Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Mel Tom, co-founder of Joughnuts Doughnuts, located in Mississauga, ON, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We started Joughnuts Doughnuts so that we could do what we love (making delicious vegan oh-so-scrumptious doughnuts) while also being able to help others in return. In other words, we make dough -pun intended- so that we can share it!
To #ShareTheDough, we donate a portion of all of our sales each month to two different charities/organizations - one for animal causes and one for people in need.
Tell us about yourself
We are a four-person team consisting of Jon, Mel, Andrea, and Justin.
During the pandemic, we had a lot of extra time on our hands. Jon, in particular, took up baking and cooking to pass the time, and his vegan doughnuts soon became a hit with our family and friends.
Eventually, we got together and decided as a team if we were ever going to take the leap into entrepreneurship, now is a CRAZY time to do it...so WE DID IT!
Fortunately, Jon's aunt owns a catering company in Mississauga (Veggie Paradise) which we were able to use in order to start our doughnut venture.
Currently, we only operate one day a week on Saturdays because we all still have our day jobs. Together, we have backgrounds in education, visual arts, design, and videography. We combined all of our skills to bring our company together. Everything from our flavour development, doughnut preparation, social media, and photography is done by the four of us.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
We have also been featured in BlogTO, The Toronto Star, The Mississauga News, Taste Toronto, and Curiouscity. And although we are extremely grateful for the exposure, we feel that our biggest accomplishment is being able to share a portion of our proceeds to help both animals and people in need through our #sharethedough initiative.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Operating during the pandemic while juggling between Joughnuts Doughnuts and our full-time jobs can be challenging. What we do is truly a labour of love.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Build a community- appreciate your customers because you don't have a business without them.
- Support other small businesses- we're all in this together, and we are stronger when we work together. There is more than enough to go around.
- Be creative and innovative - work on that social media presence to get your name out there. Also, don't be afraid to be adventurous and try new things. If it works, that's great and if it fails, learn from it.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.joughnuts.ca/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joughnuts.ca/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joughnuts.ca/
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.