October in Portland is a busy time of the year for food and beverage networking events. It feels like there is an event everyday of the week. I went to Revant Optics for a network meeting through Built, a food and beverage community founded by Mitch Daugherty and Rick Turoczy. It was here that I met other founders who I had been online with for pitch practices and meetings through Oregon Entrepreneurial Network(OEN).
Revant Optics was founded by Jason Bolt, who is someone I had been trying to connect with. What a coincidence? I later met Jason at the Built Festival where he had a chance to try Shredder Cheddar, and he really enjoyed it. Built Festival was held at REDD in Portland, where the panel of founders and their stories have helped many. It was here that I was able to meet with founders who had products for purchase, and meet those in person that I had met online over a zoom call before. These founders are a very supportive group of humans that all want to help us succeed.
After the Built Fest, we went to Rogue Brewery hosted by Revant Optics. I continued to build relationships with those that I am inspired by and can help me on this journey. Yvonne Smoker with Prosper Portland is a connector that has helped me tremendously with meeting the right people. People will ask her how we know each other, and her response is Meg is very resourceful! I take that as a compliment and it shows how I have come so far in a very short time. I also had a chance to meet investors and advisors from OEN that have helped me along the way.
Practice, practice, practice and words of affirmation are how I prepped to be on stage and pitch Shredder Cheddar to 100’s of people at the Key4women pitch contest. I arrived at the contest, and I was greeted by a kind Key Bank employee who helped me get set-up for my pitch.
All of Key Bank’s employees were so happy to be there.
I chatted with him for 15 minutes to calm my nerves and ground myself. I am no longer drinking caffeinated coffee which seems to be helping my nerves and keep my heart rate steady(it is already quite low from being an endurance athlete). I had a couple almonds, and practiced my pitch once, then I was up.
I was chosen ahead of time to go first, and I couldn't have been more excited to be in that position. I hadn't done any research to see who the other contestants or judges were. I do better at any competition knowing that I am there only competing with myself. I always say this is my day and this is my race. I am doing this for myself, and not for anyone else. My only competition is me!
I walked into the room of people as the host was announcing the judges. I stayed in my own head, and practiced square breathing( something I had learned just a couple days prior). I found it to really help calm me down.
The host began to introduce me, and tell my story. I caught her voice and all I heard was, “ I am a badass, I am a badass, that is me, and I am a badass!” I took that confidence with me on stage, and took a deep breath to begin my pitch.
There was a moment where the crowd laughed, and I looked at them wondering what they were laughing at? Then I realized in a very quick moment that they were resonating with my story. I nailed it! I got through it in just under 4 minutes, with no mistakes, in the acceptable time limit. I had that pitch memorized, and I knew exactly what to say and when.
When I finished with the pitch I heard a man’s voice ask me a question, and I knew the Q & A had begun. I had so much adrenaline going, and now this was the fun part where I could talk even more about my product and show how passionate I am for Shredder Cheddar.
Some questions I was asked,
“What type of snack food is this replacing?”
"Could you talk about the ingredients and shelf-life?
"Would this be good for moms on the go?”
"How many units do you sell in a month?”
“Where do you see this going in a grocery store?”
“What would you use the contest money for?”
While answering these questions I was relaxing into it, and having fun. I really enjoyed being on stage to tell my story and share all things Shredder Cheddar. I am so proud of getting on the stage to represent my authenticity and Shredder Cheddar. After thanking everyone for their time, I proceeded to be filmed on my recap. That was the most difficult part, because I was freezing cold and I was mentally exhausted. I could have used a cocktail at that moment, but I didn't have one, so I just went through the motions.
I went back to the greenroom to wish the other competitors the best of luck and to learn about their products or services. After a bite to eat and more hot water, I headed back into the event to watch my new friends pitch.
I had spectators walk up to me to congratulate me on my pitch, and tell me I did well. Some said I was in their mind as one of the top three pitches. I also was approached by one of the judges who said he thought I had a great product and that I should meet Jesse Thomas from Picky Bars. This was the second time I had been told I should meet Jesse, so I took this as a must do. I had a chance to meet my MESO advisors in person, and meet other community members who could potentially shape my future.
I watched the other competitors and saw what I could have done better; it was hard not to compare myself. I had to change my thinking to how I could learn from this. I appreciated each business for their hard work and creativity; their ability to have a start-up or existing business. The winners were announced and I was not one of them. The grand prize winner was DTOCS, the runner’s up were For Bitter For Worse, and Callie’s Custom Wigs. All had been in business for 4 years or longer, which was an eye opener that a start-up and existing business category can be relatively the same. They all did so well, and I can see the difference from theirs to mine. They had all done pitches before, and it made me even more proud to be chosen as a top 10 finalist with these established women business owners. I am grateful for this opportunity.
There was a happy hour after the event where I celebrated my “ honorable mention” and my $2000 award. I grabbed a glass of wine, yet I still had so much adrenaline from the pitch that I didn't even drink it. This was a similar feeling to finishing a race! I shared Shredder Cheddar amongst my new fan club. The consensus was everyone loved it! I just love seeing folks eat a sample and trying to get every last drop of cheese out of the package. This is such a compliment! I had a chance to also meet some of the Thorns team members at the happy hour, who had positive ways to help Shredder Cheddar get in the hands of the athletes.
