Building Good Clean Food: A 15-Year Journey to a Successful Exit with Janelle Bremer

In this episode of Game Changer's Collective, host Cassi Manner sits down with Janelle Bremer, founder of Good Clean Food Hawaii, Oahu's number one meal delivery company. Janelle shares the story of building the business from scratch in 2012, the marketing partnership that helped her scale it while living on the mainland, and what it took to prepare the company for a successful exit after 15 years. This episode is a candid look at passion, team building, and knowing when to let go.

Janelle discusses:

• Starting Good Clean Food Hawaii in 2012 and growing it into Oahu's #1 meal delivery company over 15 years
• Her advice for food-based entrepreneurs: stay passionate about your mission and don't give up
• Working with Game Changer Marketing Solutions, and why finding a team that took the time to understand her business, customers, and the Hawaii market made all the difference
• What it took to prepare Good Clean Food for a successful exit, from systemizing operations to finding a buyer who understood her team
• Her transition from founder to PhD researcher at the University of Tennessee, studying how entrepreneurs navigate life after their businesses move on

“Make sure you’re passionate about what you’re doing and you believe in what you do,” Janelle says. “And just don’t give up. You can get far if you just don’t give up.”

Janelle Bremer - LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/janelle-bremer/

Good Clean Food Hawaii - https://www.gcfhawaii.com/

Good Clean Food Hawaii Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/gcfhawaii/

Good Clean Food Hawaii Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/GCFHawaii

Transcript

Introduction to Janelle Bremer and her business journey

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to today's episode of Game Changers Collective. I am so excited to be joined by Janelle. She's the founder of Giglean Food Hawaii, Oahu's number one meal prep company. And she just had a successful exit after working with us for a few years. So I wanted to invite her on to just chat about her experience and see what her story is. Janelle, it's so nice to have you. Thanks, Cassie. I'm really excited to be here.

SPEAKER_01 0:28

Thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_00 0:29

Of course. Yeah, so I'd love to give you the floor a little bit. Just tell us a little about your journey with Good Clean Food, how it started, and where you are now.

SPEAKER_01 0:37

Yeah, awesome. Yeah, so I started Good Clean Food, which is a healthy prepared meal company on Oahu back in 2012. And at that point, getting food delivered to your house was not really the norm. I mean, we're so used to now having Uber Eats and DoorDash and getting groceries delivered to your door. But back then it was really kind of uncommon. And so we were one of the first in Hawaii to be able to offer customers healthy meals that they didn't have to make, which the idea was it made it simple, it made it convenient,

The origins of Good Clean Food in Oahu, Hawaii

SPEAKER_01 1:05

and you could always know what you were getting. And it just kind of grew from there, word of mouth for a long time. And then um through COVID, we really picked up when people got more and more used to being able to get food delivered to them. And so we've been in business for almost 15 years now and remained on Oahu, Oahu's number one meal delivery company and really happy to have been doing that.

SPEAKER_00 1:24

Congratulations on a success. I mean, to to start something from zero and build it up. It's really such a such a labor of love.

SPEAKER_01 1:31

It is, it is. Um and it's sometimes difficult to step back and actually see that. I mean, I think as anyone who's an entrepreneur knows, it can be so in the day-to-day that it's difficult sometimes to look back and think about wow, 15 years, what have we done in this amount of time? Like you focus on the day or a week, and it seems like you're not really getting anywhere. But when I think about all the customers that we've serviced and all the meals that we've made, it really is it's incredible. It's a true testament to our team and to all the people who have been part of what we've done for so long. So cool. I mean, how many people would you say you've fed over the years? I actually tried to add this up the other day, and I I'm gonna say it's you know, tens of thousands. I mean, between the meals

Customer impact and scale of the business over 15 years

SPEAKER_01 2:14

that we deliver, and then we've done catering and we've worked with some offices and we've done events. So yeah, probably 10,000 people over the years, if not more, have eaten our food, which is which is crazy and also really, really cool. Really cool.

SPEAKER_00 2:28

What would you say are some of your biggest pieces of advice for someone building kind of like a food-based business?

SPEAKER_01 2:35

Ooh. I hope you love it. Yeah, food-based business can be tough. I mean, all business is tough. Food-based business has its own unique challenges. So I think, you

Advice for food-based entrepreneurs: passion and persistence

SPEAKER_01 2:44

know, make sure you're passionate about what you're doing and you believe in what you do. For me, it was because I like to eat healthy, I like to eat clean. I'm a big believer in that we should at least know what's coming in our food and have some say over that. And so I was always really passionate about that mission, and that kind of kept me going. And I would also say just don't give up. Like standing here after just saying you know, 15 years of doing this, sometimes it's just persevering. And you can get far if you just don't give up. So even if it seems like it's a struggle and you're not making progress, just hang in there and keep doing it.

