Amy’s is sometimes contacted by people, who are encouraged by our success story and who want to start their own business. They’ve created a recipe for a marvelous cookie, or sauce, or dish of some kind, and want to know how to market it. Usually they have tried their product out on their friends and family and perhaps people at their local natural food store and everyone loved it.

Here are some questions we ask them:

What kind of business are you looking at? If you are planning one where you will be doing your own manufacturing (as Amy’s does) please ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you have any capital of your own? Manufacturing is expensive.
• Do you have anyone on your team who has a good head for business?
• Are you and your family prepared to work 16 hours a day and wait 2-3 years before you see any profit?

Suggestions we make:

• Get to know your local banker. You will be surprised at how helpful he or she can be.
• Thoroughly investigate the pros and cons of all options for finance: friends and relations, venture capital, bank loans etc.
• If you don’t plan to do your own manufacturing, look for a place to co-pack for you.
• Do your research. Find out who distributes your kind of product. Look at their catalogs. Talk to them. Attend relevant trade shows and see what the competition is like. Make sure that what you will be offering is unique.
• Create a good name for your business. Naming a business is like naming a baby, only much more complicated.
• Write up a “mission statement”…not for publication, but for yourselves. What is your intention? Be as clear and honest as you can.
• And if you and your family are happy with what you have discovered during your research, go for it.
• If you still believe in your product and want to pursue it on a smaller scale, pursue your dreams through the Internet, farmer’s markets and local events.