Twenty-something Surry Hills local Brea Millen is the healthy snack queen who had the balls – quite literally - to embark on an entrepreneurial journey into the world of small business. When Brea noticed a gap in the market for easy-to-make sugar-free treats, she started experimenting with her own recipes for DIY no-bake snacks, and Rawmix was born. From Bondi Markets to Macquarie Bank to The Mark Bouris Show, Brea is serious about spreading the word on how easy - and delicious - healthy snacking can be, subsequently inspiring others to follow their entrepreneurial dreams in the process. No Ordinary Life spoke to this bubbly small-business owner about quitting your job to follow your passion, the perks and pitfalls of being your own boss, how to not stuff up your pitch to business magnate Mark Bouris, and the encouraging advice she received from the sparkling, business-savvy, Samantha Wills.
Twenty-something Surry Hills local Brea Millen is the healthy snack queen who had the balls – quite literally - to embark on an entrepreneurial journey into the world of small business. When Brea noticed a gap in the market for easy-to-make sugar-free treats, she started experimenting with her own recipes for DIY no-bake snacks, and Rawmix was born. From Bondi Markets to Macquarie Bank to The Mark Bouris Show, Brea is serious about spreading the word on how easy - and delicious - healthy snacking can be, subsequently inspiring others to follow their entrepreneurial dreams in the process. No Ordinary Life spoke to this bubbly small-business owner about quitting your job to follow your passion, the perks and pitfalls of being your own boss, how to not stuff up your pitch to business magnate Mark Bouris, and the encouraging advice she received from the sparkling, business-savvy, Samantha Wills.
For those who have never heard of Rawmix, can you tell me a bit about your business?
Rawmix is an all-natural unbaked snack, free of processed sugars, dairy, gluten and preservatives, which actually tastes delicious. The DIY mixes are jars pre-packed with all of the dry ingredients you need to make raw snacks - be it bliss balls, bars or slices. It's as simple as mixing the jar contents with some coconut oil or lemon juice {depending on which flavour you get} in a food processor, then blend, shape, then set in the fridge or freezer. I also have a ready-made range which are available at selected cafes and markets around Sydney. Each jar makes about 12 balls, so having a couple a day definitely cures that 3pm itis!
Where did you first get the idea for Raw Mix? Did it come from your own personal 3pm-itus?
Yeah I think so. When I was working in TV, my role was quite desk bound and you do get the afternoon munchies, and in my particular workplace the only real cure was a packet of chips of biscuits, or something not terribly nutritious. So I started making raw snacks as I love being in the kitchen and bringing them into my workplace. I was getting really positive feedback but a lot of people said that they didn’t want to be running around to four or five different stores to get all of the ingredients. It’s time-consuming, can end up being very expensive and people thought that it would be too fiddly. So I came up with the idea to put everything in a little package for people to buy, and it really can’t get any simpler.
What has surprised you the most during your venture into the world of entrepreneurialism?
It’s just the opportunities that come from it that you would never expect. For example, I was asked to stock and style to new Macquarie Bank health food café, and then having the opportunity to pitch to Mark Bouris today. I never ever thought I’d be standing in front of someone like Mark Bouris pitching my business, and that never would have happened had I stayed working full-time in television.
"I never ever thought I’d be standing
in front of someone like Mark Bouris
pitching my business, and that never would
have happened had I stayed working
full-time in television."
How on earth did you come to find yourself with the opportunity to pitch face-to-face with one of Australia’s most revered businessman?
I started listening to his podcast, The Mark Bouris Show, and part of his podcast is a program called the Eagle’s Nest, which is basically Mark’s answer to Shark Tank. He wanted to create a platform for small businesses and entrepreneurs to come and to get in front of him and other business minds in a way that not many other platforms allow. So I decided to write to him, not with the intention of wanting money, but more contacts and exposure. I emailed him with my pitch and he liked it, which led to me being invited to pitch face-to-face to him, Roxy Jacenko (Sweaty Betty PR) and Sarah-Jane Clarke (former Sass & Bide). It was a first for me, but it was a brilliant experience and a bit surreal to be honest.
How are you feeling about the whole experience?
The pitch went really well, but then the follow up questions were really tough. It was nothing like shark tank kind of style, but they were just questions that threw me because I hadn’t thought much about what he brought up, so I didn’t really have an answer for everything. But it was ok, in fact it was amazing. Roxy was awesome and said that she would put me in touch with some of her contacts and Mark said that he’d introduce me to Angus Harris from Harris Farm which was awesome. There’s definitely things that could happen.
As someone who has ventured into this entrepreneurial world, do you have any particular business role models you look up to?
I do follow Samantha Wills quite closely because she’s sort of gone on a path that started out similar to mine. She started out at Bondi Markets like I did, then she worked her butt off developing her brand in Australia and took it to New York. The States is an area I’m really interested in, that I hope to one day get Rawmix into. I really admire how much she gives back to small business and young entrepreneurs.
I saw on your Instagram that Samantha Wills actually wrote to you. Can you share what it is she said to you?
