65: Coffee – Interview with Bryan Kollar from The Coffee Guy

What kind of business do you run? When did you start it and where is
it based?

I run a coffee shop based out of Trucksville Pennsylvania. It online
only, selling my own brand of coffee, The Coffee Guy, plus 250+ other
varieties of coffee, snack bars and chocolate.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your background.

I started selling individual KCups back in 2015 on Ebay. I started with
40 flavors. People bought ONE Kcup at a time, and mixed and match to
make up their own variety pack. When I saw how popular that was, I
started adding more and more flavors. Now I am up to 250 flavors, at
least, and expanded to bagged coffee, my own brand coffee, snack bars
and chocolate. All mix-and-match make your own variety pack type of deal.

What are the best and worst parts of running your business?

The best part of running the business is getting a nice sized order,
seeing what flavors of coffee my customers choose. The worst part is
when someone orders just 2 or 3 kcups. Since I barely make anything the
way it is (I do this more for fun than profit) an order of 2 or 3 kcups
I actually lose money.

Does your business generate enough money to support you?

I wish. Maybe someday it will, but I have an extremely long way to go
for that as I stated in the other answer – I barely make anything, even
on larger orders

What would you say is the hardest part about running a business?

Getting the word out there about the business. With the little profit I
make, it’s difficult to pay someone to do search engine submission. I
wouldn’t make a single penny if that were the case, so it’s all word of
mouth and my social media give-aways to let people know I am out there

What tools do you use to run your business?

I have an extremely massive spreadsheet. I keep track of orders, of
course, and customers – how many times they ordered, how many kcups they
purchased in total, how much coffee rewards they have, when the last
time they purchased, the exact number of KCups sold to date, how many
Kcups per month compared to the last month for reference, and so much more

Do you have a Unique Selling Point?

The unique thing about me is selling Kcups the way I do. Instead of
buying a whole box of 24 KCups, all one flavor, why not pick 24
different flavors for just a little more? Never get bored of the flavor,
can always choose the ones YOU want.

To learn more about Bryan please visit his website at TheCoffeeGuy.shop

64: Voiceover – Interview with Armin Hierstetter from Bodalgo



Tell us a little bit about yourself and your background.

I used to work in publishing before I became self employed in 2008 when I launched bodalgo. [pauses] Boy, is that really already more than a decade ago? Anyway: Because I learned programming with a Commodore 64 and later Atari ST, I had a pretty good understanding about programming when I came up with the idea to create bodalgo. 

What inspired you to start this business?

In 2004, I landed my first voiceover job. I was not trained at all. Still, I though: Hey, I am a voiceover talent! I sent my demo to many agencies but none of them could be bothered to even reply. So I thought: Maybe there is something online? I found a p2p website for English talents and thought: Something like this surely exists for the German market. Turned out: It did not. In late 2007 there still had been nothing, so I thought: Nobody will start this – I have to do it myself. Three months later, bodalgo launched. And, oh boy, did that website look crap back then [laughs] …

What would be your unique selling point, in comparison to for example Voice123?

Bodalgo only features vetted talents whereas most other websites, including v123, accept anyone with a credit card. This is a major concern because it leads to various things: On the one hand, professional talent find themselves in bad neighborhood alongside with amateurs. Far more concerning, though: Not vetting the talents is the path to mediocrity at best. Because clients will be presented with sub par demos all the time. This might change how they generally perceive quality. If you listen to amateur quality most of the time, you will accept this level of quality as standard. Over a period of time, your perception changes: Because of the lower quality on average, client’s might be willing to accept lower quality levels because they are used to them. Of course, it should be exactly the other way round: All demos should reflect outstanding quality. This is not the case with most of the websites out there.

Is Munich a good place to have your company headquarters?

Have you ever been to a Bavarian beer garden? Munich is the best place in the world for any HQ [laughs]… But seriously: Munich offers everything you could ask for. Only downside: It is very expensive.

