 Welcome to start up the storefront presented by Aura Bora All right, welcome to the podcast on today's show. We're talking to Haley from the painter land sisters company people who don't know what your company does What do you guys do? What do you guys make? So we are two sisters who are fourth-generation farmers on our family's organic dairy farm And we make an organic Icelandic style skier yogurt made with milk from our cows and other cows in the area So here are three of our flavors, and we also have family sizes as well And we're in Philadelphia. You said Pennsylvania. We're in Pennsylvania. Are you guys probably the farthest away from Philadelphia and Pittsburgh? We're in Taiyoga County, West And how big is this town? How many people are in this town? Let's just say there's more cows than there are people So that's a thing my sister usually likes to say that we grew up with more cows and cousins than than people to talk to And what made you guys want to start this company? You could have went into farming you could have done a bunch of other things You could have got into cattle Meets why sort of descend into the the yogurt CPG land? Yeah, so From our perspective, we're still fourth-generation farmers This was our way to sustain and vertically integrate our family's farm by creating a market that was stabilized and that we could really tell our story and so we still view ourselves as directly a part of agriculture and This after looking at all the different value-added products. We possibly could make we thought this was the best product That we could bring to the world. It's very new trans dense Transparent and we we feel like it's the niche Did you guys explore anything else like obviously there's a poster of cheese behind you? Did you guys play with cheeses or was it always sort of the direction was let's go into the the yogurt land? We played with cheeses. I personally was into cheese As soon as I graduated college Stephanie graduated from a liberal arts school in Pennsylvania And I graduate I went there as well with her and I transferred and graduated from Iowa State After graduating college. I moved to New Jersey and made different cheeses I'd sell into farmers markets in the city and Philadelphia and places like that So we got to actually make the cheese by hand right from the animals in the land and age it in a cave and Monger the cheese. So it's such a beautiful thing creating cheese creating yogurt It's a combination of art and science together my roommate from that cheese journey kind of told me that she's a dairy farmer in Costa Rica, so we looked at a ton of different products Cheese was one of them. We designed a cheese processing plant before we launched into this and Ultimately we looked into the market a little bit more what our mission was which was to sustain our farm so we had to get large enough in order to support it and We wanted to provide a product that consumers really were looking for and needed and that's like a very new trans dense Transparent yogurt and so then as you guys start thinking about that obviously scaling a shop or a plant Is your plant located on the farm or how does how does all that interact like where where is the yogurt made the skin? The skier everyone's like how do you say is a skier is a skir what? The skier like you're a skier going down a hill our farms in northern Pennsylvania We produce it in central Pennsylvania and a co-manufacturer there and we store it in southern Pennsylvania So we have the full connection of Pennsylvania pride And what was the first step you guys had were you guys attending like farmers markets to get this into the public? And so you realize you were on to something or what was the first dabble into Testing your product making sure you guys had something that was worth investing in and spending all your time You know obviously so much time and resources, but what was the first step? I'd say the first step so we started planning in 2018 We sold our first cup of yogurt March of 2022. So this was four years of research Many different business plans the last business plan that we officially jump started with Was a 120 page plan that we presented to the bank or family or community And so although we didn't officially try the product we got to try a trial batch About four months before launching and that trial batch was 14,000 yogurts that we couldn't sell So we pedaled it around to different opportunities. We wanted to connect with Um and got to got to get it in the hands of everyone we could think of we didn't exactly know where Where we were going to sell this stuff We definitely didn't plan it being national at first. We thought it was going to be kind of a state product we for some reason thought that the state of Pennsylvania could eat 60 000 cups of yogurt every single week right from the beginning, but The market size is not there. So yeah, we we had a trial batch and we pedaled that stuff and our Subarus and our cars and got it out to to as many people as we could and that connected us with our first distributor It's actually a Mennonite distributor John F. Martin connected us to local stores And then we got connected with a broker who got us into and we got to present to giant So then we launched with giant shortly after After launching with giant natural grocers picked us up and we became national And then central market being in tioga county. Stephanie lives in southern pennsylvania and liditz I live right up here on the farm and she she's up here more than three quarters of the time But um my sister and my mom signed me up for the woman of the year in our tri county or tri-state area and so I Was the top three. So there was this video that started going around linkedin and the buyer from central market saw it um with some connections and networks of people we knew and so we launched with central market Got into kahi the distributor And then from there we got connected with sprouts and launched with sprouts. So this was all within six months of launching That's