Spilling the tea on the news

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage, but not sure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Matt Hammonds, co-founder and CEO of Full Leaf Tea Co., based in White City, OR, USA.

Tell us all about your business...

Full Leaf Tea Co. is a direct-to-consumer, e-commerce tea business that specializes in premium loose leaf teas, natural wellness blends, and Japanese matcha, along with the accessories to make the perfect cup of tea. Besides the products we sell, Full Leaf also specializes in developing relationships with our customers and catering to their needs. Our customers are about 60% female, and the age range is broad. We have a significant number of customers from 18 years old up to 80.

What's your background and motivation to grow as a solopreneur?

I’ve always loved business. In high school, I would always gravitate toward business books over anything else. I always knew I wanted to start a business from scratch, but I wasn’t sure what it would be. I graduated college in 2008 and went straight into working in my family’s construction company. Starting in construction at the beginning of the Great Recession was the most challenging and most important lesson I’ve ever had. It helped me understand what it takes to keep a business running when everything is going against you. Even though it is challenging, owning and operating a business is one of the most rewarding things. I love creating something people love and gravitate towards. But the most significant benefit is it allows me to be able to give back.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

My wife and started Full Leaf Tea Co. in 2014 with $100 in our bank account. We took out a credit card with a $2,500 limit, and that was our seed funding. With that money, we hustled and bootstrapped our company into a successful business that supports dozens of employees and supplies millions of cups of tea to people worldwide. The best part, we are just getting started, and I know we will accomplish many more great things. So, anyone that says it takes a lot of money to start a business is full of it :)

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

For us, we are responsible for a lot of families’ and individuals’ livelihoods. It is a tremendous responsibility to know that every decision I make, good or bad, impacts many people.

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

The first tip is to make sure it’s something you are passionate about and willing to put in the work. If you want to start a business only to do the things you want to do, have more free time, or think it will be easy, DON’T DO IT. Starting a business is like having a child. It will be the most rewarding and most challenging thing you will ever do. The next tip is don’t worry as much about your product, name, logo, website, etc. The three most important things that separate businesses that succeed from companies that fail are execution, execution, execution. I used to think having the best product, prices, name, or logo would mean I would be successful. Now all those things are essential, but none of them matter if you don’t execute. The last tip is to operate your business like you only have $100 in your bank account. You will make much better decisions if you don’t throw money at problems. All of my worst business decisions happened when I had a lot of money in my account.

Entrepreneurship is probably the #1 thing that makes our country so great. I fully believe that anyone can accomplish anything they want if they have the passion and drive that’s required. One of my favorite quotes (sorry, I don’t remember who said it) is, “The shortcut is the longest distance between two points.” Building a business is more about the journey than the destination. If you are only worried about how quickly you can hit your goal, you will miss out on the invaluable lessons you will learn during the journey. Another thing I think is important is don’t be afraid of failure (and learn from it), but try to keep the losses small enough, so they don’t kill your business.

Where can people find you?

Website: https://fullleafteacompany.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fullleaftea
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fullleaftea/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.ph/fullleafteaco/_created/
YouTube: https://bit.ly/3w1Of0w

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.

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