something that opened up for her last fall and she and Ryan of Pup & The Pepper are teaching Fuel VIP members on February 15th how to use the platform best and avoid the pitfalls that can happen to anyone. 

The membership community Fuel is open now for you to get the support, expertise, accountability and connection! It closes on June 1st for the summer and there is a special offer to save $10 on your first month. Join here today!

Food Business Success is my signature program that helps you launch your delicious idea and grow it to $100K. Everything is inside from the step-by-step videos, tools and five months inside the Fuel membership for coaching + community. And it's guaranteed to make you program fee back or I'll refund your money. Learn more at https://www.foodbizsuccess.com/program

Get on the waitlist for Master Your Business here

Get the 10X Goal Workshop at https://www.foodbizsuccess.com/10x

The book is #1 on Amazon as a New Release! Pick up your copy of "Key Ingredients" on Amazon here.

Want a step by step checklist? Click here to get the free Whip a Biz You Love Workshop with a checklist.

Check out my YouTube channel at www.foodbiz.tube for how to videos to start and grow a packaged food business.

Transcript

Sari  
Welcome to your Food Business Success. This podcast is for early stage entrepreneurs in the packaged food industry ready to finally turn that delicious idea into reality. I'm your host Sari Kimbell. I have guided hundreds of food brand founders to success as an industry expert and business coach. And it's got to be fun. In this podcast, I share with you mindset tools to become a true entrepreneur and run your business like a boss, interviews with industry experts to help you understand the business you are actually in, and food founder journey so you can learn what worked and didn't work, and not feel so alone in your own journey. Now, let's jump in! Oh, my gosh, I'm so excited today. I cannot believe it has taken this long to bring Jessica with Fireworks Butters onto the podcast. Welcome, Jessica.

Jessica  
Thank you, Sari. I'm happy to be here.

Sari  
Oh my gosh. So happy for you to be here. I'll do a little intro, but we're just going to talk. We're going to have some open dialogue conversation. And just, I was thinking about it this morning, as I was getting ready and thinking about getting to talk to you as you're one of my early OGs back to 2019.

Jessica  
Yeah.  I know. I've been here a long time.

Sari  
I remember meeting you at an event and then cultivating relationship and starting to work together one on one, and you've been in all the things and then all those stuff. We'll get into all of that. But it's a relationship that we've become friends and colleagues in coaching.

Jessica  
Yeah, it's been wonderful. And yeah, just to be along with you on the journey. And you know, sharing our experiences has been really fun and great. So I appreciate it, too.

Sari  
So Jessica, I'll read a little work and change up your intro here. But you started Fireworks Chef Butters in the fall of 2016. The goal is to help busy time starved home chefs create easy flavor packed meals. You are a lifelong foodie and was inspired by the family recipe for steak butter. And then you have started that, you started at farmer's markets originally. Let's see, the line has grown from original 4 recipes to 11 flavors now. And you are partnering with a really great organization called Boulder Bridge House, that's a nonprofit that helps make your butters, I'm sure we can talk a little bit more about that. But they basically provide housing and job training to those experiencing homelessness and joblessness. So it's cool that you have a partnership, that the butters giving back to your community. So we're going to just get into it and talk about your journey to start with. So you just kind of take us, we'll go in the wayback machine, 2016.