pretty incredible. And are you guys funding this yourselves at the beginning just bootstrapping your way to success or Yeah, yeah, so that 120 page business plan that we actually were able to write through We got grants at first You know, we have to pay for our graphic designer and all the work that goes into starting a brand before you can actually sell anything We got grants from the state of pa through organizations like dairy center of excellence for farmers And so it helped us build our business plan get consultants and really create a robust team To understand what product do we really want to launch and why and so that's why I think we didn't Start out as curious because we spent so much time with Really high-end advisors asking the right questions getting out there and putting putting the thought into it before So with those grants we had the business plan the business plan We got a loan from our community bank and that's what funded it up until About a year and a half after starting That's so crazy Like that's so what I was in uh, I don't know if you know this place. It's called cuba new york It's a very remote place in new york. It's like farm country. It sounds a lot like you're describing Cuba cheese. Yeah, Cuba cheese. And so My wife's grandmother has a house there And I think it's like probably equal equal amount of amish as non-amish people And it's like there's farms everywhere And so when I think about just to put my window like my brain into You you know you have this product all over the country And so it seems crazy that Someone from a farm in a place that very few people will probably ever go and right go visit Unless you know someone unless you're personally connected is now expanded their reach You know nationwide that's It's incredible. It sounds incredible to me I live in la and so everybody here is on the hustle and bustle And so when I meet someone an entrepreneur here and they have let's say a product in pennsylvania It doesn't sound that crazy But having been spent some time in cuba. It sounds pretty remarkable. I mean pretty amazing It is very remote and rule. We actually didn't have great internet up until Two months before launching this so luckily we got fiber optics in and we got some some good internet And we were able to start the company online And now that everything has kind of switched to remote. We can have meetings. We can pitch different customers All remote. It makes it so much easier We can have employees from all across the world and because of that fiber optics into the rural areas For all these rural development projects that are being put in it's It's thank goodness for that But on top of it, you're right like we are so far in the middle of nowhere And the pride that comes out of our town our county and our state now Is just unbelievable. Our local restaurant is our biggest fans and supporters They have a bunch of our signs and posters and videos up and people will come in and see the painter land sisters in our local restaurant I really love that. No, that's that's such a great story when it comes to oof, I guess When you came to market and so I noticed your product is also lactose free, right and so Most skier is not obviously you guys are using dairy cows. And so what was the decision that you guys used You know, what was the decision-making process there? That you you know to decided to which is really smart by the way, at least for me in los angeles are Where I am right now. There's a coffee shop in front and there's no dairy milk there It's just all all all milks and so parts of la parts of, you know, new york probably are the same where it's impossible to get any sort of Cream or dairy product put in your coffee. And so why why that decision for you guys? Yeah, so Dairy is such an important nutrient like it can provide 13 essential nutrients for our bodies And it's such a powerhouse food that I strongly believe can fuel so many And then we found out that over 65 percent of americans have some sort of lactose sensitivity So that's 65 of the country that might be able to consume. Yeah, it's crazy, right? And when you look at data like that, it's like how could you not especially when it's such an Easy process. Yes, it costs more But now 65 of the country can enjoy these products Real dairy products again that fuel their body That they might not have had the chance to or would have had to switch to plant-based alternatives Or take a lactase pill every time they want to enjoy something and let's be honest Someone's going to take a lactase pill. They're going to eat ice cream. They're not going to go for the yogurt Yeah, they're not they're not going for a healthy option. That's for sure That's funny. And so how do you guys do it? You just add the enzyme into the product? Yeah, so in the culturing process you add the different cultures to Basically sour the milk and then you add the lactase enzyme in there as well. Lactose is just milk sugar. It's basically Every single carb is made up of three simple sugars And it's basically two simple sugars hugging each other. They're best friends And in our bodies like the 45 percent that have a lactase enzyme already naturally in there We can separate those sugars But people who can't who don't have lactase enzyme in their stomach naturally These sugars do not separate and it just causes uncomfortability. So it's like a I always relate it to an m&m with hard candy on the outside Like people who are lactose intolerant can't get to that sweet chocolate on the inside. They can't digest it It's like swallowing an m&m hole You should be a chemistry teacher. That's exactly that's a perfect example of that How did you guys decide what price to to come to market with? Like how much is one of the yogurts today if I go to a store here in LA? What am I what am I paying? It is definitely one of the most premium products and it's got a premium price with it So we recommend around $2.99. We see it anywhere from $2.15 to $3.50 So that varies because it's a suggested retail