How important is social media for your company?

Social media is the key platform to stay in touch with voice talents. I am members in many FB groups that deal with day-to-day chit chat as well as the concerns of talents. I think I am pretty well connected with many talents because of Facebook and the likes. It would be much more difficult to get your ear in the market without social media.
When it comes to the clients, the story is totally different. Even on more business oriented platforms like LinkedIn, increasing your customer base is a challenge as voice-over is a pretty special market.

Who do you think is the most accomplished entrepreneur you’ve met?

I have never met him in person, unfortunately, but I have always thought that Steve Jobs was one of the best entrepreneurs of all time. His creativity, his dedication and his attention to detail – I can not think of anybody else that has inspired so many people while building one of the most successful companies in the world at the same time. I cried when I found out he died.

Any books about entrepreneurship you can recommend?
To be honest: I do not recall I have read any books on entrepreneurship. I have a marketing degree, though, and I think that a basic understanding of marketing is essential in every business, no matter if how big or small it might be. Even a solo entrepreneurship needs marketing, no doubt about this.

What’s your favorite app?

Spotify. It’s great to have millions of songs at your fingertip. And lots of audio books for your kids, too!

What’s your fondest memory working on this business?

There are way too many to point out a single one. What always amazes me is the helpfulness of the voiceover community, especially in America and UK.

To learn more about Armin’s company please visit Bodalgo.com

63: Yoga Mats – Interview with Anna and Sophie from hejhej-mats

Photograph from https://www.christin-schwarzer.de/

What kind of business do you run?

We developed a closed-loop yoga mat. That means our yoga mats are made from recycled materials and are also recyclable at the end of their lifespan. We are a sustainable start-up that operates in the field of the circular economy. 

When did you start it and where is it based?

We already had the idea to develop a circular yoga mat during our Master Studies in Sweden. We officially founded hejhej-mats then in 2017 in Germany and are currently based in Nuremberg Germany. 

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your background.

We are Anna and Sophie. Both of us are passionate about sustainability and yoga. We went abroad to study our Master in Leadership for Sustainability in Malmö, Sweden. Before that Sophie did her Bachelor in Social Economics in Nuremberg and Anna studied Marketing Management in Hamburg.

 What is your daily routine of running your business?

Actually, for us, every day looks different. We are running hejhej-mats together and are coping with all the different experiences from taxes over marketing to product development. We do not have a fixed office space and are working from home, co-working spaces and coffee shops. We have a little network of other entrepreneurs here in Nuremberg that join us weekly for our co-working sessions. 

What are the best and worst parts of running your business?

Well, the best parts are easy to think of. You are working for something that you 100% believe in. You meet amazing people on the way and learn a new thing every day. Of course, being an entrepreneur might not be the easiest way and it definitely makes you experience your personal limits. 

What would you recommend new entrepreneurs?

The best advice we can give is just starting! Starting can already be talking to everyone about your idea and then one step leads to the other. Just never let go of the vision. 

You know you’re an entrepreneur when …

You have an idea that keeps you awake at night! 

What is the best business decision you’ve ever made?

Actually, the best business decisions we made were always the ones we made when we trusted our gut feeling. In the beginning, we did not really feel comfortable with trusting our gut feeling so some decisions were influenced by external opinions and these were definitely not the best ones. Trusting your gut feeling for us was also a learning process and it probably still is. 

To learn more about Anna and Sophie’s company please visit Hejhej-mats.com.

62: Computer Games – Interview with Joel Staaf Hästö from Clifftop Games

This week we’ve interviewed Joel from Stockholm-based company Clifftop Games. I found his company when someone recommended his computer game Kathy Rain on an adventure subreddit.

What kind of business do you run? When did you start it and where is it based?

An indie game development company called Clifftop Games, specialized in point and click adventures. Started in 2015, based near Stockholm, Sweden.

What inspired you to start this business?

