How resilience and persistence create an impactful hive

Venessa Stonehouse is not only a client who helped me build my portfolio back in 2020, but a treasured member of VEG Networking Canada and a persistent leader who’s driving the vegan honey movement and awareness about caring for bee populations AND tackling food waste. No biggie, right?

Venessa received many accolades last year for her efforts, I encouraged her to share her marketing success story on this blog. While her business has taken a lot of hits and pivots from fires to shifting products, today she continues to grow distribution across the country (and soon, in the US) and white label products for other brands. Her company was also accepted into this year’s ProVeg Incubator cohort.

This interview took place in January 2022 and is a great recap of how Mindful FÜD began building its empire.

Justin Manning: Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of VEG Networking Canada. We’re going to start with our land acknowledgement. It is important to honor and respect that many of us are located on traditional unseated territories of many indigenous peoples of Canada. Again, welcome to another episode of VEG Networking Canada, where vegan/plant-based companies connect and collaborate. Today, we have a very special guest with us. She is an advocate for real foods without chemicals or preservatives, previously an owner operator of a meal delivery business, current front funder participant will hear all about that, and a believer that food has the power to change the world, VEG Networking Canada is pleased to welcome Co-Founder and CEO of Mindful FÜD, Venessa Stonehouse. Welcome Venessa!

Venessa Stonehouse: Hi, that was a lot of stuff there!

JM: We’re happy to fill in the gaps and hear all about you and your story, but we’re going to start with sort of a more personal question.

What is your vegan plant-based origin story?

VS: Yeah, so basically in 2018 it clicked for me. I had been seeing so many posts and hearing stories from vegans that had recently become vegan, and one day I was watching a video of male chicks being disposed of just because they were male, and that was it for me. That was the one video that changed everything, even though I’d been seeing horrific videos of slaughterhouses and all that kind of thing. That’s the video that really changed things and it’s also why I’m very understanding and open-minded about everyone’s past. Because I look at myself and always thought of myself as an extreme animal lover, and I really didn’t make the connection until that day.

JM: That’s extremely powerful. I think that’s going to hit home for a lot of people and I think that all of us can agree that one of the most powerful things we can speak to and live from is we weren’t all born vegan so who are we to really be judgmental. Amazing story, and if you’re open-minded enough to watch those videos, they’re definitely going to have an impact and click at a different time for everybody. So thank you so much for sharing. This next question is all about business and entrepreneurship.

Can you tell us a little bit more about your entrepreneurial origin story? Maybe some obstacles that you have overcome recently?

VS: Yeah, I mean a bit of a background: I had a food truck when I was 18 until I was 23, way before food trucks were cool though, and then in 2015 I started Feed Me Fit which was a meal delivery service and we delivered healthy meals around the lower mainland. Because I went vegan in 2018, I also changed the business to be plant-based. At the time it was really scary because all of my customers were meat-eaters, but I knew that I went vegan to make a difference, and I just knew that as a business I could make a greater impact. So I made the decision to change the business, and it actually paid off double because I kept all of my customers and then gained a whole new group of them! I definitely thank our plant-based meat for that because I feel like it was an easy transition for people.

So we actually made that business a separate business and called it Mindful FÜD and then in March of 2021 we lost our commercial kitchen to an arson fire, and yeah, everything was gone. It’s still hard for me to talk about because I was there for seven years. I built that kitchen from the ground up, and it took two years to build, and I was very attached to that space. I’m like every other entrepreneur and I was there 24 hours a day slept on the couch, I did everything, so losing that space was definitely a big hiccup in the business but the community rallied behind us and a friend and a nutritionist did a GoFundMe page for us and the community raised twenty thousand dollars in three days for us and that really gave me the kind of the encouragement that I needed to keep going because obviously when something like that happens you’re like, “Oh, do I keep doing this, is it worth keep doing this?” I literally had to start over. The local Legion offered their kitchen to us for free, and we moved into the local Legion in Lynn Valley and started using their space, which we are still using today. And that’s why we’re doing a FrontFundr campaign to basically raise the funds to get into a new facility.

JM: So talk about entrepreneurial spirit, tenacious, not giving up, all these different things, right. We’ve all heard it before; you go through an obstacle over, around, under, whatever it is, so it sounds like you’ve been through it all but always coming out the other side. And as we all know, there’s always more coming down the pipe. Thank you so much for sharing more about that, and it’s really cool that you did food trucks before they were cool!

VS: Way before they were cool.

JM: Yeah, absolutely.

In the business that you’re in now, what are some trends that you’re noticing or have noticed in your industry?