SPEAKER_00 3:15

100%. I think as business owners, like we're always moving the finish line. Where it's like, oh, like when we get there, and then we're like, nope, it's further now, it's further now. But I mean, at the end of the day, that's how you build a successful business.

SPEAKER_01 3:25

Yeah, and then try to find some way to enjoy the process because if you're always trying to get to the finish line and it keeps moving, whether that means you have people you work with that you love, you have great partners, or your customers are happy and you're helping them grow their businesses or helping them lead a healthier life. So, like, there's gotta be something in it that gives you that day-to-day sort of purpose or meaning. Because if you're just trying to get to the next finish line, it can seem an awfully long way away.

SPEAKER_00 3:48

Yes, I totally agree. And so speaking of partners, I mean, we've been working together for I think like three and a half, four years now. So, yeah, what has your experience with Game Changer Marketing Solutions been?

SPEAKER_01 3:58

Yeah, I mean, it's been incredible. I think you and your team really helped us kind of level up what we were doing in terms of marketing and advertising and outreach. We struggled for a long time trying to figure out the best way to have a marketing arm of what we were doing, whether that was going to be bringing somebody in-house or trying to manage a contractor or somebody outside of our business that was doing it. Having someone in house, we never really were able to have all of the expertise that we needed. So

Working with Game Changer Marketing Solutions

SPEAKER_01 4:22

we might have somebody who was great at social media, or we might have somebody who's great at advertising, but to find one person who was good at all of those things is really difficult. Um, and at the same time, when we would go outside of our own business or outside of our core employees, we found that people really struggled to understand who we were and what we did and who our customers were. We're kind of a unique business. Like we're not a restaurant, we're not a retail shop. A lot of our customers are subscribers, so they've been with us a long time. There's sort of an educational piece to what we do. And so when we found you all, and it was like this magic combination of all of that, it was like you're great at marketing, you're great at the social, you're great at advertising, and you took the time to really get to know us, our team, our customers, our product, obviously the local market, what we did, who we were. And uh, I think that fit was everything. And that says a lot about I think you and your team that you took the time and continued to take the time to do that instead of just going and doing the marketing like you knew us as a company, you knew our customers were in. And that resonates with customers. I mean, they need to feel like it's an authentic message. And the only way to do that is if people really understand who you are. So yeah, I mean, uh we've been so pleased to have been working with you guys for so long and hopefully it continues moving forward.

SPEAKER_00 5:33

Thank you so much for saying that. It really means a lot. Yeah, it's something that is very ingrained in our team culture, is we really see ourselves as an extension of your team and in meshing with your team. We don't want to be this like detached third arm over here. We want to really be part of the team, and we always say like us, we because we see it as kind of our baby now. So thanks for saying that. I'm glad that it comes through in the work that we do. It's been really cool because other members of our team have gotten to eat the product, right? We all pick up our monthly food so that we can take pictures and videos and stuff like that, and everybody loves it. And my fiance, he actually lost a ton of weight through the three years that we were working together, and he always says he's like, It's the good clean food because it's partial-appropriate and it's ready, so you're not going out and doing takeout or going out to eat or having something unhealthy. So, yeah, he really credits it. I was like, We gotta do like a subway guy, right? We gotta do like you do that for good clean

The importance of authentic understanding in marketing

SPEAKER_00 6:29

food. Yeah, but get it in touch with us. I love that idea. That's awesome. And so you were 15 years, right? You built the business. Yeah, it's been about 15 years now, almost. Yeah. Wow. And so you just had a successful exit. So congratulations on that. Is there anything you want to share just around that kind of process and all of that?

