Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Parker Brook, founder, and CEO of Lovebird Cereal, located in Minneapolis, MN, USA.

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

Cereal making a cereal-ous difference. A father left a Big Food job making junk cereal to clean it up for his daughter with gut health & allergen-friendly organic ingredients, no refined grain, no refined sugar, & no natural flavors or sugar science. Every ingredient on the front, 20% of profit to fight childhood cancer.

Tell us about yourself

After the birth of my daughter, I felt a calling to make a difference for her and all children. 1 in 2 children now has a chronic health condition (2x more than 1 generation ago) because 67% of a child’s diet is junk food. In fact, it is predicted that my daughter’s generation will be the first to have a lifespan shorter than their parents, driven by diet and lifestyle. Cereal is the largest category in the grocery store at $9B. Over 90% of households eat it every week, but it’s filled with inflammatory junk. I quit my 6 figure Big Food job with the mission to clean up cereal using real food from the earth and to fight childhood cancer, the #1 cause of death disease, by giving 20% of my profit.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Launching Lovebird in a pandemic by myself. No partners, no employees, no investors - 100% bootstrapped.

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

Saying no. Staying focused on strong growth, not just fast growth. I had to say no to a huge national grocer because it was not the right time for my small business.

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

  1. Find your purpose. The journey is hard but having a purpose-driven business makes it easier.
  2. Solve your own problem. Nobody knows it better than you.
  3. Just start. Start now and start small. Have a goal of selling 1,000 of your product to get feedback and validate if there are enough people with the same problem.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://lovebirdfoods.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eatlovebird/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eatlovebird/

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.