Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Fay Behbehani, president, and CEO of bonbuz, located in Los Angeles, CA, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Bonbuz is a female-founded futurist beverage company dedicated to changing the narrative on drinking culture by harnessing the natural power of plants and functional ingredients to create a new era of drinking and socializing.

If you've ever experienced "hangxiety" or felt less than 100% after a fun night out with friends, bonbuz is an option for you. Our customers are individuals that find value in alternative social beverages that encourage mind expansion versus limitation, bio-hackers, executives, sober-curious, sober, psychedelics advocates, the wellness-minded, and people who care about what they consume.

Functional beverages like bonbuz exist to shift the mindset on social transcendence, much like cannabis or mushrooms have shifted the way we use substances to expand consciousness.

Tell us about yourself

I'm a self-proclaimed wild gal turned sober-curious. Of Middle-eastern descent and having grown up in London and the South of Spain, I worked in law until finding my place at advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather, where I got a taste of how brands are built. Pursuing my dreams and passions of creating products with impact, I moved to Los Angeles. I became a beverage entrepreneur in both the alcoholic and, eventually, the non-alcoholic space. As a former head of marketing for a California-based brain tech company, I discovered my passion for plant medicine and its therapeutic properties for mental and physical ailments + optimizations. This was catalyzed during my time as the co-founder of Uncle Ed's Damn Good Vodka, where I became sober-curious in 2018 on a meditation retreat in Northern California and realized that drinking culture needed a radical shift.

Harnessing my breadth of experience whilst indulging in my passion for all things beverage, wellness, and plant medicine, I founded bonbuz, setting out to revive the spirits industry and what it means to drink together in the modern age.

Towards the end of my drinking career, I started to realize the really intense mental and physical effects that alcohol was having on my body, my mind, and my spiritual health. At the time, the only other options aside from alcohol were a sugary mocktail or soda water. I started to think about how to manipulate traditional agents to really leverage the power of plants and natural supplements to give us a better high. When I tweaked the recipe of my life and removed alcohol, everything changed for me. And I wanted to share with the world the way to drink differently.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Creating a product that is changing people's lives and the social dynamics of what it means to have a drink. My mission was to create a product that has a positive impact and improves the quality of life.

When I get feedback from our customers that bonbuz has changed their life or when I see people enjoying a bonbuz cocktail over a traditional cocktail, both drinkers and non-drinkers alike, it makes this journey so worthwhile knowing that with every concoction, exists the power to make a change in this world.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Creating a work-life balance when you're an entrepreneur has been a monumental challenge. In the beginning, you are the company, and depending on how fast you grow and hire, it can feel like that for a while. As a solo founder, you're the main and oftentimes the only driver of growth, and burnout is real. This is a long game, and as a business owner, it's important to prioritize health over anything else because you can't grow anything if you're not well in the mind, body, and spirit.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Look after your health as your first priority. The faster you sprint, the quicker you can head straight to the bottom, burning the candle from both ends. Being an entrepreneur is about the long-term. A marathon, not a race, regardless of what Silicon Valley likes to advocate.
  2. Find a solid emotional support system professional, whether these people are your employees, mentors, advisors, a therapist, or other entrepreneurs. Being able to share your folly and foes with your support mechanism can make it all feel a lot easier. You are not alone.
  3. Get perspective, think differently. As a younger company, you're a lot more agile, and with the advent of tech making accessibility to customers easier, thinking outside the proverbial box can go a long way.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Don't make any decisions when you're emotional. This can be quite hard when you're so tied into the business, and a lot can feel personal. I often think about one of Victor Frankl's quotes remembering that between the stimulus and response, there is space for you to choose the type of person you want to show up as. That space is your power.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://bonbuz.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bonbuz
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bonbuz/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bonbuz
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bonbuz/

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.