I’ve had a lifelong obsession with computer games, so making my own has always been a childhood dream. I was sick of working as a programmer at various game companies and started building a game of my own, Kathy Rain, in 2012. When a publisher expressed interest in the game I decided to make the leap!

Joel Staaf Hästö

What is your favourite adventure game you played?

Probably the original Gabriel Knight, it’s the only adventure I’ve replayed more than once.

Do you still remember what the first game you played was?

I believe it was the original Sim City, for DOS, ca 1990~. I was four or five at the time.

How do you get ideas for your adventure games?

Oh, from a variety of places. For me, usually an idea don’t just pop into my head all of a sudden, it’s something that grows and evolves organically based on different influences from games, movies, books and so on.

What is your average day and how many hours do you work each day?

My average day is spent doing a variety of tasks, from coding to scripting, writing dialogue, communicating with team members, our publisher and so on. Since I work from home and control my own work hours they tend to vary greatly, but I try to work at least eight hours a day for five days a week, with ~8-12 hours or so on top of that, spread out through the entire week. In the final stages of critical work, such as preparing for gaming conventions or game releases I tend to work practically all the time.

Any books you recommend for new entrepreneurs?

None that come to mind! I do most of my learning on the internet. Stack Overflow and Gamasutra are good resources to me, as are lectures from industry events such as GDC.

Which computer game company you admired most?

Probably the now defunct LucasArts. They produced a ton of quality adventure games over the years!

To learn more about Joel’s company please visit Clifftopgames.com.

61: Roasted Peas – Interview with Amber and Seb from BRAVE

This week we’ve interviewed Amber and Seb from London-based food company BRAVE. I have personally tried their delicious snack and recommend it!

What kind of business do you run? When did you start it and where is it based?

We’re BRAVE and we make crunchy Roasted Peas, a delicious and healthy alternative to crisps and popcorn. Our peas are all grown in the East of England and have more protein than cashews and fewer calories than popcorn. They’re also completely vegan and contain all natural ingredients and no added sugar. We’re based in London and launched in July 2017.

Tell us a little bit about yourselves and your background.

BRAVE has two co-founders (Amber & Seb) and we are fortunate enough to have different but complementary backgrounds and skills. While we both studied business at university, Amber’s background is primarily in sales and account management having worked for FMCG brands like adidas and L’Oreal. Seb, on the other hand, come from the world of advertising, having worked for agencies like Wieden & Kennedy, DDB and AKQA. That’s also how the key responsibilities are divided within the business – though both of us are involved in any major decision regardless of what discipline it falls under.

What inspired you to start this business?

We also both always wanted to start our own business so it was more a matter of what and when, rather than if. The idea of building something from scratch and growing it was hugely appealing to us. We’ve both been eating a plant based diet for around 9 years and as a result food is always a big interest for us. Peas and pulses in general are such delicious, sustainable and amazingly nutritious foods and we wanted to find an exciting way to encourage more people to eat these mighty peas!

We wanted to start business that encouraged people to make a positive change. That’s where the name BRAVE came from: taking that scary first step towards something better. For us that meant leaving good jobs and going out on a limb to start but it’s applicable to just about anything. The change we want to bring about is a return to healthy and nutritious food, that’s locally grown and doesn’t contain all kinds of strange ingredients in it. We think that’s something other people are looking for and will want to go on that journey with us.

What is your daily routine of running your business?

Every day is always a little different and we’ve got different ways of working between us, too. On an average day, Amber tends to start the day early (around 7am) and sorts through emails before then she’s out most days meeting customers, sampling and telling Londoners about our delicious roasted peas. Conversely, Seb starts a little later and tries to block out chunks of the day for any kind of creative or strategy work, with emails and follow ups slotting around that. Having space to dive into that work without distractions is key.
For both of us Monday’s and Friday’s tend to be in the office, following up with new customers and working other aspects of the business like supply chain and finance.
We make sure to align by having a catch-up meeting every morning at 10am to discuss actions and priorities going forward. Otherwise, everything else pivots around what the business requires on that day. We try to schedule meetings either early in the morning or late in the day so it doesn’t cause too much of an interruption and try to finish the day by writing up anything outstanding so it’s there for tomorrow. And working out 3-4 times a week in between helps not only keep us healthy but also sane.

