Entrepreneur Ventures is an early-stage enterprise capital agency partnered with Entrepreneur Media that’s devoted to backing passionate and modern founders as early as day one. On this sequence, we’re profiling the superb entrepreneurs that Entrepreneur Ventures is working with to share their insights on constructing and rising a thriving enterprise.
What is the elevator pitch of your organization?
My identify is Raina Kumra and I’m the founding father of Spicewell. Salt and pepper have not been upgraded in over 100 years and we’re on the very starting of a clear meals and food-as-medicine motion. And so seeing these two issues, I needed to create the right product for the instances. Spicewell is superfood seasonings — with our salt, you get 10 p.c of your each day nutritional vitamins from twelve natural greens in a pink Himalayan salt that’s low in sodium. Our black floor pepper mix is combined with turmeric and 12 natural greens to offer you 10 p.c of your each day nutritional vitamins.
Each have been clinically studied for anti-inflammatory diets and are excellent for digestion. These are Ayurvedic, a conventional Indian drugs system, so there are about 5,000 years of research backing up why and the way we use these combos.
What impressed you to create it?
I used to be at all times in tech and I used to be investing out of a small fund I helped run in L.A. I spotted I needed to be a founder once more, so for about eight years, I used to be actively on the lookout for concepts however I did not discover something I favored. After which throughout the pandemic, my husband had knee surgical procedure and I used to be getting ready to do all the pieces he wanted as a result of he could not get away from bed for 2 weeks. Nicely, about seven hours after bringing him dwelling, my five-year-old daughter broke her collarbone in a motorcycle accident. It was fully bananas! So I began to faucet into Ayurveda, which helped me heal shortly once I had damaged my elbow in a motorcycle accident. I healed three weeks quicker than my orthopedic surgeon anticipated, and I had simply eaten a lot kale, spinach and turmeric and ginger. So for my household, I went a bit overboard. I went into the backyard, chopped kale and broccoli, dehydrated it. My husband and daughter additionally bought higher superfast, about 50 p.c quicker than their docs anticipated. So not solely did I’ve 5,000 years of research, I had my private experiences that confirmed me that this works.
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The place did you go from there?
I started learning meals and well being and realized that 94 p.c of Individuals have a nutrient deficiency of some sort. That nutrient deficiency is the gateway to power sickness. After which I began studying labels after which grew to become this label hawk. I used to be so indignant about issues I had been routinely feeding my kids and trusting the advertising and marketing that stated “It is so good for you!” However in actuality, these things was stuffed with crap. Individuals don’t know what they’re consuming. There are 4 further substances in most desk salts — one in every of them causes gastro issues, rashes, and allergic responses. And I can not let you know how a lot pepper that’s within the grocery store in the present day is filled with poisonous heavy metals. so I took a course at Cornell and bought a certificates in plant drugs. From there I started creating Spicewell’s salt and pepper.
Credit score: Spicewell
How did you get your product on retailer cabinets?
That was the large studying for me. Retail is a very tousled business — the consumers have a whole lot of energy to make or break you. And in the event that they do take you, it is like a blessing and a curse as a result of your margins are simply slashed as a result of there is a dealer charge, a distributor charge, after which the retailer wants their 40% to 50% margin. So it is a actually arduous enterprise that may solely work in quantity. We bought fortunate pitching our first retailer, then we bought into Erewhon Markets, after which we bought into The Contemporary Market, that are in over twenty-five states with 161 shops.
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How did you get that first assembly?
Becoming a member of the Naturally Community was big. In my case, it was Naturally Los Angeles. It’s a nonprofit group that has a bunch of sources for brand spanking new individuals within the meals business. As a result of this is the factor: new individuals are what the meals business wants. It wants new concepts, it wants new merchandise that aren’t coming from Massive Meals. So that they’re form of a help system and so they arrange this pitch day with Gelson’s Markers. I gave my pitch, the customer beloved it, put an order in and that was accomplished. The chance solely got here due to the Naturally Community.
In addition to the apparent issues about understanding your numbers from side to side, what’s one thing that folks pitching traders ought to know?
You must actually perceive psychology. In case you are not creating urgency and FOMO and making anybody you discuss to know that it is a very restricted particular time to be concerned on this firm, I do not suppose it is simple to achieve success. An investor may say they’re , however it’s on the particular person pitching to drive that relationship to maneuver ahead — let’s get this accomplished. As a result of if not, it may go on ceaselessly.
You’ve got raised some huge cash over your profession. What’s one factor that’s necessary to you in an investor moreover their {dollars}?
There isn’t any “dumb cash” on my cap desk. Since my first startup, I’ve raised about seven and a half million {dollars}. I would not say we had dumb cash, however we had sort of unengaged traders who gave cash — which is nice — however they actually did not give their time, curiosity or connections. You need traders who’re basically saying, “Allow us to be a part of your crew.”
What does being an entrepreneur imply to you?
Being a real entrepreneur means you simply can not cease your self from constructing. I have to create one thing that does not exist that the world wants that solely I see. And if I do not do it, another person goes to. And so they’ll both do it extra poorly or they will do nice and I will get actually pissed off as a result of I did not do it!
Entrepreneurship has no ensures for fulfillment. How do you deal with uncertainty?
There are lots of people who’re true entrepreneurs however they’re held again by worry. I believe you must have a look at that worry and analyze it. Is that this worry of lacking out on revenue? Is that this worry of failing? All tremendous legitimate issues, however then you must have a look at that worry and you must evaluate the chance that lies forward and ask your self, “If I do not do that, it might be a lot worse than me giving into my fears proper now?”
What’s a quote that motivates or conjures up you?
I really like the quote “Every little thing is a part.” And it’s really from some parenting guide I learn. In the course of the early days of being a guardian, there are occasions if you’re like, “What’s going on?!” However these instances will go. Similar factor with a enterprise. Proper now, this enterprise is 2 years outdated, so it is a toddler. There will be some tantrums and complicated moments, however this is not going to be the everlasting state. Entrepreneurs must know that point and your small business will proceed to maneuver ahead. And I’ve discovered that if you put a product out on the planet, it takes on a lifetime of its personal. And on daily basis it sort of comes dwelling from faculty and says, “Hey, I did this in the present day!” Each single day there’s one other alternative that I by no means noticed coming.