Jessica  
I really wanted a job, really is what it comes down to. I wanted something that was going to offer flexibility, creativity, and fulfillment. And we have this family recipe and my husband and I like let's just try it because it's generation's old. And the aunts and uncles have always said somebody needs to do something with this recipe. And since I love to tinker around, I just kind of created some other recipes to go along with it. So I could have like a line for these compound butters to launch with. And I'm actually going to do a quick correction. I really did launch at Lucky South Boulder. So it wasn't farmers markets first, because the Commissary Kitchen that I was using was in that same parking lot. So I just brought it to the meat buyer and the grocery buyer. And it's like, do you guys want to take this? Like, what do you think? They're like, sure, we have no idea where we're going to put it. But let's give it a shot and when can you start demoing? I'm like, tomorrow. Those are the days you just hold on there with your table and your samples. And you just go for it. And so, I did and at the time, you know, Lucky's Market was in a bunch of different states. We had five or six locations here around Denver, and so I kind of just made the circuit and now that took, you know, from 2017 to 2019 to get into those different doors and other shops, Alfalfa is another. But I was doing some farmers markets and I did funnily enough, I didn't really do the full time Farmers Market booth until after COVID. Because of my family, like it's just so difficult to manage that all so anyways, yeah, that's how the journey started was at South Boulder Lucky's, and no longer exists. But we are still in North Boulder Lucky's and in Fort Collins. Yeah. So that's kind of the history and how it started. And of course, giving away to friends. You know, and, but it is a high end premium product. And let's be honest, kind of starting a new category. Like it's not a well known part of the grocery store where people are like, oh, yeah, fancy butter, where I pick that out? What do I do with this? Like, I don't know, do I want this? Do I need this? Tell me. And of course, when everybody tries it, they're like, oh, yeah, I need this. This is amazing. This is so good. How did I not know that this existed before? 

Sari  
So what gave you the courage in your 40s, very early 40s, when you started, but to do this, and juggling a family, we have three kids? 

Jessica  
You know, you get to those phases in life where you're like, I feel complete in one aspect of my life. But there is another aspect where I know, my full potential is not reached. And I'm not going to feel like fully my own person unless I go after this, unless I start something and I did interview, I was looking in marketing jobs, I was trying to be creative in graphic design, and I just wasn't feeling that fulfillment. So after my daughter was born, and maybe it was having a daughter that I wanted to, you know, really go after this to prove that you can be a mom and have what you want, it's not always going to be pretty, and it's not going to be overnight. It takes a long time. But it can be done. And I just felt like it was important that my sons could see this too. Like, this is a side of mom that is important to her, and she needs to follow her dreams. So that was kind of, you know, that feeling of angst, like I'm not quite complete yet. Like I have more to offer the world. And if this means I'm going to go into a food business, let's test it, and see how that makes me feel. That's how I came about it.

Sari  
How do you think that's affected maybe the time that it's taken, or, you know, the trajectory that it's taken? I mean, it sounds like you were hesitant to work farmers markets at the beginning because of like, because of your family. Right? And that just wasn't going to work. So you think back on, I mean, that's a four year journey, basically. Or eight year journey. Sorry. 

Jessica  
Yeah, this is my 8th year. Like I said, it's not going to be quick. And you have to be patient, obviously. And you have to tell yourself, stay in your lane. Like, back when I started, there was money everywhere. And everybody was talking about hockey stick growth. And I would fall into these pits of despair, like, oh, my God, I can't compare to them. I have no business experience. I don't know anything about the food and beverage industry. I'm an artist, who am I? You know? So yeah, I would say like, it takes time. And it is not for the faint of heart. But if you have that drive, and that motivation to prove to yourself or maybe it's to prove to your kids or your husband or whatever your spouse that this is important to you. It's important to do it. If you have the time I coming at this knowing full well. I'm very privileged, I have this ability to do this. And not everybody does. So I want to make sure that that's clear. 

Sari  
Yeah, absolutely. And you have you know, your husband supports you and your family. It's almost a little bit of a family business, right? 

Jessica  
Yeah. Not that the kids want to necessarily be involved in it all the time, but sometimes fold in. Yeah, my son is actually begging me to do farmers markets again this year because he says he's broke and he wants the steady income like okay, be careful what you ask for.

Sari  
You just kept putting one foot in front of the other, you figured it out. You launched in 2016. You know, you figured out the licensing, you got the commercial kitchen. You were bold enough to just walk over to Lucky's and say, hey, you kept hustling, you didn't give up. And so you got into those accounts. And you were bold enough to apply for a specialty food award as well. So tell us a little bit about that experience. 