SPEAKER_01 6:50

I think the surprising thing for me about finding an eventual buyer to continue what we were doing was just how long it took to find the right person for that. So I I moved back to the mainland during COVID. So I've been sort of, I guess, like an absentee owner for a number of years now and have had a great team is the only reason that that worked, a team that I had spent a lot of years working with before I left Island. And it was really important to me to find somebody who could both support that team and also help them grow and continue to have more opportunities so that we didn't lose anything we were doing, that the team stayed the same, that our customers continued to have the same service, and that hopefully there was just more. There was more opportunities for our team members, more things happening for our customers. And that was a challenge to find. It was a challenge to find

The successful exit and transition process

SPEAKER_01 7:35

somebody who, again, understood what we did. Hawaii is a unique market, I think, in for any business. And again, food has its own challenges, especially during COVID, that sort of threw a wrench in things for a long time. But being able to find somebody who could see the opportunity in what we did, we have a great foundation. There's really, in my opinion, really good bones to the business, but that also had kind of a mind for what could come next. And so I looked for that person for quite some time. I was really honest with my team about that. Just, you know, here's here's what I'm doing, and and hopefully you all see this as a positive thing. And hopefully it wasn't a surprise to anybody internally. But surprisingly, the buyer that we found was somebody who had worked for the company many years ago in a management function. So he knew the business, he kind of understood what we did, he understood the team, he understood the market, and ended up being a perfect fit. And I'm really excited about that. But but yeah, my kind of surprised at how long the process took. Happy I stayed patient and just kind of waited for the right person because I think by the time now we're transitioning, it's you know, that the team is comfortable. Our customers aren't gonna probably experience any difference. If anything, it should be better. And I'm just really excited for the new owners and for the team to see what's coming next.

SPEAKER_00 8:49

Yeah, congratulations. That's just it's so exciting. I mean, I think we start a business, we don't always think that that's the end goal. Sometimes we do, sometimes we don't, but to have it end up that way is just because you built something really valuable and successful and it feels good. Yeah. Thank you, Cassie. I appreciate that. Of course. For anyone who maybe is building a business and they're thinking, oh, maybe I'll sell in the future, or maybe I don't know if I want to sell, like, what are kind of some things that you think you did along the way that made you able to do that? Because some people they are like, oh, I have this successful business and I I want to sell it, but they don't have the records, or they don't have anything to kind of show.

SPEAKER_01 9:26

Yeah, it's a great question. I think I'll answer it in in two parts, one about the business and one about the entrepreneur themselves. And for the business, it's kind of like the tried and true advice of make sure you have things systematized and processes. If things require you to be done, it's really hard for a buyer to come in and buy that. So, you know, make sure you have as much stuff documented and as many systems in place and have a really good team. I mean, that's something that really helped me was I had people who were the experts in all of the different areas of our business that weren't me. I think it's a little different if somebody wants to stay on and continue to work in the business. Maybe that's not so important. Like I said, for me, I haven't even been on Island for a few years. So it was important that it was sort of not a necessary part of things. And part of that, part of me leaving island was I started a PhD program at the University of Tennessee. So I'm now researching entrepreneurship. And what I focus on is entrepreneurial careers. So I try to understand how it is that entrepreneurs move into and out of entrepreneurship and sort of on to other opportunities. And so I think something that gets lost in this talk about transitions or exit is that for the entrepreneur

Preparing the business for sale and future growth

SPEAKER_01 10:31

or for the founder, most of the time you might be acquired and not retired. I've heard that recently. It's like most of the time you are going to continue to work. You're going to do something with your life, even if financially you don't have to, you're going to get up every day and have to do something. So be kind of mindful about what that might be and maybe start exploring some of those things before you exit so that you're not all of a sudden just one day without this thing that was such a big part of your life and such a big part of your identity. I think people can really struggle with that, like they might if they retired from the workforce. So I think, yeah, you know, manage your business so that it's in a place that's attractive for a buyer, but also think about managing your own career so that you sort of know where you're going and why you're trying to get there and maybe what's next for you so that you kind of have your own path once the business is on a separate path. That would be my advice.

SPEAKER_00 11:20

So cool. I didn't know you were studying business and entrepreneurship. That's so fitting. I mean, you really like walk the walk, considering that you could run a business from across the world, especially a food-based business successfully to the point of a successful exit, is just is so impressive. So I think you're very on track with going into the education and helping other people because you've walked the walk, right?

SPEAKER_01 11:41

And it's kind of funny because for me, building the team was always the thing I enjoyed the most. So it was a lot of like teaching and training and development. And now I sort of do that just in a different setting. But yeah, I was kind of, I guess, lucky that I enjoyed that part of it because it ended up being so important to the exit. And I don't know that I was that intentional about it. I just liked it. I like sort of helping people grow within the company and giving them more opportunities. And it ended up being, you know, a great thing setting the company up for success.