What are the best and worst parts of running your business?

The best and worst parts are often two sides of the same coin! Building something from nothing is immensely fulfilling but at the same time, that’s something that you’re out there doing every day, regardless of whether you’re sick, tired or whatever. If you don’t do it, it’s not going to happen. Nobody else is going to do it for you.
Likewise, being your own boss is amazing. You’re at the heart of everything and make all the important decisions. But that means ultimately you’re also the one who’s taking all the risks and blame for anything that goes wrong.
That’s part and parcel of being an entrepreneur so we try to accept them both as a package and not get too hung up on either.

Are there any blogs, podcasts or Facebook Groups about entrepreneurship you follow closely?

ln no particular order: NPR’s How I Built This, the Foodhub Facebook group, Taste Radio, daily digest’s from Food Dive and The Grocer, Welltodo and FoodBev.
We also like audiobooks and can highly recommend Grit by Angela Duckworth, Do Purpose by David Hieatt, and the Hard thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz. They won’t necessarily tell you how to start and run a business, but they’re very good at highlighting the mindset you need to have to do it.

Which resources to run your business do you use most?

We use a lot of different things but key to running the business are a bunch of tailored excel spreadsheets that manage things like schedules, production and forecasts. We also use Xero for all our accounting, Illustrator/Photoshop for any creative output and Squarespace to build/host our site.

What keeps you motivated to keep working on your business?

We’ve got two kinds of motivation to get us through the tough times: on the macro scale, we started this business because we’re passionate about healthy and sustainable food. We really, really want to encourage people to eat more plants. That’s the north star that keeps us moving forward and any kind of tangible proof (for example, hitting a sales target) that it’s working is very motivating.
On the micro level, we do a lot of our sampling sessions ourselves and there’s nothing better than that moment when somebody’s tried your product and you can see on their face that they like it. That moment right there holds enough energy and motivation to power a week or two.

What would you recommend new entrepreneurs? How to get started?

On the one hand, we’d like to say: ‘Just do it!’
But that would perhaps sell the journey of entrepreneurship short. The truth is, it’s a long, difficult journey and it’s twice as long and difficult to do on your own. Consider finding a co-founder(s) if you’re on your own. That not only reduces the amount of work there is but also creates a dual perspective and tension that’s essential to making good decisions. It’s not a mandatory but most solo entrepreneurs we’ve talked to have said the same thing.
Secondly, talk to anybody and everybody who’s been-there-and-done-that. We had a slight advantage in some ways having worked in the corporate world before, but the corporate world is nothing like a startup. What was really invaluable was talking to other entrepreneurs who’d already gone through what was ahead of us. That saved us a lot of time and prevented us from making bad decisions. We’re very indebted to those ladies and gents (if you’re reading this, you know who you are!)
Finally, become a subject matter expert in your chosen industry – for example, you don’t need to become a nutritionist or anything like that if want to work in food but you need to understand the market. We read most daily food publications, attended tonnes of food trade shows and talks for years before deciding exactly what we wanted to do. Having your ear to the ground will help you see opportunities in what is unusually a rapidly changing landscape.
Then go do it!

Who do you think is the most accomplished entrepreneur you’ve met?

It’s a toss up between Simon Mottram or Giles Brook. Simon’s done an amazing job building Rapha and arguably singlehandedly made cycling look cool. Giles on the other hand has had incredible success with Vita Coco as well as Bear (and others!) – when it comes to food brands he has a Midas touch!

To learn more about Amber and Seb’s company please visit Bravefoods.co.uk and on Instagram.