Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Lian Delos Reyes, founder of Milksta, located in St. John's, Canada.

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

Milksta creates vegan & decaf postpartum lattes for nursing, pumping, and moms in their postpartum recovery stage. It's made of 100% plant-based lactogenic ingredients and formulated by nutritionists & food scientist moms, too.

Our mission is to uplift and support mothers' wellness so they can provide what their children deserve - the best nourishment and nurturing possible. Hug in a mug! Breastfeeding/lactation support (and even milk boost) serves as a healthy treat. Moms love and are always missing their coffee, especially when lactating. We made sure they were able to have it without any guilt and worries about any allergens.

Our products are free from the top 8 allergens! As a brand, we also advocate for breastfeeding education, which I, as a Founder, enjoy and love doing as well.

-guilt-free "brews" that will help ease the stress caused by low breastmilk supply for nursing & pumping mothers desiring to provide the optimum nutrition for their babies
-helps with the pregnancy & postpartum coffee cravings
-allergen-free lattes for moms who have sensitive breastfed babies
-easy and convenient to prepare - just add water! Perfect for busy mothers

Postpartum stage requires a lot of work to the body for healing, and coffee deprivation is real to some moms. We created Milksta to address that (milk+ barista = Milksta)

Tell us about yourself

I'm an immigrant, a Certified Breastfeeding Specialist, a practical herbalist, and a mom of two multicultural boys. I would like to think that I have a third child: Milksta, which is the brand I started. It all stemmed from my own personal breastfeeding struggles and success through the help of my homeland's miracle milk booster: Moringa. I was born and raised by a dietitian mom and have worked as a salesperson for a British health food brand where all the interest in health & wellness started. I had PPD and found healing with natural therapies when I was living in Singapore.

To be completely honest, I started Milksta as a passion project and side hustle, initially just to fulfill my desire of combining coffee and breastfeeding (plus milk supply boosters). I used to work a full-time job while at the same time starting to get fascinated with the wonders of breastfeeding and moringa as a superfood/galactagogue that has been used widely in my home country, the Philippines.

Unlike most businesses, I did not really do any market research, feasibility study, or in-depth study competition. I started it with the thinking: this product will solve my own problem, and if nobody buys them, I'd be happy to drink them all or gift them to my mommy friends.

When it started to gain traction, that's when I realized that nursing mothers seem to be an underserved market, and I am glad I took the plunge. The business has slowly grown organically with nothing but passion, purpose, and a little amount of borrowed money from my husband.

Breastfeeding is something that I am really passionate about, and I keep on working to become an expert on it. After founding Milksta, I started diving into studying how I can help more mothers through breastfeeding counseling and health coaching. I started with a 10-mom goal - I told myself, if I can help ten moms to breastfeed blissfully, I will keep doing what I am doing. I've surpassed that goal in the first month, and as a brand, we've helped 50,000 more! Our goal is to reach 1million moms.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

I think it would be not treating my job as a job. It's very fulfilling and exciting to be working on something that I am very passionate about. The heart is at work, I would say. When starting the business, it wasn't very stressful, too, and it did not really put too much money at risk. It's a combination of luck, heart, & grit that the business has started growing gracefully.

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

I always say that it's like having another child. Previously, I've always loved the idea of becoming an entrepreneur so I will have more time and freedom. It surprised me, though, that when business starts to flourish and your team grows, you will have more responsibilities... and in my own personal perspective, more family members to nurture and take good care of. And since Milksta is also very close to my heart, there are some things about it that I couldn't let go of and easily entrust to anyone.

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

  1. This may be super cliche, but I really find inspiration in this quote: you don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great. Starting a business requires a tremendous leap of faith, but there's no way to find out if it will work if you don't try.
  2. Find your tribe. Entrepreneurship can be a lonely journey. There could be many moments that it can also help for having other "eyes" seeing your work or product, providing valuable feedback. Sometimes as founders/owners, we become so attached to our creation that it's very difficult to see things from another perspective.
  3. Do what you love! There's nothing more rewarding than putting your heart, mind, and body into something that makes your soul overjoyed and fulfilled.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

If you ever see a mother breastfeeding in public, please smile at her and tell her that she is doing a great job! #normalizebreastfeeding

Where can people find you and your business?

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

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.