VS: Well, I think that people are definitely becoming more aware of the effects of the animal agriculture industry. If there’s a positive to come out of COVID, that would be it for me. The conversation is just now so much more open, and I feel like people are wanting to listen.

I feel like every time I say I’m vegan, people are like oh and they kind of turn away and previously but now, when they see the business and know what I’m talking about when you see that I’m passionate about it, I can tell they want to listen which is something that is a complete opposite of what I used to experience when I wanted to talk to people about why I do what I do.

And the fact that there’s kind of a vegan alternative for almost every animal product that there is now is very encouraging as a vegan and as a vegan business owner because it’s just nice to see the demand for it keep growing.

JM: Well, I think that there could be no better trend than people’s minds opening up! I’m sure all of us here and all of us listening have that auntie or uncle or grandma or whatever it is that they’re starting to ask questions a little bit about certain alternatives or products that are offered out there and that’s massive that’s huge.

VS: The fact that my parents changed their diet over to almost entirely plant-based is huge because when I first started my dad was like, “What are you going to make the chicken out of?” and now he has his own stock in his own freezer and he comes and gets it from the kitchen because he has our “chicken” almost every night, he loves it, big meat and potatoes person!

JM: That must fill your cup more than anything else. I think that’s actually another trend that we notice. It’s the people close to us that are adopting more because they’re starting to see that it’s working for their loved ones. Anyway, we could talk about that all day long! So Mindful FUD, the FrontFundr campaign, all of that, and maybe things that we don’t know, the question is:

Where is your brand, Mindful FÜD going in the future?

VS: Yeah, we’re focusing on wholesale into restaurants, cafes, and retailers first. I just feel like there’s no reason in 2022 for there not to be a good vegan option in every restaurant, and I mean obviously we want it to be ours. Our products are made in a kitchen, not in the lab, and I just feel that people deserve to eat real food and not have to resort to a chemical-based food as the only vegan option. We started local Vancouver but were quickly adding central and northern BC to our list of retailers, and we will be announcing a partner deal with the major department store soon. That’ll be most likely tomorrow morning. Yeah! I’m just literally waiting for the last piece of paperwork and then I can announce that. I wanted to do it today, but I’m going to wait till tomorrow, so I’ll do that on my social media. We’re also being listed on a bunch of online retailers, which will actually allow us to be available in the US as well.

JM: Incredible. So online distribution throughout US, throughout Canada, and obviously something really, really exciting. It’s better that you’re not telling us now; it’s like a cliffhanger.

VS: Yeah, exactly!

JM:

What are some charitable organizations that you support or are looking to support in the future?

VS: So I try to support as many as I can with the capacity that I have right now. So that usually means sharing stories online or reposting or donating products for giveaways and supporting organizations that are near and dear to my heart, or my friend’s hearts.

For example, last month I donated five sample boxes for a giveaway that was supporting Homes for Hooves. That was really special because I’ve followed them for a long time, and I’ve always wanted to support them, and I finally had the capacity to do that.

We’re also in the process of setting something up where, like I mentioned earlier, we’re donating a portion of our retail products to our own rescue fund. So that’s something that I’ve really dreamed of, like being able to share the stories of the animals that we’ve rescued from the proceeds of our products. And that’s something that will come into play over the next year or two.

JM: That’s amazing. And I’ve definitely noticed there’s a trend, especially in the vegan and plant-based space, where consumers really do care about giving back, especially when it comes to helping animals. So, it’s amazing that you’re doing that.

With all your experience from the food truck to now, can you share a book or podcast or even an app that you’d recommend? Maybe something that people haven’t heard of?

VS: Yeah, that is an interesting question for me because I read a lot of cookbooks, like I’m always just reading recipes. I actually created all of our recipes for Feed Me Fit myself. So I would send my chef the ingredients I wanted to use and a picture of what I wanted it to look like, and they would kind of bring it to life.

So cookbooks are a big one. Like Eat for the Planet, Hot for Food, The Edgy Veg. I’m not really like a tech person, to be honest, like I’m just learning how to use Instagram for business, so, I follow a lot of cooking channels and creators that are plant-based.And podcasts, I only really started getting into those in the last like year or so. And apps, I don’t know, I’m not super app-savvy, but, yeah, just like reading online and following pages on Instagram is kind of my go-to.

JM: Totally. Makes sense. As someone creating amazing food, cookbooks being your go-to totally checks out. So, our second-to-last question:

Whether from a small town, shop-local lens or a massive global brand perspective, who are some companies or entrepreneurs that inspire you and your business?