SPEAKER_00 12:08

Yeah, I love what you said about having the right people in the right seats. And I think that's so common too with marketing. Like you said, like trying to hire one person who is good at social media and email marketing and Google Ads, meta-ads, it's just like impossible. Like you're just never gonna be like the person who can do all of that because if they are an expert in it, they're gonna go so deep down into that one niche and get really, really good at it that a jack of all trades, I think, is where so many business owners like fall short. They're like, oh,

Janelle’s academic pursuits and future plans

SPEAKER_00 12:38

I know someone who does this one thing and maybe they do it okay. And that's the struggle with like freelancers and things like that. So I think more people are kind of turning towards agencies because we're able to just have the same thing as you, the right people in the right seats, and just assign each of the different parts of the marketing ecosystem to those specific team members. And then everyone is working together on one team within the agency, and it just flows really well.

SPEAKER_01 13:01

So I would completely agree with that. I add the other benefit for like a small business like ours is the is the continuity. So, like we tend to have a lot of turnover, not necessarily like in our management positions, but if we didn't just have one person, you know, when they leave the company or when they go do something different, we have this like hard stop and in everything that we're doing for marketing. And with your company, we never experienced that at all. I mean, we've worked with different people on different areas, but there is continuity because we work with your agency and your agency provides this service. And we never felt like, oh, if we're not working with Cassie or we're not working with this other person, it's going to be different, which is like so nice for four years of close-up that we've been working with you all to feel like it's just we've never missed a beat. It's just been kind of this continuous great service. That I think you probably get more with an agency than if you try to do it with just one person.

SPEAKER_00 13:48

Yeah, thanks for bringing that up too. Because yeah, I mean, people have like personal stuff that comes up or they move, or like in Hawaii, they have military transfers and things like that. And yeah, to have that continuation where you know, okay, if that person can't do it, they're gonna fill me in with someone who's just as good. And yeah, I think that's a another big benefit of the agency model, is just you know it's always gonna be done. It's to me taken care of. You don't have to like know if they're doing it right, they're already checking, right? Because some people they'll hire a Google Ads person, they're like, I don't know if they're doing a good job or not. But we really make sure that our team is doing really good a job and delivering those results. I know you've been running like Google Ads with us and med ads. That's kind of something we started somewhere recently. Do you want to speak to that at all? Like, because you've had really great results with that. So I'd love to hear from your mouth.

SPEAKER_01 14:31

We've had really good results with that. And I I mean, I'm not an expert in it at all, but I think one of the reasons that we've had such great results is working with um Anthony, who's been who's been our, I call him our ads guy. I don't know what you call him, but that's what we call him. Yeah, everybody's like, oh, the ads guy. Yeah. Um, he's like a data guy, but for sure. And he is like very adamant about let's make sure we understand exactly where these numbers are coming from. I want you to understand what these numbers mean. We want to make sure that we're tracking these things correctly, that we understand if we increase the budget what's likely to happen, what's not likely to happen, and then we can within a certain amount of time, you know, confirm that or deny that and adjust again, um, which makes me feel just really comfortable. Sometimes ads to me feel like a black box. Like you just spend money and like you think you might get some return and you might not. Or in the past, that's what it's felt like. But working with your team, it seems like there is a science to it. It's a little bit of an art, but like we can track these things and we can make sure that we're getting a return on our money and that if ever we feel uncomfortable or we're not sure about that, we have control over our budget and we can make changes. And so, yeah, I think because of that, because of his attention to detail and his attention to the data, we've really been able to find how to sort of exploit or leverage those ads for our business. Because I think, again, we're sort of unique that I think we're a little bit different than other businesses who might be advertising. Yeah, so I think the data-driven part of that is is key.

SPEAKER_00 15:57

Yeah, with running ads, like you have to be so data and specific and you have to keep such a tight leash on it because if your ad spends gets going and you're not maximizing your row ads, it's just it can get really bad, really fast. So we're always very on top of that and looking forward to make sure that we're staying within what the budget cap is so that we can maximize the results with not going over it because there's always a threshold, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:21

Yeah, and appreciate he's always giving me like the next option and then like two or three other options after that. So I always feel like I have a choice, but also that he's giving me like really data-grounded recommendations, which I appreciate. So we kind of always have a strategy, and then we'll say, and in this amount of time, we'll look at this, and here's the next step. Um, so I not only do I feel like I understand it, but I also kind of always understand what the plan is going to be moving forward. Yeah. It's been great, it's been a really good experience.

SPEAKER_00 16:47

What would you say for like a business owner who maybe has been doing the kind of the freelancer route or kind of just having random team members do different parts? They've never hired an agency before. What would your advice be to them?

