Side Hustle Hero 55: Putting The Wine Into Wine Gums, with Teena Gudjonson
It started as a simple question from her inquisitive child. Is there wine in wine gums?
Why not?
That night, a side hustle was born.
Pushed by the relentless enthusiasm from her kids, Teena Gudjonson got to work in her kitchen to, well, put the wine into wine gums.
Today, her Cellar Candy website features not only "wine" gummies, but liquor-based creations like Lime Margarita and Piña Colada.
Check out this episode to discover;
- How and why she closes the business for 2 months in the summer each year
- Why you shouldn't let lack of business experience stop you
- How she scrambled to find a commercial kitchen, after receiving a sudden 100 + orders to fill
- Helpful insights about dealing with supply issues, figuring out wholesale pricing, and juggling increased costs.
- Creating a "Life By Design" that fits you
- Inspiration in her story to start or grow your side hustle
What You'll Hear:
03:12 The birth of a side hustle idea
06:07 Trying to figure out how to actually make gummies
07:19 The alcohol kept breaking down the gelatin
07:49 Debuting at a large wine festival, they were a hit!
08:37 Going into retail sales forced a move (a scramble actually) to find a commercial kitchen
11:43 Expanded into "liquor" gummies and private label products
12:08 Buying in bulk not only vital for pricing, it helps when dealing with supply disruptions
13:02 The decision to build a commercial kitchen on her home property
14:17 Coming up with new flavours
16:57 Determining the price point of product can be tricky - gelatin Teena used to buy at $500 for 25 kg, has been as high as $1,200
18:33 Teena will only discounts max 25% to retailers, otherwise it's not worth it
22:53 About 95% of product is sold wholesale to retailers
23:46 TikTok post resulted in an overnight surge of online orders
26:37 Why Teena's not focused on scaling up at this time
28:16 Pitching at Dragon's Den and getting a deal
34:13 "When I stop limiting myself, I think then that the possibilities are endless"
36:23 Only go to someone for advice who has already done what you want to achieve
37:15 Now has 1 full-time employee and several part-time
38:38 Keeps quality control products – some now 7-years old
40:49 She still tests every batch before it gets molded for quality control
41:42 To reduce labeling costs to something reasonable (from $3 to $0.15 per) required a $10,000 print run
45:10 Has now sold over ½ million dollars worth of gummies
45:40 From having the capacity to make only 40 packages a day, to 500 per day
49:31 Competitors are now copying her flavours, but they don't compare to Teena's real, quality, ingredients
50:50 Cellar Candy artisan gummies are a world apart from the big box bulk versions
52:54 What 'gelatin' actual is
54:13 You can create a "Life By Design"
54:51 Be sure it's what you want
55:05 Challenge your negative beliefs about yourself and your potential
55:38 You have a unique combination of talent and skills, interests and experiences that no one else has
Connect with Teena:
https://www.instagram.com/cellar_candy/
Connect with Joan:
https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/
https://www.facebook.com/posivy/
Be on the show!
https://www.sidehustlehero.com/guests/intake/