It was very late at night and I was having a really shit day and I read this fabulous Instagram post of hers, being very encouraging of people who have an idea to make something of it, or at least have a crack. It was just really inspiring and I decided to write to her customer service email address at the Samantha Wills site. I did not think it would get anywhere near her but it ended up being passed onto Samantha and a few weeks later I got a handwritten letter in the post from her New york address saying she had checked out my website and loved the brand. It was just one of those moments where it was very unexpected. She’s obviously a very busy lady with a lot going on and probably gets a lot of fan mail everyday but it was really special for her to take the time to write to me and I was buzzing.
"I decided to write to her customer service
email address at the Samantha Wills site.
A few weeks later I got a handwritten letter in
the post from her New york address saying she
had checked out my website and loved the brand.
I was buzzing."
Did you ever envision that what started out as a passion project could flourish into a business?
To be honest I didn’t set out with that vision initially. I was more excited about the creative concept of Rawmix, more so than it as a business. I was doing Rawmix on weekends at Bondi markets during the last 12 months that I was of working full-time in television and it got to a point where I could go all in and give it a crack, which is exactly what I’m doing. I’m giving myself 12 months and then I’ll reassess at the end of that. It’s certainly something I’ve found that when I have the time and the energy to really put everything into it, there are so many opportunities that I never considered while it was just a weekend hobby. Now it has definitely developed into a business that I hope to make a living off one day. I’m not quite there yet but it’s early days as I’m only eight months into doing it full time. I think that’s still pretty early in small business days.
Was there a particular moment when you decided that this was something you wanted to do full-time, and what was the push to make you take that leap?
I wasn’t approached by any big supermarket who said ‘we want to stock your product on our shelves,’ it wasn’t anything like that. But it had gained enough momentum and it was starting to develop a following. I launched my website and an increasing number of online orders started to come though, and I guess it was more a response to people’s want for it. I felt like the wheels were turning and it was starting to gain momentum but if it had of started to gain momentum any quicker, I wouldn’t have be able to keep up with the orders while working full-time. It was a huge gamble because there was no guarantee that the momentum would continue and increase, but I was in a place where financially I was able to do it. It was a big risk but I’m really glad I took it.
Did you have much small-business knowledge before you set up your own small business?
No I didn’t, but I come from a family who has been in small business for many, many years. I always had my dad to bounce those business ideas off which has been wonderful. You don’t get taught so many of the basics of business in school or in university and it’s very much just learn as you go. I’ve made a lot of mistakes but thankfully I’ve had clients who have been very understanding as they have been in my shoes before. I think a lot of it is common sense and I have a great network of people from all walks of life and all industries around me and I reach out to all of them. I have various people helping me with different aspects of Rawmix and that’s been critical. I hope other people starting out on their own have that support because if not it would be very daunting.
To be honest I didn’t set out with that vision initially. I was more excited about the creative concept of Rawmix, more so than it as a business. I was doing Rawmix on weekends at Bondi markets during the last 12 months that I was of working full-time in television and it got to a point where I could go all in and give it a crack, which is exactly what I’m doing. I’m giving myself 12 months and then I’ll reassess at the end of that. It’s certainly something I’ve found that when I have the time and the energy to really put everything into it, there are so many opportunities that I never considered while it was just a weekend hobby. Now it has definitely developed into a business that I hope to make a living off one day. I’m not quite there yet but it’s early days as I’m only eight months into doing it full time. I think that’s still pretty early in small business days.
Was there a particular moment when you decided that this was something you wanted to do full-time, and what was the push to make you take that leap?
I wasn’t approached by any big supermarket who said ‘we want to stock your product on our shelves,’ it wasn’t anything like that. But it had gained enough momentum and it was starting to develop a following. I launched my website and an increasing number of online orders started to come though, and I guess it was more a response to people’s want for it. I felt like the wheels were turning and it was starting to gain momentum but if it had of started to gain momentum any quicker, I wouldn’t have be able to keep up with the orders while working full-time. It was a huge gamble because there was no guarantee that the momentum would continue and increase, but I was in a place where financially I was able to do it. It was a big risk but I’m really glad I took it.
Did you have much small-business knowledge before you set up your own small business?
No I didn’t, but I come from a family who has been in small business for many, many years. I always had my dad to bounce those business ideas off which has been wonderful. You don’t get taught so many of the basics of business in school or in university and it’s very much just learn as you go. I’ve made a lot of mistakes but thankfully I’ve had clients who have been very understanding as they have been in my shoes before. I think a lot of it is common sense and I have a great network of people from all walks of life and all industries around me and I reach out to all of them. I have various people helping me with different aspects of Rawmix and that’s been critical. I hope other people starting out on their own have that support because if not it would be very daunting.
"I’ve made a lot of mistakes but
thankfully I’ve had clients who
have been very understanding as
they have been in my shoes before."
What do you think has been your biggest challenge in the first year of setting up your small business?
