- Henry David Thoreau

This morning as I was getting dressed for the first day of meeting the class at Georgia State University that will be working on Hot Squeeze this semester,  I pulled on a shirt that clearly had threadbare holes in the back of it (I even ironed this shirt, a real rarity!)  Sure, I could have put on something different, but I decided that I just wasn’t going to worry about it.  If the class or the professor noticed it, were they really going to say anything?  I kind of have this same nonchalant attitude about the hair at the back of my head, as long as the front looks ok I’m good to go.

I realized that my casual attitude about what’s behind me is a true metaphor for how I handle my life and my business.  Hot Squeeze has taken me down some pretty crazy roads.  It is at times scary (like staring at an empty checking account) at times frustrating (wondering when that promised big order will come in) at times more than I can handle as I try to juggle all the facets.  But not once have I looked back and wished I hadn’t started this company.

So if you see me and I have a spot on my pants or my hair is a mess from behind, go ahead and say something, but I probably already know it’s there and decided to ignore it.  Besides, I’m too busy running forward!

I’m not sure if the folks in Georgia Mountains knew what to make of the “Bloody Squeezer”, “Zingtini” and “Island Squeeze”, but I certainly had fun making them!

This past weekend I was invited by my dear friend Jennifer Brooks (and often Hot Squeeze sidekick) to join her at a very special place in the GA Mountains and then help her tend bar at a great French restaurant in Clayton on Friday and Saturday nights. Anyone who knows me, knows that I wouldn’t pass up an opportunity like this one!

Little did I realize I would be spending my weekend in paradise! We stayed at Splendor Mountain, a 75 acre retreat outside of Clayton owned by Jennifer’s dear friend Chevin Woodruff. We hiked, we swam, we even weeded a little of the intriguing stone labyrinth on the property. And after our days of relaxing, we went into downtown Clayton to be bartenders for The Bistro on South Main. The Bistro is a unique french restaurant owned by the delightful Dominique.

I can’t decide who had more fun – Jen and I playing bartenders or the folks who lined up at the bar to sample are wild cocktails! I also have to give credit to the multi-talented Peter McIntosh who was the mastermind behind the Bloody Squeezer, Zingtini and Island Squeeze. Not only is Peter an incredible mixologist, he’s also a professional photographer and writer for Turner Classic Movies.

Anytime you want me Clayton — I’m available!

Definition of Courage: The ability to confront fear, pain, risk/damage, uncertainty or intimidation.

When people meet me and learn that I am the owner of my own food company they are often impressed and I guess in many ways, they should be – and believe me, this is not boasting.

Many people talk about wanting to start their own business but never do. So those of us that actually do it seem pretty impressive. The reality is, that running your own business takes courage.

Interestingly, what also falls under the definition of courage is the word perseverance which Wikipedia describes as “the ability to seek a goal despite of obstacles.”

Next I’m going to look up the definition for “insanity!”

The other week I received a phone call from a woman who told me she had just received her case of Hot Squeeze from Amazon and she was extremely upset because the consistency had changed. I explained to her that I had recently reformulated Hot Squeeze with less sugar and yes, the consistency on this last bottling was thinner but that the taste was exactly the same and that it did all the things that the original did. She refused to even open the bottle.

I was so upset over this call because she acted like I didn’t care. I told her that I planned on “tweaking” Hot Squeeze on the next bottling run, that the thickness was achieved by adding a natural plant derivative of xanthan gum, and please just open the bottles she received, I promise she wouldn’t be disappointed.

Well apparently she was and then posted not one, but two comments on Amazon.

This is what I want people to know about me and Hot Squeeze. I absolutely stand behind my products. I could have reformulated with ingredients that cost less, I could have done a ton of things to cut corners but I haven’t.

When this last bottling run was done, I was there at 5:30 in the morning making sure that it was mixed right and tasted right. When I saw the difference in the viscosity level (thickness) I agonized over it, but then I brought it home and began using it.

My family and I use Hot Squeeze everyday. It’s apart of practically every meal. And if I didn’t think it was up to par, I’d be the first to say so. But it is. And yes, I can and will tweak the thickness in my next run.  This is what I can promise you  – the flavor will always be consistent and the thickness will always slightly vary – and I will always stand behind my product.