Jessica  
I am fortunate in that I've had some great friends that have been, you know, paving the way in business. So I've seen them apply for awards, I've seen them do really well and have success. And I thought, well, if I'm going to be a food company, isn't it really worth something to see that it's award winning? Like, doesn't that make a difference if you're purchasing something, or if there's a really crowded category? Like it's meaningful, right? So I found the Specialty Food Association, literally just by Googling National Food awards. How can I get this product in front of a panel and see, you know, what happens? And I was really lucky, the first year that I applied, one of my flavors won. But I understand why, at that moment in time, Specialty Food Association was looking for products with botanicals in it. This was back in 2019. And I have honey lavender sea salt, so they were all over the honey lavender flavor.

Sari  
Which is my favorite.

Jessica  
It's a top seller. Yeah. It receives a lot of attention. So yeah, I think it was because I, you know, just thought about like, what would be impactful and meaningful for somebody who's bootstrapping. I mean, I'm not personally wealthy, we don't have family money. You know, my husband and I are doing this ourselves. And so if you don't have money to pay for PR, or, you know, huge agency, applying for those things can often help. Now, you also still have to weed out the noise because there's a lot once you get those accolades. Oh, you know, it can be like, too much.

Sari  
And so then you decided to go to a Fancy Food Show in 2020 which I was there as well. And so funny the things took a while the thing back, right, because I was January of 2020. And we're all in San Francisco. But you like didn't have a fancy booth or anything like that?

Jessica  
No. And again, it was because I went to Expo West in spring of 2016. My friend Willow had a small booth at Expo West, which I can't even imagine how much those those small booths, even back then how much they are. She was sitting there manning it herself. And like having a time of her life, you know, people come and her product is like super specialty niche, or it was at the time. And so it was like, gosh, if Willow can do it. Oh, yeah. To try it out. I'm going to do it. I slept on my cousin's couch in his basement.

Sari  
Yes, and you worked it by yourself.

Jessica  
I did. I brought the trophy and my carry on suitcase. And I had samples. What was I doing like butter that melts? Like I carried with me. I know. That's yeah, funny memories. Yeah. And then COVID happened.

Sari  
And you had some, you know, some interesting leads, and you were in that sale and then COVID happened and everything just like ground.

Jessica  
Totally halted everything. And, you know, I had to homeschool three kids, and we had relatives living with us. I mean, it was kind of an insane experience. 

Sari  
In all of the grocery I mean, all of that, everything. 

Jessica  
Well, my Commissary Kitchen went away. It was used as a COVID site like where they were putting beds. I mean, I don't know that they actually had patients there. But yeah, that Commissary Kitchen was shut down and unavailable. So and I mean, I could have spent the money and moved into a different one in Denver, but I wasn't willing to do the drive and put that stress on my family during a already really stressful time. So I just halted everything and just waited it out. Yeah, that's going to happen. And luckily, good things did happen. 

Sari  
Yeah, tell us about what happened as you waited you know, sometimes have to be like, all right. 

Jessica  
I'm going to sit here and just watch from the sidelines. Around October, November of 2020. My friend came to me he's like, okay, it's time, you need to rebrand and he has an ad agency here in Boulder. Like, okay, what are you thinking? It's like, well, what do you want help with? What do we want to do? And I'm like, well, I kind of want to repackage. Sari, my friend gave me this great idea to change from a jar to a little puck. He's like, okay, we got this. And we did a whole, he calls it a brand hack. We sat in with probably, I don't know, 5, 6, 7 people, and really looked to deep dive into my brand and the values and the pillars. And it was a really fun exercise. But it took a couple weeks. And I got, I don't know, probably four or five different iterations of what the brand could look like, and where it could go. And I chose my favorite. And what it amounted to in the end was four packs and labels, because we didn't really have a budget. And we're bootstrapping, as I mentioned. So we're definitely confined by finances. But he gave me sort of the roadmap to where we could head with a new website. And you know, at the time, I was also switching from Squarespace to Shopify. 

Sari  
Yeah, I helped you with your website and package design.

