Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jacob Bassett, co-founder of Beer Fridge, located in Bellingham, WA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Beer Fridge is an online store for craft beer, cider, and seltzer subscriptions and gift boxes shipped to your doorstep! We help craft beer lovers discover new breweries, try unique beers, and connect more local breweries to their fans. Beer Fridge boxes feature a curated selection of unique, high quality, and rare craft beverages handpicked from local, independent breweries across the U.S. Inventory changes each month so fans can discover new breweries, explore new styles, and stock their beer fridge with the best craft beverages every month with flat rate shipping and no commitments.
Tell us about yourself
My name is Jake; I'm the co-founder of Beer Fridge alongside Travis Kane. After working most of my career in marketing and helping direct-to-consumer companies target niche audience groups, I began to daydream about starting my own direct-to-consumer business. I've always loved craft beer and felt like there are so many incredible small breweries and talented, passionate folks running those breweries that make unbelievably great beer, but their products and stories are often confined to the location of their business. I wanted to find a way to share those stories and products with more people who love craft beer and love supporting local breweries. I'm motivated every day to grow our business so that we can work on more projects that support breweries and the communities where they operate!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
One of my biggest accomplishments as a business owner was successfully launching our flagship Bellingham Born & Brewed craft beer box and merchandise series. The craft beer box is a sampler variety pack of amazing craft beers from the iconic craft beer scene in our hometown, Bellingham, WA. We partnered with a local artist on the Bellingham Born & Brewed concept. We produced some amazing packaging for the sampler box and a lineup of hoodies, t-shirts, hats, glassware, stickers, and magnets that feature the Born & Brewed logo. Sales from our flagship series support a local charity that invests in programs and initiatives to help a variety of underserved folks in our community. I'm really proud of our vision and execution of this project.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
I think one of the hardest things about being a business owner is maintaining your energy and optimism through all the highs and lows of growing a business. It's an emotional rollercoaster from feeling on top of the world when you roll out a special project to feeling crushed and defeated when something doesn't go right.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
My first tip is to test small and fail fast. Whether you are testing your business concept or testing a new idea within your business, start small. Get feedback from friends and family, market locally to a small target market, and find out quickly if the idea has traction. If it fails, hopefully, your losses are minimal, and you can quickly move on to your next project or idea. Tip #2 is stay on top of your personal health and relationships. When you start a business, it's easy to dedicate all your time and energy into it and forget to come up for air. Take care of yourself, exercise, have a sleep routine, spend time with your friends and family outside of the business, etc... showing up burnt out to any of your roles doesn't help anyone. Lastly, remember why you are starting a business and check in with that mission consistently!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://getbeerfridge.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/getbeerfridge
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beerfridgeofficial/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beerfridge-official/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.