price But we try to put as much nutrients in here as possible and arguably It could be one of the most nutrient dense yogurts on the market I'm not a very definite person because you never know what's out there But it's got four cups of yogurt and every single cup of milk And then it's the organic milk Which when the cattle graze and have that opportunity to be really healthy Their the outputs that they have in their milk are are way more nutrient dense typically an average They have more amegas the cow is just healthier and they can let out more more nutrients We're also cross-bred herd that sounds a little weird people are like, what is that? Yeah, what does that mean? I've never I've never heard of that. So like the different cattle breeds have different nutrients And so the typical black and white cows might have less solids or nutrients in it They have more volume of milk versus a cow called the jersey a breed called the jersey They're really small deer like looking cows and they have way more fats and proteins And so you're going to be able to get more nutrients in a cup of yogurt So ours are basically six different breeds of cattle all mingled together So that we have the healthiest different outcomes and more nutrients per cup and a healthier animal That's really good to have in your investor pitch. That's so fascinating because to me it's like wow I don't know anything about cattle and these different and so now I've just learned something that's super interesting and And I guess that makes your product a little bit better if it's more Nutrient dense when it comes to protein how much protein I'm talking about per cup of yogurt Yeah, so the plane has 18 cups of or 18 grams of protein per serving and it's a 5.3 ounce serving size The fruit it have 16 grams And what flavors are you guys rolling out with right now? So we have six simply yummy flavors six, okay Plus the two big Multi-serves so we have plain strawberry blueberry lemon Meadowberry named after Stephanie's daughter meadow Stephanie's my sister So meadowberry is just a mixed flavor of strawberry raspberry blueberry and elderberry And we just launched savannah's peach And what's your favorite? What is your favorite flavor of all of these? plain My sister loves the vanilla bean I wanted to talk about this so I you know off air. I was telling you We invest in startups sometimes and or at least we we speak to them when they're raising capital all the time Probably five companies a week. I would say and so when this happens Usually the conversation of a crowdsource campaign will come up. They're thinking about it You know the market is an ideal right now investors are holding tight blah blah blah And so one of the options comes up we fund or kickstart or whatever it might be And so you are currently in a in a we funder campaign and you've you guys are well over $700,000 First of all congratulations kudos to you. That's unbelievable. What made you guys decide to do that? this campaign and then If you could for everyone who ever asks me like hey, Diego, how do how do I do this successfully? You're obviously doing it presently successfully And so let's give people a window into that but uh first why Why the decision to do that and then two tips and tricks that are working out for you Yeah, so we were chugging along, you know selling yogurt We became a national brand less than four months after starting within 12 months of starting We sold 1.2 million dollars worth of yogurt We've now been in business a year and a half And we've sold over three million just this year So just for perspective January of this year, which would be month 11 in business We sold 170 thousand dollars worth of yogurt that month in october We sold 462 thousand dollars worth of yogurt And so it's more than three times increasing in our business. So we're we're moving along We're getting great traction. We're picking up new stores We're in almost 2000 stores nationwide now in every state but Alaska We're getting a lot of increased pickup per store and are really focusing on the natural grocery channels And so we're getting a great product. We're getting traction and now Looking for funding. It's like how do we want to do that? And our vision for starting this company is to sustain our farm and other farms around us for generations to come And to connect consumers to the direct source of their food the american farmer There's very few products that are farmer owned very few yogurts on the industry and so transparency and also The ability to know where your food comes from and also support our economy because farmers are the backbone of it They're the stewards of the land and can be one of the number one sources of sustainability practices And so we need to support them And our farm's been around for four generations We wanted to create a brand that we could Continue to expand Hopefully for generations to come and really create a stability stable foundation Which is why we focused on premium quality and connection through social media and talking And so when we were looking for investors We wanted the same in return and we had so much support from our community to the point where it was like Why not just open it up and let people invest who really care about that mission Who want to join us with it? Who are consumers of the products or who have connections? And so networking is key like we When we first started remember I told you we had 14 000 yogurts and we pedaled them around not knowing where we were going to sell them So somehow I ended up in an Amish guys car from Lancaster county We became friends and we pedaled to New York city. We drove and tried to sell it into the city So the same thing with fundraising. Why not like open the doors because you never know who you're going to meet Right and so by launching a crowdfunding campaign We can talk openly about what we're doing about our successes and our obstacles and opportunities And what our vision is and really take control of what our destinies are going to