VS: There are so many, I am a huge local supporter, even for my business. I tried to support all local companies before going to the big big box stores I’ve always been like that. I grocery shopped myself at all local places for the meal delivery service we were feeding 5000 people a week. I mean it was only until the last year that we got a distributor to work with us, but I was very adamant of where we get our groceries from and who to support and that kind of stuff.

I’ve done so many events and trade shows and all that kind of stuff with, you know, Blue Heron (now closed), Komo Comfort Foods (now closed) and businesses like Kind Cafe (now closed). I’d love to be a no waste business but unfortunately there’s things that come in the way until you get to a certain point, cost it can’t be perfect but somehow Kind Cafe has made it, so she was very determined and I really respect what she’s done as a business and I really hope to be like that one day and not have to use any plastic or anything in any of our packaging, but you have to start somewhere. So I try to not to be too hard on myself about it.

All the local brands, kombucha brands, I feel like I’ve kind of grown with them because we did all these farmers markets and things with together, and some of them have grown into huge businesses already. I saw Blue Heron at Save-On-Foods the other day and I was like, “Oh my god, it’s Blue Heron!” Like they’re like front and centre, you know, not just in the cheese section they are front and center when you first walk in! That’s huge. As a small business, I can’t wait for that to be my product sitting on the shelf right there for everyone to see.

I’m definitely a huge supporter. I bought all the cheese that there was, I was like, “I’m just gonna freeze, I’m gonna buy it all so they sell out in the store!” And, yeah, so it’s definitely local for me.

JM: Well, just listening to the companies that inspire you is inspiring to us. I don’t know about everybody else listening, but just talking about how these companies inspire you gives me goosebumps, and I can feel that. And to be honest, yeah, that’s the way it should be!

So it feels like we started talking 30 seconds ago but here we are already at our last question, and similar to like the charity question, it’s always prefaced by there’s no right or wrong answers, take as much time as you want to answer it, make it as quick and simple as you want:

What is some advice that you have for entrepreneurs and business owners whether they’re just starting maybe in the middle of their journey looking to pivot or or differentiate or maybe even looking for an exit or something like that, what is some advice that you have for those folks?

VS: I feel like my advice is kind of the advice that a lot of people give, it’s just that you have to keep going. Obviously, you’ve heard parts of my story now and there’s a lot of ups and downs. Some days you feel like it’s impossible to overcome the obstacles, and sometimes you’re on top of the world and doing happy dances all day long. I’m not sure that ever changes so if your mission is aligned with your passion then I feel like it’s all worth it because the end of the day all the things that I’ve gone through, I mean even though it was only eight, nine months ago, that the fire happened, I feel like it was almost 10 years ago now we’ve gone through so much stuff since then.

It’s all been worth it, you know, all the obstacles to have to basically restart the business, and I feel like it couldn’t get any worse than that! So if I can survive as a business going through something like that, it’s because my passion is so strong for what I’m doing. I don’t see any other option, and that’s that’s the kind of entrepreneurial spirit that people have to have, or find if you really love what you do!

JM: So it sounds like the advice is, start with the mission-driven end in mind and then sort of reframe your relationship with obstacles like knowing that you have this mission in mind. You know that you’re going to encounter these obstacles and to just find creative ways to break through those and keep growing.

VS: Yeah, you can’t think it’s going to be easy.

JM: Yeah, no, it never is. To your point too, I think that’s probably the biggest piece of advice is that it never does get easy. There’s that saying, “It doesn’t get easier, you just get stronger. It doesn’t get easier; you just get better.”

All right, well before I tell everyone where they can find on Instagram and on the web is there anything that we forgot to mention? Any last words that you want to say?

VS: I think we’re pretty good at covering it all. I didn’t babble too much, so I think I’m good! Year I’m excited to be here, I’m thankful that you had me on on the podcast. This is my first, and I think it’s gonna be the first of many because I really am excited to share everything that we’re doing and open up people’s minds to this plant-based world! Even if they’re not ready to be entirely vegan, I feel like we can capture a huge audience now of people that are just interested in eating more plant food and if we have to do it day by day, I’m happy with doing it day by day, it’s better than not at all!

JM: Absolutely. VEG Networking Canada is unique in that it’s a podcast, we have special guests in conversations but it’s sort of that mixed with a network of vegan plant-based professionals across Canada where maybe somebody listens to this and they know exactly how to help or they know exactly who knows exactly how to help and that’s the whole intention behind Vege Network Canada. So thank you so much for sharing more about yourself and your story and being vulnerable and all of that good stuff that comes along with being an entrepreneur!

Everybody, you can find out more about Venessa and Mindful FUD on Instagram at @mindful_fud and the same on the web: www.mindfulfud.com
Thank you!

 

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