SPEAKER_01 17:00

I mean, I think for my suggestion would be to try to find the right agency that think if it's something that they think they could benefit from. Like we just talked about all the benefits from it. I believe it's helped my business, you know, grow and continue to grow and was a big part of our growth in the last few years. But that was because y'all were the right fit for us. And so I don't really have experience working with any other agencies, but I would suggest that people spend the time. And I would say because we've been committed to working with you all for so long that it is a big commitment, and you hope to be with whatever agency you choose for a while. So, you know, get that person on the phone. It's one of the best things about working with you, Cassie, is like if ever I need to schedule a call, we can be on a call like that day. You're accessible. And I know you have a lot going on, you have a lot of customers, so like that says a lot about you, says a lot about your business. But I think it's like know who you're working with, uh, find the right fit because they are going to be like your company, you're gonna be like a part of your company, it's gonna be a part of the team. So kind of treat them that way and get to know them a little bit.

SPEAKER_00 17:56

Well, thanks for saying that. Yeah, we definitely really try to, you know, nail that like boutique experience where it's very personalized and we don't want anyone to feel like they're like emailing random people and they don't know who their point of contact is. Like I'm always gonna get on right away, have conversations because that's just the experience that I want to give. I really see things from being a business owner myself and how would I want to be treated, and that's how I treat my customers. So I'm glad that you feel that way. I'm also glad that we're your first agency you've ever worked with because sometimes I hear horror stories, and then we have to rectify that, and then they're like, okay, game changer marketing solutions was actually like the game changer and it was different. But sometimes people are so scared of agencies. So I'm glad that you had a really great first experience and it was with us.

SPEAKER_01 18:37

For sure. I did have a great first experience. But I would say, you know, if you can't even get somebody from the agency on a call and see their face and talk to them, it's probably not the right fit. I kind of knew right from the beginning, like getting to know you and getting to know your team, like this was this was gonna be a good fit for us.

SPEAKER_00 18:52

Well, thank you so much for sharing everything today. Just it's been such a pleasure to chat with you. So, what is kind of next for you on the horizon?

SPEAKER_01 19:01

Yeah, I'm finishing up my PhD program. So I should be finishing my dissertation this year, which is exciting. And then I will hopefully get a job as a professor somewhere and keep teaching entrepreneurs and keep hopefully helping people navigate entrepreneurial careers. That's kind of my passion. I felt like for a long time I felt sort of unsure about, you know, my business was doing well, but I wasn't necessarily fulfilled in some of the work I was doing, and that's a sticky point. I think I felt a little bit like lost and alone in that. I think there's, you know, there's a lot of resources for starting a business or growing a business, but not so much about the founder themselves and how do you navigate your own career. So I I hope, you know, this is this is very future looking, but I hope to be able to help people with that and and continue to understand it from a research perspective. So then that founders and entrepreneurs can have successful businesses, but also successful lives. I think we can we can have both. That's that's probably my biggest goal is to help people do that.

SPEAKER_00 19:58

Very cool. Yes, that's

Janelle’s life advice: healthy habits as a superpower

SPEAKER_00 20:00

what lonely at the top is. They said you can be isolating for sure. Awesome. And then I always love to ask people this. So, what is your biggest piece of game-changing life advice? This could be anything, this can be business, spiritual, personal, health, fitness, literally anything, just something that you heard that clicked for you, and that was like, oh, that was a game changer.

SPEAKER_01 20:20

Ooh, that's a tough one. I was just gonna, well, you're probably looking for something more specific, but I will say I have lived by the fact that healthy habits have become like a superpower for me, but that if I'm eating right, working out, sleeping, and not drinking in general, just taking really good care of myself, I find that I can, you know, outwork people. I can work to the best of my ability, and I feel good doing it. And and so it's yeah, it becomes kind of a superpower if you can, I think, make it a part of your lifestyle. So, yeah, any healthy habits that people can put into practice, it can become a superpower for you with that completely.

SPEAKER_00 20:59

Yeah, like it's just so important. If you don't take care of yourself as a whole, how is your outward experience gonna be maximized?

SPEAKER_01 21:08

Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 21:09

Well, Janelle, it's been an absolute pleasure. Thank you so much for taking the time today. And it was so nice to to chat with you. And I'm so excited to see everything that you do next. We'll be cheering you on here at Game Changer Marketing Solutions while we of course continue to support Good Clean Food and and the new owners. But we are so excited for you and everything that's on the horizon. Thank you, Cassie. This has been a lot of fun. I like talking to you. I appreciate it.