Jessica  
Right. So from that whole exercise, we did get some new materials that we could move forward with in the market. And then lo and behold, Bridgehouse comes to me and I had been sort of on this waiting list, because I knew another Boulder entrepreneur had been using them, helped to make her brownies. Our kids were on the same swim team. So we would see each other, you know, around athletic events, and we, you know, keep in touch and so she put in a good word for me. And over the years, they had been making salsa, you know, fresh guacamole, things like that for Lucky's market and Alfalfa and other local markets. So because of COVID, everything shut down, and they had room for me or time for me, I should say, and I wasn't quite ready because this was like December of 2020, I wasn't really selling, I had no place to put it. And so I was like, well, let's just be in touch, I would really like to start selling again next year, you know, you let me know when it works best. And so about March 2021, we started talking, and I was applying for farmers markets. And so we started that partnership Spring of 2021 and never looked back. It's been wonderful. And not only because it takes that load off of me having to make all of the product but it really feels like you know, a good fit, because I love helping. It's giving back to the community. I get to know these people, you know, in not just the Executive Chef, but I do get to meet the trainees and you know, joke around and have rapport and I think it's not only beneficial for where they are in their journey, but me too as an entrepreneur, you know, you can actually see the results of you know, this laborer and giving them the confidence to move forward in their life and career.

Sari  
One thing I noticed about you over the years is like you do have some reserve intention and worry about making investments but then I think you do a good job of like coming back to your heart and saying, alright, what's right for me and right for my business where I'm at and then you still find a way, right? You go and find the money to make those leaps even if it was like when we started doing your packaging to do Fancy Food. I mean, you still had to pay for that booth. And you know, Danny and I talked about making investments in your business, the last podcast and yes, you are bootstrapping but you do make investments along the way in your business and I would also say you are resourceful and that you are full of resources. And that you are scrappy, and you are willing to be a little bold and do some crazy things that people might not consider doing. You're willing to be uncomfortable and do it anyway. And you made an investment in a who, that you needed in order to grow your business even maybe before you were quite ready for it, like it was still scary, but you did it anyway. Because ultimately you could not scale your business and start doing wholesale unless you got some of your time back from the production. 

Jessica  
No, you can't. I mean, and it's still a juggle and a stress, because I always want more time to do sales and marketing. And it doesn't always go the way you want it to. But at the same time, we are sort of constrained with how much product and inventory we can have, because it is still all made by hand. It's still very much, you know, made as if it was made by my hands. And so because of that, yeah, we can't go after huge accounts, because I don't have a six month supply.

Sari  
And that's the next level we're working on.

Jessica  
It keeps me grounded. Yeah, it does for sure. But yeah, I always have my eye on how it would go for the next level. 

Sari  
You also made investments in some who's. I mean, certainly me and my programs, but also going to shows and you hire, you had an assistant for a while. It was helping you with marketing and some packaging and things. So it's scary, and oh, like it's going to work out. But you do make investments. And I think if you look back over those eight years, you can see I mean, huge jumps along. 

Jessica  
Yeah. Well, thank you. I mean, it is scary and nerve wracking. And you're right, it's just one foot in front of the next and keep that focus, tunnel vision I mean. Like I said, I'm an artist, so bright, shiny objects. That looks fun. Really have to keep my head and, you know, in the game and be mindful of what is the most important thing to move it forward.

Sari  
And then you did farmers markets again, so let's see, it wasn't 21. But 22 is when you did a ton of markets, right?

Jessica  
Yes. And that's when I had stop them. And we hired two girls who were best friends from high school. One of them was my intern, who's the assistant that you're talking about. She's going to Metro State and getting her marketing degree. So it was kind of a perfect fit. She could help me with social media and marketing and stuff and also do sales at the farmers markets. It was awesome. But as many founders know, who have to staff, the markets never are as profitable when you're staffing with somebody else besides you, the founder. But it was a great learning experience for me to be the boss, you know, make the model so they could actually earn commissions, we weren't upside down. Because that can easily happen to if you're helping with mileage and their hourly. Yeah, I think I didn't do markets and 2023 because it was a lot of stress. And we kind of just broke even so it was sort of like, do I want all that stress with the family? And you know, I wanted to get off.