After the happy hour, I headed to Bauman’s Cider on Oak to meet friends to share my day with. Honestly, I was so absolutely exhausted, but it was so wonderful to see my friends that are 100% supportive. We had a chance to watch my pitch over a Bauman’s cider on the patio. I spent the next week decompressing from the pitch contest- I was just so exhausted.
Not only had I been exhausted from the pitch contest, but also training to pace Julija Šorytė in Pinhoti 100 in Heflin, Alabama on November 2, 2024.
I had some of my longest mileage or 60 miles plus weeks leading up to the pitch contest. I ran 32 miles with Jodi Jakubek, a running friend who was with me the day I thought of Shredder Cheddar while circumnavigating Mt Saint Helens in 2022. We have been running friends for a long time, and met over 10 years ago when I started running ultramarathons. She is always up for an adventure, as long as she has the time off from being a dedicated pediatric nurse.
This adventure was also at Mount St Helens, but this time we ran a new route. I plotted an out and back route from Blue Lake trailhead to Spirit Lake. We did over 8000 ft of elevation climbing and dropped to the Toutle River twice to get our feet wet. Well, we tried to keep them dry, but that isn't always the easiest in a fast running river, like this one. This was a gorgeous fall day that started from Blue Lake where there were 30 elk hunters and us. It was a cold morning around 32 degrees, and there was a fresh dusting of snow on the peak.
We saw mountain goats in the distance, and watched the sunrise. We barely saw anyone else on the trail except for the hunters that were gathered at the trailhead that morning. Mt Saint Helens is like that; rarely do we see others out on the trail. The fall colors were vibrant and it was a sunny warm afternoon. A perfect run adventure day! We hiked and ran for 7 hours to complete the grueling 32 miles of ascending and descending. Jodi and I finished this run with an ice cold drink in our Shredder Cheddar Chill Koozie. Merch is available on my website, www.HullsomeFoods.com for purchase. You can help fund manufacturing and marketing by purchasing Shredder Cheddar merch. I appreciate your support!
While in Portland, I also met with Affinity Group’s Wesley Boese who showed me around their shop and test kitchen. Affinity Group is a middleman that works for the manufacturer, and they are very helpful assisting me however they can. I also took a tour of Wild Rose Foods to see a potential co-packing facility. There were a few takeaways, but the best was the pounds of cheese I was able to take home. Being a cheesemaker leads to cheese, and I couldn't be happier.
I had been waiting for a few months for the REI accelerator program to become available, and the applications finally opened. I had a chance to pitch Shredder Cheddar and apply. It is my understanding it can take a month to hear back. This would be very cool, if I landed that program.
If I haven't expressed it enough yet, I absolutely love working with the university students to help in any way they can. I think it provides an excellent real life project for them to work on and I can learn more about marketing and business strategies for a fraction of the cost or even free. In the past I have worked with Lewis and Clark’s Small Business Legal Clinic, Portland State University’s Capstone, and Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center. Currently I am collaborating with PSU’s StudentWork ad agency program where a team of 20 students are helping me with branding Shredder Cheddar, and packaging design. I am so grateful for all of the mood boards and getting me to land in a focused direction. I am a little scattered with ideas and these students have helped me stay organized with my thoughts and direction.
A drive to the Eglin AirForce base and a trail permit took me to the Florida National Scenic Trail to run with Deanna Deonne. She is training to run the thousand mile length of Florida trail from southern Florida to Ft Pickens in Pensacola Beach in February. So of course, I said yes to a 31 mile training run and hike. We met at the Eglin trailhead, and I was late because of an unfortunate low pressure tire that early morning. Her friend, James, dropped us off at another trailhead 31 miles east, and we ran west to our cars. It was beautiful with a few hills, deer moss, and wild hog holes. Those hogs dig the trail up and it is the perfect place to roll an ankle, ooh and I did, but I also recovered quickly. Yes, my ankle ligaments were hot and burned for a few minutes, but by the time I was back to the car, it was no longer noticeable or painful. Phew! A day on a new trail with Deanna was another good day! Running adventures with new and old friends is just the absolute best!
I have been adding classes and workshops to my weekly schedule again, because I want to learn it all. I have taken so many Quickbook and marketing classes, because no two classes are ever the same. I can always find something new for a takeaway. I have found OEN’s cohorts to be extremely helpful, and SCORE’s classes to be informative. I also just searched out another SCORE mentor who is an entrepreneur. In 30 minutes, he gave me valuable information that I can act on immediately.
I have also continued to feel like I am on the right path meeting people who know something about co-packing. I have met two consultants willing to help me navigate this process in a couple of weeks. I have co-packers in Oregon and Wisconsin who are interested in collaborating, and I am going to utilize the help from these consultants to navigate this undertaking. My goal is to have a contracted manufacturer in 2024, and I am still on track to see this accomplished.
I am fortunate to have all this help navigating launching Shredder Cheddar. I am truly grateful for what I have overcome and where I am today. Thank you for all the support from friends, family and advisors!
Hope y'all had a wonderful Halloween! I am already drumming up a costume for next year! I would love to see your costumes from Javelina 100 and your Halloween costumes contests!
Watch me pitch Shredder Cheddar here! I hit the stage first after about 20 minutes has elapsed. 2024 Key4Women Pitch Contest (vimeo.com)
Next month we will dig deep into what it is like to crew and pace Julija Šortye in her first place finish for women at Pinhoti 100. She had an incredible race, and I felt honored to be able to support her for this one.
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