be And so crowdfunding and we picked we funder because it's a very notable site That this can be the avenue to create these connections and networks Open the door to meet new people and have them join along with us when you think about Being a fourth generation farmer. What similarities do you see? Like what what what has growing up in that environment taught you about business and about maybe your specific approach to business I always said I never wanted to be a business person Um, I just wanted to have good food Meet good people and to live on my farm very humbly, right? and so just really leading with authenticity and connection and so our business minds both my sister and I Are just thinking outside the box being creative and knowing that no one has done this before you No one has done this before us exactly the way we're doing it And so you can get all the advice in the world But take all those advice take the different perspectives and overall make make a decision you feel comfortable with because No one's done this before and so it's a new path Yeah, it's it's personal to you That's fascinating and so when it comes to the just the we funder the the day You know the day in and out of just making sure that campaign is live What kind of things are you guys doing to get the word out social media? Obviously, but how are you guys spreading it? What are you doing to get to and obviously you're at seven hundred thousand dollars? So it's working. So what are you doing? What what do you realize is clicking? So if you talk to the different people who raise on we funder they have different perspectives But I think majority of them raise online or through their internal connections through calling people They're just pushing it on their own social medias We set up in-person meetings all the time. We call people We have these events called graze and gather events people can come they can try yoga They can meet other people in the community and then I'll set up and I'll pitch I'll let people know what we're doing It might be an older way to do it, but it's so engaging. It's so fun I can't tell you how many cool people I've met through that So basically you guys use it as a feeder and so if someone's interested and they can meet you Either whether via zoom or in-person you'll go ahead and set it up the pitch And so you give context and if they want to donate they'll go back to the website and do it that way Yeah, exactly And how we set it up as well, which was a little out of the norm is a lot of companies right now are Starting and they sell within five to seven years and that's actually in their business plan 90% of the food in the grocery stores are owned by 10 companies We want to take our destinies into our own hands, right? And so we don't we don't want to set up for the investors to have the return on investment of a one-time sale We want to make smart decisions So that we can provide the most nutrients to consumers because consumers are our Country is more nutrient deficient than ever before It's such an interesting at least for me like it's interesting to hear your perspective on it and I think You have I mean your window your lens of this is so unique Which is so special and the way you go about this is obviously different And I think that that's a cool story to share because there's somebody that'll connect with that There's someone that'll say like, you know, I might not sound like the most I guess out of the box business person, but Here I am and we're growing we're growing this national brand and it's built upon authenticity the desire to Nutrient first there's a story here. It ties back personally for you. It's also just a story of I don't know. It's like farming like there are some books that will equate entrepreneurship to farming in the sense of like You have to really care for this thing and some people don't do that They'll go on the private equity route Let's say and everything becomes about growth as opposed to nurturing and these these are two very different approaches in business Neither one is right or wrong per se, but in the sense of they can both work But nurturing It feels a little bit better. I think and so it sounds like your approach is more nurturing, which is special To wrap up that last thought though You're completely right That's what we're leading with and the authenticity and so How we have it set up through crowdfunding is the return on investment isn't if we sell the company it's To encourage profitability so that we can reap distributions of profits And so that encourages longevity and health and are you guys profitable yet? Or do you feel like you Like when do you think profitability will hit for you guys? It's projected in 2025 Okay, so pretty soon not not too long away Yeah, and what stores are you guys at nationally? Are you at the Whole Foods? Tell people where they can at least find your product try your product Yeah, so they can find it in sprouts nationwide central market airwan nugget giant giant food a bunch of the amish and country stores in pennsylvania new york A lot of stores throughout new york city new england states And we're in Whole Foods in the mid-athlantic Excuse the ignorance here when it comes to working with the amish. Is it just cash basis or are they now using credit cards? How does that how what's the form of currency? What's the exchange? Yeah, so we mostly like checks checks and cash and but credit cards and bank accounts as well We actually have some amish members who are investors in the company I love that pretty cool. That's awesome. So it's a profit-first business model That makes a lot of sense in the event that someone were to approach you for an acquisition or you know, would you Entertain and obviously I think a part of you would have to you know, how do you view that? How do you? View this bigger picture of your legacy and what you you know, what you ultimately want to achieve not so much maybe Financially but maybe just for for you for the farm for your family Like what do