Sari  
But it did help you. How did that how did the markets help you grow the wholesale piece?

Jessica  
It really did immensely. I think I got probably four or five wholesale accounts. One of which is one of my best accounts still to this day. Yeah, nothing compares with the sort of influence that you can gain from being there weekly, and seeing those customers and then because you never know word of mouth is so helpful in this kind of business, too. So yeah, I had people coming up to me saying you need to be in Sam's Meets in Aurora, you need to be in such and such in Lakewood. That's yeah, it works.

It's a great way to go into new markets to go into the like, if you want to get into wholesale to go also go into farmer's markets in those areas, and you branched out of your bubble. 

Yes, that was a big deal at the time. I was like, oh my god, I have to drive all the way to Denver, twice a week on the weekends. But that was the best thing I could have ever done for growing and recognition and, you know, awareness. You know, Boulder is kind of a bubble. You know, it's great, but there's a whole big world outside of it. 

Sari  
So in Master Your Business, a lot of what we do good part of it is creating that 10x goal that really becomes the the North Star and the vision. Do you mind sharing kind of your 10x goal and where we're going?

Jessica  
I have a couple. Yeah, I'm joined with a couple but last years was to get into 200 stores and you know it, my wholesale business is now 80% of my business. Okay, so I don't think I made it 200 doors, but I'm now in 17 states, and a majority of that came at the end of last year when I started on the Faire wholesale platform. And every month since October, has been steady increase in the number of orders and order size. Yes, starting on that, I think with that 10x goal of increasing the amount of doors really did help me get to, you know, this point. And I'm going to continue with that growth this year. You know, you can't, it's tricky, because I don't have a product that I'm willing to sit there and sell religiously through ad spend on platforms online. The shipping costs are, you know, exorbitant. 

Sari  
And you have a frozen product. 

Jessica  
Yeah, I have a frozen product that needs to get there in two days. So, but I do want to still have a presence and still have that channel open. But yeah, this is another thing, like stay away from the bright shiny objects, wholesale's working, like wholesale's working, right? You keep on that.

Sari  
I want to bring up your 1ox goal and you know, as a coach, I would say just extend that, right? That's the vision, right? You don't I always talked about like, it's not a one year thing. We don't say get 10x in one year, that's a lot. But you just extend that, okay, that's, you know, that's a two year vision or a three year vision, in what you just said is that it helps to keep you focused and say what, right. And to make bigger, bolder moves to pull bigger levers, who are my who's, and really stay in your lane, which can be really challenging. I mean, it's all entrepreneurs are like, oh, I got a new strategy over here and shiny squirrel over there. So I love that goal for you because ultimately, and we'll talk about Faire here in just a second too. But ultimately, for you to be in 200 stores, then we need to be measuring it for one. But we also need to be thinking about, oh, if I'm going to be in 200 stores, Bridgehouses awesome. And how can I keep that partnership? But I also need to be thinking about how do I supply 200 stores? How do I create great partnerships and keep the customers coming? And the awareness? Because you do have an education issue too. Right? Where a lot of people are like, what do I need that? 

Jessica  
And also to go with this, like, you also have to learn that all of those new customers on Faire are not necessarily going to be the best new customers. They're still trying, you know, there's still a trial phase. And to get to the ones that are going to be on constant monthly reorder, takes time, you got it like what? Maybe one in many orders of I don't even know how many have had maybe 1 in 20 are like that, like ready to reorder and ready to write the five star review. And, you know, while yeah, I can say I'm now in 17 states, but how many of those are really the customers that I want to be with? That really helped me move this to the next level by reordering?

Sari  
I mean, I appreciate you being honest about that. Because there is that I think people love to say like I'm in seven new stores, or I'm in this many doors or, but like the reality and I talked to all of you the reality of what's going on behind the doors is hard, right? And it's very common for brands at your stage and beyond to still be not be making money overall in their business. You're making a lot of investments, you're making investments in acquiring new customers, through Faire and other sources, right? You're going into distribution, maybe sooner than you should because you know the margins aren't quite there. But you are, you know, I look back from where you were a year ago, and you've made credible, you have good momentum. There's progress there.