I think sourcing new business is always really tough. You have to let your guard down big time. For me, becoming a salesperson was very out of my comfort zone. I don’t have that personality type but I’ve had to become a salesperson which took some time getting used to. You have to try and put yourself in front of the right people which has involved a lot of cold calling, a lot of calling switchboards and asking to be put through to people who you don’t know the names of - hoping they don’t pick up on that - and asking for job titles rather than the names of people. Also sending out a lot of sample packs and freebies is where I have gotten a lot of my business from. It’s tough when you’re in that start-up phase where you have a product, but are thinking ‘how do I take it to take next level?’ People can really get stuck in that initial level where you might have a great product and you’re getting it out to a few people and you know you’ve got a social media following, but the challenge is working out how to take it to that next point when you can make it a viable business. That’s a big step. For me that’s been a lot bigger than going from full-time work outside of Rawmix to Rawmix full-time.
How difficult has the financial aspect of setting up your small business been?
Cash-flow is always difficult. I don’t think it’s any secret you don’t make a profit in your first three years of small business. Especially when you’re doing it full-time you need to generate enough money to keep yourself afloat as well as the business. So that’s been really difficult because my product is all about scale and volume and when it’s just me doing it, I’m going at a million miles an hour to service those contracts to bring in the money, otherwise it’s not viable.
What do you think has been your biggest challenge in the first year of setting up your small business?
I think sourcing new business is always really tough. You have to let your guard down big time. For me, becoming a salesperson was very out of my comfort zone. I don’t have that personality type but I’ve had to become a salesperson which took some time getting used to. You have to try and put yourself in front of the right people which has involved a lot of cold calling, a lot of calling switchboards and asking to be put through to people who you don’t know the names of - hoping they don’t pick up on that - and asking for job titles rather than the names of people. Also sending out a lot of sample packs and freebies is where I have gotten a lot of my business from. It’s tough when you’re in that start-up phase where you have a product, but are thinking ‘how do I take it to take next level?’ People can really get stuck in that initial level where you might have a great product and you’re getting it out to a few people and you know you’ve got a social media following, but the challenge is working out how to take it to that next point when you can make it a viable business. That’s a big step. For me that’s been a lot bigger than going from full-time work outside of Rawmix to Rawmix full-time.
How difficult has the financial aspect of setting up your small business been?
Cash-flow is always difficult. I don’t think it’s any secret you don’t make a profit in your first three years of small business. Especially when you’re doing it full-time you need to generate enough money to keep yourself afloat as well as the business. So that’s been really difficult because my product is all about scale and volume and when it’s just me doing it, I’m going at a million miles an hour to service those contracts to bring in the money, otherwise it’s not viable.
"Cash-flow is always difficult. I don’t think it’s any secret you don’t make a profit in your first three years of small business."
What’s the best thing about being your own boss?
Obviously the flexibility and not being accountable to anyone. (Laughs) But at the same time it’s bloody tough. Especially when it’s just me, I find it really tough to not have someone else to bounce ideas off. I find that I go around in circles with a lot of things because I don’t have that person to say ‘ok stop now, head in this direction’. But yeah it’s wonderful, it’s very gratifying because when you create, produce and distribute something that you make from an idea you’ve come up with, it’s pretty cool.
So when you’re not satisfying your own taste buds with bliss balls, what is your favourite thing to eat?
I do love raw desserts generally. I do love myself some pana [chocolate] as a treat. And then I’m a really basic cook, my dinners are very simple. I just love a plate of steamed veg and brown rice flour crumbed chicken…
Gosh you really are healthy..
(Laughs) I love cooking and I have a slow-cooker so I love doing curries and pulled pork type slow-cooked dishes, but I like to keep it simple. I don’t find it a burden to live a healthy lifestyle and it’s not something that I’m conscious of, it’s just a natural thing for me.
Where’s your next holiday?
Well my next holiday will probably be my wedding. So that’ll be June next year, and that’ll be to a place called Lake Burton in Georgia and then going to St Lucia in the Caribbean. It’ll be beautiful, I can’t wait.
Where do you hope to see Raw Mix one year from now?
I hope to be on retail shelves. I envision Rawmix to be in a Harris Farm, Jones the Grocer or Thomas Dux, those boutique grocery stores because I guess that’s how I view the product at this stage. I hope to have developed my catering range a lot more and I hope to get a couple more corporate clients. Currently I’m in Macquarie Bank and The Hilton and they are taking increasing volumes each month, so I hope to replicate that across a couple more corporate spaces in the city. I also want to develop my wholesale mixes, so I’m looking into doing one and two kilo bags of mixes for bigger scale companies who have food processors that can handle it. It’s all new to me but it’s really exciting.
For more information and online orders go to: http://www.rawmix.com.au/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RawmixAustralia/?fref=ts
Instagram: @rawmixsyd
You can find Rawmix at the following markets:
The Grounds of Alexandria – 5th & 6th December:
http://thegrounds.com.au/markets/
The Beaches Christmas Market – 19th December
http://www.thebeachesmarket.com/xmasinfo
Ready-made Rawmix snacks available at:
Reuben Hills – http://www.reubenhills.com.au/
Cafe Cino - http://www.hiltonsydney.com.au/restaurants-bars/caffe-cino
Suzie Q - http://www.suzieqcoffee.com.au/
5 Martin Place