Business
In February 2019, Banana Scoops was just an outrageously innovative concept that Jess had been thinking about whilst working her “normal job”. A concept that created “nice cream” from bananas and other natural ingredients to make a “healthy” alternative to our favourite chilled treat.Fast forward to just a year later and tubs of delicious Banana Scoops can now be seen in the freezer aisle in major retailers such as Ocado, Planet Organic and As Nature Intended.What’s so outstanding about this achievement is that Jess managed to do all of this on her own. No team, no huge budget, just a lot of hard work and a strong want to create the highest quality product.We chat to Jess to see just how she has managed to do all this on her own and what it’s like to connect with such major national brands. How she managed the many barriers and lessons thrown her way, and what advice she can offer to anyone looking to grow a start up to such a scale in one year without a team behind them.Here’s just a snippet of the advice Jess offered during our chat….Retailers won’t chase you, you have to put yourself out there, grab hold of opportunities (even if it’s slightly terrifying!) and push for your brand to be noticed.When chasing suppliers, don’t follow up with a “just chasing the previous email” type of email. Always add additional value. Offer new developments, press articles, social engagement and just general good news pieces. You need to grab their attention and offer increased value on every touchpoint.Don’t let a lack of funds/human resource/skill set stop you. Jess put together a basic brand design herself to get going, she then pulled upon connections to get where she is now. Branding is vital in standing out as a food product, but you can add to your brand with a really quality product, an innovative product, and your passion. You can then pay an expert when you have the funds.Jess offers SO many more valuable insights as to how she has managed to achieved such a major milestone so early on. It is also so interesting to hear the process that goes behind meeting and getting the go ahead from a major brand.