I’m finding it hysterical that I’ve been emailing with a 12 year old today, but honestly, this kid is the greatest!

The other week I was doing a show in Birmingham, AL and out from the pretty non-existent crowd pops this effervescent kid who screams out  “Hot Squeeze, I love Hot Squeeze!”  I mean, he actually stopped people in their tracts!

I had never met Wiley before but I had met his mother at a show this past winter. She had bought a couple of bottles of Hot Squeeze from me then and apparently, her family is hooked – especially Wiley!

So Wiley, I just want to say, thanks for being such a fan, and keep it up. Maybe one day I can hire you to be my head of marketing!

You have a product on the market so how do you drive sales?  It is the same question asked whether your a big company like a FritoLay or you’re a small company like Hot Squeeze.

Here’s the difference – the big companies have $$$$$.  They can entice you to buy their products by advertising on TV and in magazines, by offering you special discounts, even by giving away product!  In the industry, it’s called trade spending and at least 20% of sales are delegated towards it.  So how does the little company (aka Hot Squeeze) try to create consumer buzz when there’s no money to promote?  Well, if they are like me, they become creative.

When people hear that Hot Squeeze is sold at Whole Foods and Hannaford and Winn-Dixie and other large grocery chains, they assume that I’m raking in the big bucks.  Ha!  If they only knew.  Sure, it’s great to be in all those stores, but if my product doesn’t sell fast enough, they’ll kick me out.  Some stores even insist that you have to reclaim your product and at their price!

So what do I do as the one-woman crusader of Hot Squeeze (besides lie awake at night and worry?)  I do everything I can!  I exhibit at as many consumer shows and festivals as I can fit on my calendar and feasibly drive to with my car filled with product.  I Facebook.  I Twitter.  Last weekend I even went out and bought a IFlip Video camera and now I’m video-taping cooking dinner every night and downloading it to YouTube.

Is it enough to drive sales?  I don’t know.  The other week I lost a big account.  I was in an awful mood and having one of those moments of wondering why I got into this crazy food business but then a complete stranger approached me as I was getting out of my car.  He had seen my Hot Squeeze car decal (another marketing effort) and he asked me if I was affiliated with the company  (lol, affiliated!  I am the company!)  He told me how he had discovered Hot Squeeze and how he and his kids are absolutely addicted to the stuff and they can’t live without it and on and on.  I wanted to hug the guy.

I might never have the money of the big companies like FritoLay to promote Hot Squeeze, but I will always have the passion and the energy to try and create the buzz – even if it’s one person at a time!

I don’t know if your life is like this but mine is one that barrels away at a frantic speed. Never enough time to complete the ever-growing to-do list or get to all the emails and answer all the calls.  I move in so many directions and wish for more hours in the day or that there were 10 of me.  Weeks go by without seeing my friends and we make due with short texts, emails or voice messages to keep in touch.

So this weekend when Kat Cole, the new COO of  Cinnabon, Inc. made time in her busy schedule to have lunch with me, I was wowed. Here is a woman who has gone from being VP of Training and Development for Hooters of America, Inc. to now Cinnabon.   She is strong,  powerful and in charge of a large corporation  and she appears to do it all with a sense of grace, style and ease. I had wanted to meet Kat because she is a role model and inspiration for me. When I reach points in my life or career that I feel discouraged or depleted of strength, I reach out to find this positive energy from the people that I look up to.

There is a business consultant that I work with.  He once told me that running a food company is not about touching every one of my consumer’s hands, it’s about a strong “Go to Market” plan and the P&L’s and Balance Sheets.   He’s right of course as far as operating a successful business, but it’s that connection with my customers that gives me my energy.

When I get calls from you telling me how much you love Hot Squeeze, it makes my day! When I am sampling Hot Squeeze at the numerous shows I am at,  I love more then anything to see the reaction on your faces as you taste Sweet Heat Chipotle or Orange Ginger Zing for the first time.  When I can help others who want to get into the food business I remember how lucky I was to have someone help me.  It’s about the human touch.