Jessica  
Thank you. Yeah, there is progress there. And it feels good. But again, we have to always be checking the numbers to make sure that this is really the right fit, because I still don't really know if Faire is the right fit,

Sari  
Right. It's an experiment and we're kind of, I love that yeah, we got to put on our science coat and be like, this is an experiment and I'm testing it for a certain amount of time. And we did that in Master Your Business with cash flow and I love that you told me like I did my cash flow and I'm looking ahead and seeing what's coming in because we also have to constantly be grounding ourselves. And if we only look at what just happened, you had a lot of money go out. But then looking ahead and saying, oh, there is money coming in. Reminding ourselves so we don't fall into pits of despair. 


Jessica  
Truly, because all of it, labels, boxes, installation, ice packs. I mean, it is never ending. The supplies that you have to keep on steady order for shipping frozen, you know. 

Sari  
And all the time that you're investing, whether it's you or your parents or your kids or, I mean everybody to work. 

Jessica  
Definitely put to work last week.

Sari  
You got to like, hold on to it so tightly and be like, yes, this is possible, I believe in it, reinforcing your belief, and then acting as if, right? And so you continue even though you haven't pulled the trigger on the co packer, you are having the conversations, you are, you know, working through the obstacles so that you are ready. Because if we don't have a big 10x goal, then we kind of just floundering a little bit.

Jessica  
Well, and it's also the proof that you need to gain your own confidence in yourself and a belief that you can do it and to prove to others that you are worthy of their belief, you know, like, I'm not just going to quit, like, course, I'm doing this. Like this is what's on the, Faire is telling me I got to ship all these orders, I'm not going to not take that.

Sari  
I really believe you will succeed. Success is possible for everyone as long as you don't quit. And a lot of people just quit so early.

Jessica  
I agree too. And I think it's really important too, you know, like we were saying with the 10x goal, like it doesn't have to be this year, it might not even be next year, but just keep at it.

Sari  
Not just for eight years. You haven't quit.

Jessica  
Eight years. Yeah. Which is huge. 

Sari  
There's a lot of people I would say more, you know, I mean, it's that would probably fit with like statistics, probably 80% of people would have quit by now. Yeah.

Jessica  
Yeah. It's not easy. It is not. Especially with three active children, and a very busy husband too like, yeah, we have a full time. 

Sari  
Yep. And so it's taken a little bit longer, but, you know, smash the clock. It's like, who cares? Yeah, you're in it. You're having fun. And we have an incredible group. So people who go through Master Your Business have an option to then join a Mastermind. So I'm curious, can you speak about like, how helpful that Mastermind and that group support has been, the community? 

Jessica  
It is immensely helpful. Because it's, not only is it accountability. If they can do it, I can do it. Like, I may not get to my cash flow when I want to this week, but I'm definitely going to get it done. Because I have to, and it's what I said I was going to do. I think the friendships that come from it are really valuable. I love that we have the group text, I can't always answer right away. But if it's just to add words of encouragement, or you know, I believe in you, you got this. You can't really measure that. There's no metric. Because you're so alone in this. Your own journey. You don't have anybody that you're bouncing ideas off of. So to have somebody or a group that's there and ready to be like, sure. What do you need help with? What can I do? I've got this spreadsheet. I know this person. Invaluable.

Sari  
Yeah, I love our group and you're going to be our expert. We're learning which will be great for you to show us around Faire, Ryan with Pup and The Pepper and you are going to teach us about Faire and what you've learned and how to use it, which is so awesome. I love being able to bring you guys in. But I'm curious. What have you gotten out of what are some of the big things you've gotten out of the membership, the Fuel, the Master Your Business, 10x, how's that helped you along the way?

