Starting a side hustle? Maybe it’s value finding co-founders who’ve something you do not have.
Courtesy of Platterful
These are Ryan Culver, Caroline Elston and Lowell Bieber, Indiana friends behind the charcuterie subscription service dishdiscovered after they teamed up to begin the enterprise last 12 months — and made $40,000 in the primary month.
Culver and Bieber previously collaborated on a health and wellness subscription package which they successfully scaled up and sold in September 2020.
This time around, Culver’s expertise in logistics and shipping and Bieber’s operational expertise proved to be a perfect match with Elston’s expertise in digital marketing and the burgeoning charcuterie business.
Entrepreneur we sat down with the trio to learn the way they built their meat and cheese business – and proceed to drive it forward.
Related: Meats, Cheeses, and Olives, Oh My! How this veteran launched a successful charcuterie franchise
“We really had no idea methods to put things together well – actually not methods to make a board.”
Culver and Bieber wanted to begin one other subscription service after selling their first one, and seeing a gap within the charcuterie offering, they saw the right opportunity.
“We definitely wanted to copy the subscription model,” says Culver. “We could just create this brand [that had] standalone products that you could buy that we also offer. But really, the core of the business is tied to this subscription model. We were each still very occupied with the recurring income that comes every month. It’s almost like a guaranteed buffer to cover basic operating costs.”
The only problem?
Culver and Bieber had no idea in regards to the meat and cheese trade.
“We didn’t know much about cold cuts,” recalls Bieber. “We just knew it was a growing space and that we liked to eat meat and cheese. But we actually had no idea methods to put these items together well – actually not methods to make a board.”
Image Credit: Courtesy of Platterful
Related: How subscription services are changing brand and consumer habits
“Meeting with Ryan and Lowell [who already had] this whole back office for subscription boxes and success was like the right timing and the right marriage.”
Culver and Bieber began searching for someone to assist them start the enterprise. Their search led them to Elston, a marketing specialist who also catered for events resembling weddings, birthday parties, bachelorette parties and more.
“I also love meat and cheese – no surprise there,” says Elston. “I loved cheese boards and acquired them from restaurants. They began to catch on two or three years ago, so at any time when people got here to my house or had family gatherings, I might all the time plank.”
In 2020, Elston continued to get creative together with her college friends’ thirtieth birthday plaques, and when people suggested she really go into business, she decided to do exactly that. From there it “lit up”; Elston made 10-15 small boards every weekend, along with five to 6 grazing tables for larger parties. She was also going to be a parent.
She knew it was unsustainable.
“Meeting with Ryan and Lowell [who already had] all this background of operations with subscription boxes and success was like the right timing and the right marriage,” Elston explains, “since it was a way for me to proceed this creative outlet that I discovered and fell in love with, but I didn’t do it. I even have to run everywhere in the city of Indianapolis.”
Image Credit: Courtesy of Platterful
Related: 12 High Paid Side Jobs For Creative People
“It took us about a month to construct our website, and in December it blew up, which was a great sight.”
Platterful had planned a crowdfunding initiative on Kickstarter to gauge market interest, but had to tug the campaign back on the last minute when co-founders learned that their company was being considered for “resale” – “though it’s way more than that,” says Elston.
But due to a quick turnaround on Indiegogo, Platterful is back on the right track.
“Indegogo did well,” says Bieber. “And then it took us about a month to construct our website, which blew up in December, so it was great to see that.”
Platterful had sales of $40,000 in its first month, and despite being a “very seasonal company” with spikes in popularity around major holidays, it was able to keep up that growth. In December this 12 months, the corporate is able to at the very least double its profits from December last 12 months.
The logistics company Culver Lessgistics fulfills Platterful orders. “So, in a way, I see each side [the process]which is interesting,” he says. “It gives us full control over the shipping process, which we like.”
Image Credit: Courtesy of Platterful
Related: Here’s How You Can Grow within the Logistics Industry
“One of our predominant goals for 2023 is to make sure that our packaging and presentation look very nice when customers open them.”
But Platterful’s journey was not without its challenges. Even though Culver and Bieber had experience with subscriptions, the co-founders faced a recent complication: cold shipping.
“Some meats are shelf-stable, but all cheeses should be refrigerated,” says Bieber. “So we’ve got to ensure that they arrive cold and that is it [brings] a whole recent set of challenges which might be quite expensive to be honest. We needed to work out methods to proceed to supply customers good value at an inexpensive price.”
This means continuous improvement of the Platterful packaging.
“We’ve undergone six or seven packaging iterations up to now,” says Culver, “and we’re still working on that, always improving it. One of our predominant goals for 2023 is to make sure that our packaging and presentation look very nice when customers open it. So it is often been type of a work in progress.”
Image Credit: Courtesy of Platterful
Related: 5 Creative Packaging Ideas That Will Wow Your Customers
“[With co-founders] you have got other people to lean on – should you’re having a bad day, perhaps another person is having a good day.”
Of course, balancing a full-time job with the fast-growing side hustle is not any easy task either. But having reliable partners who fill within the gaps makes all of the difference.
“We all have our basic jobs, but there’s still a lot of free time, pockets at night or between lunches, breaks, whatever,” explains Culver. “So we stay connected all day, every single day. Not on Saturdays and Sundays, that will be a bit much. But definitely Monday to Friday.
Platterful also has two employees within the Philippines who handle much of the shopper service and company outreach.
“We all go out and in all day,” Elston continues, “and we’re very stressed with a lot to balance. [But it’s] super fun and stuff i actually need to do. So all of us find time for it since it’s like our baby and it’s going very, thoroughly, and we’re all very committed to creating it work.
Bieber agrees.
“I feel like it might be really hard [these things] alone,” he says, “since you do not have a support system. [With co-founders] you have got other people to lean on – should you’re having a bad day, perhaps another person is having a good day. That balance of getting three different people go into it together, plus the remainder of the team, is what makes it enduring. “
So for those breaking into the subscription box industry? First, end up a complementary set of business partners.
