What inspired you to start your own business?

• As I am a Grade 10 student during this pandemic, I felt that I had a lot of time on my hands and I really wanted to do something on our property that would provide to our community.  I worked with our neighbour who is a farmer and I was very interested in growing my own food and providing it to the community.  It is very hard work but very rewarding when you see the final products and you can enjoy them at your home.

What helped you when working with BACD and how did it impact you and your business?

• Working on getting my social media and sign up to be able to sell my vegetables is one of the hard parts of this business.  With the help of BACD, I am learning how to market myself.  I also very much enjoy working at home and off of the land.  I am looking forward to posting my sign and providing great vegetables to my community.

Tell us about the growth of your business. How many employees, locations etc?

• This business is just me at the moment.  I have 84 tomato plants, approximately 500 onions and 20 pepper plants.  I should produce quite a bit of food to sell to my community and I am looking forward to it.

What marketing strategies have been successful for you?

• Currently, working with other farmers in the area has been very helpful.  Also, just getting the word out through my network of friends has really helped me.  I should be able to sell all of my vegetables through these networks.  I am working on getting supplies to grow winter garlic for harvest next July.  It will be a great project.  I am also going to build another garden adjacent to the existing one to grow my vegetables next spring/summer.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to start their own business?

• Be prepared for working all the time.  It takes a lot of work to run your own business but you can see the fruits of your labour and there is nothing like being your own boss.