you view success as at the end of the day? We're open-minded to hearing other opportunities But success to us is creating a stable market for our fluid milk farmers haven't been Given a higher price for their milk since 1980. This is a real problem They're you know, they're struggling and what they're doing is is leading the way in sustainability And so we want to create a stable market and to tell the voice of the amazing things they're doing But also connect consumers. There's this big gap of disconnection and they should have the right for it And basically once we create that stability just figuring out what else we can do and We have a lot of plans for the future. So we will see where they take us Sometimes when I talked I have a friend of mine who invest in food tech And so he'll say things and this might sound crazy But he'll say things like in the future when you go to a coffee shop You'll be able to order not so much almond milk or oat milk You'll be able to order lab-grown breast milk And you'll you'll be able to get that in your latte and that sounds wild to I think anyone who normally would hear that Unless you know him and what he does for a living when it comes to To this thing where I think you're totally right It almost sounds like a presidential campaign the fact that you want to empower the farmers It sounds so beautiful and it sounds so like I want to support that I want to get behind that There's a whole another side of it, which is this like lab-grown Breast milk as an example. I'm giving you how much how much of this do you worry about? Do you care at all? Does it matter at all? But in terms of like the food technology that Is coming up how often do you think about it or does it not really pertain at all? I think that food industry and you know feeding our growing population should be at the foremost of everyone's minds And we should be looking at all the different technologies and advancements from From that to you know, how do we sustain our land? How do we give back to the soil? How do we provide more nutrients per cup of yogurt all of that entails? Obviously, I'm more dedicated to how do we sustain farms and our way of life that Come so symbiotically to us to work hand in hand with mother earth and the animals But to be extreme in this line of work only causes lack of opportunities in the future like farmers Conventional organic like we should all work together Food suppliers we all need to work together because we all have similar goals and we shouldn't be trying to I guess Shut one down or the other so I'm excited to see what the new world the food technology is But I'm going to keep advancing organic agriculture here here in the northeast That's a great answer. Will you guys give any any new products coming to market any like snack packs any things like that? Uh that you might find interesting that you can tease I would say if everyone watches our social media then they can see when we come out with things But we would love to hear what everyone's ideas are because we are super open-minded And so we're going to go for for whatever we think an opportunity is And to connect with what the consumers want. So you guys connect with us We will try to make it happen one way, but when we first started I told you about those multiple business plans The very first one we had a processing plant. We were going to do a farm store We made every single type of dairy product in this plan, of course And so we minimized it to just this yogurt for now and selling it to retail stores So we have to get a little focus, but yeah, we have some wild dreams Any desire to go on Shark Tank? I'd love to go on Shark Tank. I think that would be so much fun. Yeah, that'd be amazing I can see you want it. You guys have such a good story two sisters show up. They have this beautiful story It's lactose free 65 of the market. You're doing basic three to four x from last year I mean it the whole story is is is wonderful Thanks, we get that all the time I'm sure So we'll we'll see where that takes us But yeah when when we have enough energy we'll give it an apply on there on their website and see if we end up there I'm gonna put you in touch with Mindy the casting director. I think she's gonna love you guys and all right I'll have to ask her if we should bring a cow Just get absolutely You can just we can just bring them in from northern california a little bit closer Well, look at thanks for coming on the podcast. Tell everyone where they can Find you guys support you guys social media the weave under all the things Yeah, so you can support our company painter land sisters We're the fastest growing yogurt company and the natural category based on spinz data year over year So if you want to try it or if you want to color on our yogurt containers because each Yogurt color Has a coloring page or if you want to check out our cute cows or videos of stephanie and I dancing in our cow fields Hanging out seeing what farmers do on a daily basis or if you want to just hang out in la eating some yogurt Then check out our website painter land sisters.com You can go to our where to buy page and find almost 2000 stores across the country that you can find it But yeah, I really encourage you to check out our social media or email So you can see the latest scoop in the cutest cow pictures I love that hailey. Thank you so much for coming on the podcast. Thanks for having me Thank you for tuning in if you enjoyed this episode share with your friends your family or anyone You might think might benefit from the conversation we've had today And if you haven't already, please take a moment to leave a review on your favorite podcast platform We'd greatly appreciate it your feedback helps us improve and reach more people who can benefit from our discussions The best way to stay connected with us and get the latest updates on future episodes is through our social media channels You can find us at startup storefront We'll be back next tuesday with another great episode. See you then