Jessica  
I love that. I've now gone to Fancy Food with you twice, both three times with you but twice with the group and I love meeting the personalities there, hearing about their journeys and their products. The support is invaluable. Again, like I used to work in the corporate world and we would travel as a team and so having people there with you, experiencing the same thing, seeing the same new products, listening to the same speakers, you know, that's great. And the Mastermind group and the Master Your Business is just the same, like it just feels like they're your team and they got your back. I would 100% recommend it. Because like I said, I came from a corporate team before, I miss the camaraderie. And still, it's hard even with this team to like, shut down for the day. I work out of my home office, I don't stick to a routine. Every day is different, because I got to do deliveries, I got to, you know, do all of it. But just yeah, well, and I just know that there are others in in it with me.

Sari  
Coming in when you can and asking your questions so that you can get unstuck. It's there to help you solve your problems. 

Jessica  
The Fuel community is great, like, any chances that I can be on those calls, I tried to make it because I feel like I always gain something, a tip or a trick or, you know, some other who that I didn't know about. So. Yeah. And I think that the guests that you have and the people that connections that I've met just through you are invaluable. You know, they may not work for my business right now but maybe in the future, you know, and, and gosh, are they fun. Like, you know, Jane Hamill with email marketing and my bookkeeper, oh my gosh, Kelly. Amazing.

People have been inside the program, because I try to only hang out people like. 

Like yesterday, it was like near tears with her. She didn't really talk to me yet. But honestly, like, I didn't have an accountant before 2021. And I've only been working with Kelly since early last year. And man what a difference it is to have her and her expertise, helping with the books, because I'm not a bookkeeper.

Sari  
We talk a lot about that in Master Your Business about you got to do, you have to learn it first and understand it, but then it's okay to turn things over to other who's that that's their lane. And then that frees you up to go do all the Faire stuff, and to do the hitting the streets, and the marketing, and the things that you're better at. And so it's tough at the beginning, but you know, I'm making a guarantee. We're going to be talking about our offers, the 1 million offers book in our Mastermind coming up. But the guarantee that I'm offering in Master Your Business, is give me three months, give me 30 hours, and I will help you 10x that and get 300 hours back in your year. And it's a bold promise. But I know it's possible because I've seen it happen over and over again when people actually apply these tools and become the CEO, become the identity of running a business like a boss and not just a maker. And you've done it where you are finding who's and making investments and working with people who help you grow your business like Jane, like Rob, like myself. Free you up to go be in your zone of genius and what you're really good at, and go grow the business and use the momentum that you have. So you are coming in February, so it's not too late for people to join Fuel VIP, you and Ryan are going to talk about Faire and for a long time Faire didn't allow refrigerated or frozen products, but you kept on them. And as soon as they did, you took advantage of it. And you've had some pretty great success. 

Jessica  
Haven't done the exact model that it needs to be to really look at it. But I think it is working.

Sari  
You know, it doesn't work for everyone. But I think it's good for people to know that this is an option and that your product might be a really good fit and how to use it to you know, to get the most out of it and how to save a little money on some of the fees. And you know how to take advantage of the sales and things like that. So I'm seeing a lot of clients and members starting to use it with good success. And I'm excited for you guys to share your experience and show us the backend a little bit.

Jessica  
Yeah, I think it's also really important for people to understand if they're thinking about doing it, and you haven't really shipped your product before, practice shipping a lot because customers don't want banged up boxes. And you know, I have a different product. I have to be really mindful of how I'm packing them and managing the whole like I go and check two days after it goes to make sure that they all arrived and you have to stay on it. Because if you need to file claim, you got to get that in right away. It's more in terms of like your customer service, like, how are you going to show yourself to these new retailers. And because my background in corporate retail with Nordstrom, I mean, their whole, you know, model is the customer is always first. And so that's kind of how I've been modeling my business and my philosophy. 

Sari  
I love we're going to talk about all of that, and the tips and everything. And that's a beautiful reminder, because I think a lot of times we just try something and we don't actually like see it all the way through, we don't do all the things and we're like, it's not working. But we got to be fully committed. And that's part of, you know, in Master Your Business, check about the 80/20 rule and constraint, and staying focused, right? So you're going all in on this particular experiment. And that's what it is, is an experiment, but you're actually doing all the pieces of it to try to make it as successful as possible. 

