MINI CASE STUDY
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1. In what year did your company begin operation?
December 2009
2. How do you define success? Are you “there” yet?
Are you ever “there” yet? We keep doubling sales every 90 days or so. Yet sales success creates other challenges and growth requires more resources. I think success is an ongoing quest.
3. How long did it take to be successful?
Our sales took off literally over-night. We put some Sea Salt Collections on Amazon and the sales just have not stopped. Of course we are continually refining and updating our product line and take pride in offering the widest selection of salt and salt related products from a single source.
4. How long did your initial roll-out for the above product line take (months or years?) and how much did it cost? ($5,000? $20,000?) What kind of funding was available to you?
We “boot-strapped” this business and just recently have gotten a SBA loan for capital investments. We were fortunate to already own the buildings where we operate and were able to draw on our success in a previous technology-related business to make the leap into specialty foods.
5. Please share your insights and advice for new to industry companies.
Utilize the industry resources – trade shows and membership in NASFT and other related associations, advertising and media relations. We also belong to ASI (advertising specialties) and PPAI (promotional products) because our Gourmet Sea Salt Collections and other salt sets are one-of-kind gifts that can be customized with a corporate logo.
6. How would you define your “vision”? Where do you want to be in 5 or 10 years?
We are the “World of Salt” – providing the widest selection and most unique salt related products from around the globe. We have young children, so it may be 15 years before we are ready to pack our bags and travel to the most remote corners of the world. For now we bring the salts found there to our warehouse in Florida, to share them with our ever-growing customers throughout the country.
More information about Spice Lab can be seen at: www.www.thespicelab.com.