I'm a foodie. In case you couldn't tell by looking at me! I LOVE to cook - and EAT - exquisite food. So I was thrilled when a friend introduced me to a company called Gourmet Delights. I ordered a few things, loved them, and have been a faithful customer ever since. (Thanks Terri!) But you know me...I am also an avid networker. So of course, it was not long before the owner of this amazing company and I had connected. I can't even tell you how it happened because I feel like we've been chatting for ever. I love his sense of humor. I love his products. I love his commitment to customer service. You will too. Fellow foodies - meet Jeff Pfohl.1. Jeff, tell us about yourself.
My formal education is in chemistry and physics. After getting my PhD I worked in the government for several years before venturing out on my own as an entrepreneur. This scientific background prepared me well for entrepreneurship in that a Ph.D. not only takes 6 years, which takes patience and determination, but also means failure. Experiments go wrong, and you need to reevaluate, and adjust, moving forward. In a small business things also go wrong, and you need to stop, and often rethink everything you originally believed, challenge every assumption, and then come up with a new plan to move forward.
2. Tell us about your business
Gourmet-Delights.com is an online retail store specializing in gourmet foods for the home chef. I was tired of paying what I considered exorbitant prices for average ingredients. I knew I could offer higher quality ingredients than were currently available retail, at a lower price than the average products on the store shelves, thus our motto "Exceptional Foods at realistic prices".
I decided to be online only, for two important reasons: first was to keep my costs down, so I could pass those savings along to the customer, and second was to expand my reach. I’ve lived in big cities, and small towns, and the variability of supermarkets is astounding. When I lived in those places, long before the internet was mainstream and in everyone’s home, not being able to find a real balsamic vinegar, or true extra virgin olive oil, or certain spices was painful for a home chef like me. Gourmet-Delights.com solves those dilemmas and puts high quality ingredients right on your doorstep no matter where you live.
3. Why did you choose to start your own business and why this particular niche?
Gourmet-Delights.com is my 9th startup. It became a reality when I was hosting dinner parties for friends, with ingredients I hand carried back from around the world during my travels, and my friends always asked "where I can find that ingredient" and I would say it is only available in Europe, or Asia, or…. So if I had extra I’d give them some, which meant I ran out sooner. At some point ½ my suitcase was bringing ingredients back for friends, and I said "if my friends are begging me for these ingredients, and love them, there must be others out there looking." I launched the website in March 2009 and immediately started getting sales.
4. What do you like most, and least, about being your own boss?
What I like most is the lack of office politics. Small businesses allow everyone to be connected. The owner/CEO can talk to everyone, and everyone can talk to the CEO. Problems get identified, and resolved, faster because everyone has a stake, and everyone has a valuable perspective to offer. That teamwork is invaluable for a small business. The worst thing is my boss, that’s me, is always watching me *lol* Every moment I’m doing something else, which isn’t often, I think "I should be back at work".
5. What personality traits and skills are needed to run a business?
You need to have an even keel. A business, especially in the early stages, is like a roller coaster. Ups, downs, and stomach wrenching drops. If you react emotionally, if you jump at every little hiccup, you will burn out very quickly. You also need to be ready for failure. Not everything will go your way, you can count on that. So when things go wrong, you cannot just wallow in the failure, and sulk for a few days, you need to immediately fix that issue because 10 other things are related and could fail too if you don’t resolve things quickly. It takes a special personality, and mindset, to take blow after blow after blow, and still believe you can survive and be successful. Be ready to sacrifice your personal life, be ready to be the only one who will still believe in you month after month after month, and be ready for the disappointments that will inevitably come your way.
The fight is very real, and since only 1 in 14,000 companies make it to their 2nd year, the odds are really against you.
6. What has been the most difficult part of being an entrepreneur?
Not everyone understands the entrepreneurial lifestyle. It is a vow of poverty as you put your own savings into the company to get it off the ground. It is working days, nights, and weekends. It is thus very isolating. You will often feel alone, and you are alone. You need to be comfortable with being alone. But also make sure you have a support network, friends, family, colleagues, who you can talk to. It keeps you grounded, and helps you clear your mind, and look at things from a different perspective. But remember, in the end, it is your company, and it lives, or dies with you.
7. Do you have any resources that you have used to build your business that you would recommend?
Always hire professionals to do things you are not an expert in. You need to focus on your strengths to push the company forward. Hire a good contracts attorney, and let them handle the legal stuff. Hire a good accountant, and let them handle the accounting. For online businesses, use a top-tier hosting company, with the best support and software. Yes they cost money, and are more expensive than the "Bargain basement" hosts, but the amount of time, and frustration, you save is well worth the investment. This not only gives you some peace of mind, but is smart operationally and strategically.
8. Do you have any tips to share on promoting yourself?
Be honest with everyone. You may need to deliver bad news, you may need to deliver news that is embarrassing to yourself, a mistake you made, something that went wrong at the company, but if you are honest and open with others, they respect that.
9. What other advice would you like to share with someone starting their own business?
Be part of a small company first. You will get the look and feel of a small business without the 100% responsibility that comes with owning your own business. There is nothing like seeing the dynamics of a small company, the struggles, and the dedication it takes to determine if you are ready for your own company. You will build a network of people that can help you later on, and most importantly you can learn from other’s mistakes.
10. How can we contact you to learn more about your products and services?
My website is full of information, from product descriptions, to recipes, to customer reviews. I work very hard to put all the information I possibly can on the website so the customer can be as informed as I am. That empowers the customer.