Jessica  
I think it's important for people to realize, you know, maybe it's just my, where I am right now in my business, but I am obsessed with the customers. And I feel like you kind of have to get to that point to really make it work. They send messages, I have it on my phone. So any message I see I'm on it right away. And I want their satisfaction to be 100%. Because word of mouth is going to be such an important part of growth of this.

Sari  
While you are showing up as a CEO and getting better, trying every month. And you and I bond a lot on like similar books and the way we approach things. So I really appreciate that about you. And so fun to be or your coach and your friend. 

Jessica  
Well, thank you. I mean, it has been just a joy to share this journey with you and the Fuel members and Master Your Business. So I appreciate all of it. So thank you for being here. 

Sari  
My pleasure. So as we leave for today, say goodbye. What would you tell somebody in your situation, couple kids, has been busy, busy, busy. Lots going on.

Jessica  
I think if you, you know, do the numbers. If you think you can financially do it, by what I mean is not pay yourself. And you know, if you have some money to put into creating these products, it is 100% fulfilling and so much fun. It is not easy. It's definitely not for the faint of heart. But I wouldn't put it off, I would get started right away.

Sari  
Yes, go get a coach and get community because that'll help you a lot. Oh, I wanted to mention too, I think one of the neat things that you are looking at for 2024 that we talked about, is creating that board of advisors. And one thing I've seen you do is, you know, fill your space, like be around other entrepreneurs, people in your community, in our community. And I love that you're thinking ahead to like the people you surround yourself really important, right? You're saying how do I fill my bench with the right people to help me get to the next level?

Jessica  
Yeah, I mean, that is one of the big goals for this year. I don't know if it's my TEDx goal. But yeah, I do hope to have some people on the bench that are going to stand up for me. And it's not an easy decision. Because you're asking somebody to be there for you on a regular basis. And you may not have money so you got to go with well, the equity route and it's a little scary.

Sari  
It's definitely an investment for them and for you, and are you willing to really step up to the next level where other people are counting on you and betting on you to win? That's what bringing on advisors is all about. You keep getting scared and keep taking action anyway.

Jessica  
I was going to say if there's not something scary on my calendar each week, then what's the point? 

Sari  
Yeah, I try to do a bold offer, bold action, at least weekly. If not, my Badass 30 is daily. So people have been getting some bold offer from me. I heard somebody say courage is peeing your pants and going on stage anyway.

Jessica  
Yeah, got to get there, got to do it, show up.

Sari  
Nothing in life is guaranteed. You can stay in your same situation exactly where you're at, and there's no guarantee of anything. So why not go after the thing that really excites you, that you have a passion around but then we got to turn that passion into a business That's where Master Your Business comes in.

Jessica  
Yes, thank you. It was fun. 

Sari  
Well, Jessica, it has been an honor and a pleasure. And hopefully it will not be four more years before we have you on the podcast and check in. Thank you so much for joining me today. 

Jessica  
Yes, thanks for having me. 

Sari  
All right. If you want to hang out with people like Jessica, who are doing the hard work, who are taking bold action, and getting the knowledge of what it's like to be a CEO in their business, and get lots of support and expertise from me and the community, I want to invite you to come join us in Fuel or look into Master Your Business. Both are great options to get support that you need. And join us in February with Jessica and Ryan talking to us all about Faire. And to get signed up for Fuel, you go to foodbizsuccess.com/fuel. And if this is after the fact then that recording, that replay will be in the vault as well. All right, until next time, have an amazing week!

The smartest thing you can do as an entrepreneur is to invest in a who to help you with the how, to speed up your journey and help you skip the line. When you are ready for more support and accountability to finally get this thing done, you can work with me in two ways. Get me all to yourself with one on one business coaching or join Food Business Success which includes membership inside Fuel, our community of food business founders that includes monthly live group coaching calls and so much more. It's one of my favorite places to hang out and I would love to see you there. Go to foodbizsuccess.com to start your journey towards your own Food Business Success.