Having lunch with Kat Cole was amazing.  She is intelligent, articulate and beautiful.  She is a wealth of information and a source of endless connections.  But  most of all, Kat is kind and approachable and human.  Wherever my road takes me, I hope to always to be like this.

It’s 4:15 in the morning and I awake to the alarm groggy and covered with sheet marks but it’s time.  Today is the day that my brand new Orange GingerZing and the newly reformulated Sweet Heat Chipotle are being bottled.  The process getting to this day has felt a little like pregnancy…. days of excitement, anticipation, frustration and nervousness.

It’s now 4:45 a.m. and I’m standing in a lab coat with a hair net watching as each barrel drum of the ingredients is hoisted up a hydraulic lift and dumped in to a 800 gallon cook pot.  Folks with clipboards stand around checking heat levels and time codes and nodding for the next ingredient to be added.  It’s amazing to see how my “at home” recipe of a cup of this and a cup of that has been transformed into 600 gallons!

6:15 a.m., I’m now in the lab where we check the levels of PH, acid, sodium and viscosity and of course the taste (haven’t I always said that Hot Squeeze is great for breakfast!)  They are perfect, and now it’s time.

Watching the bottling process has always reminded me of the episode of I Love Lucy with Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory.  My co-packing facility is fully automated.  One by one, each empty bottle travels along a belt, is filled from the injector and moves along to a capping station.  Somewhere in the process, it seems that everything picks up speed.  The bottles keep coming and coming and seeing them like this fills me with panic… how am I going to sell them all?!

But this is the moment I’ve been waiting for (and it’s been almost 10 months in the making).  I am now the proud “mother” of TWO brand new “babies”, Orange Ginger Zing and Sweet Heat Chipotle (same fabulous everything but now with less sugar).  And now the real work begins!

On Super Bowl Sunday I had the amazing experience of working with the iconic Chef Paul Luna, owner of Lunacy Black Market in Atlanta.  So while others were readying their “game day” spreads, I was playing in the kitchen with a renowned chef who has owned numerous restaurants and collaborated with some of the most talented chefs in the world – and Chef Luna was cooking with HOT SQUEEZE! Paul Luna has been called the “mad genius” and “rebel chef”.  He introduced Atlanta to European, Mediterranean and South American cuisine through his restaurants Luna Si, Eclipse di Luna and Loca Luna.  Chef Luna is a character, he use to shock his diners with strip tease performances and has plans of running for mayor of Atlanta.  Chef Luna is as fluid in his personality as he is in his kitchen, whipping up flavorful and imaginative small plates with market fresh ingredients. And guess what – Hot Squeeze works in this kitchen with this famous chef!  It seasons short ribs and glazes chicken thighs.  It serves as a side dip for beautifully golden fried cauliflower. And just as easily, How Squeeze works in the everyday kitchen, readying for Super Bowl Sunday on chicken wings, nacho’s, burgers and brats. Thank you Chef Luna, Cynthia and Jennifer for a wonderful day and zany fun in the kitchen of Lunacy Black Market.  I will never forget it! Chef Luna and Hot Squeeze on YouTube

When I was a little girl, my grandmother would tell me that I should go ahead and ask for what I wanted, the worst that could happen was that she would say no. (This usually was about me asking for candy!)

I’ve carried this philosophy with me throughout my life and I use it as my buffer against fear.  Fear is an interesting thing – it has the ability to paralyze you from living your life to the fullest.  As the owner of my own company and an entrepreneur at that, I face big fears everyday.  What if I lose that grocery account?  What if something goes wrong with one of my bottlings?  How do I get people to buy Hot Squeeze?  Where is the money coming from to pay the expenses?  Fears and worries make jabs at me all day and everyday.

So many people that I talk to about starting their own company or trying something new are hiding behind their fears.  They tell me they don’t know how, don’t have the time, don’t have the money.  So what if you approached your fears with the “Go ahead and ask, the worst that can happen is they’ll say no” attitude?  Sure you’ll get people who turn you down or say no, but somewhere out there is the person who says yes!

My grandmother Deisher has always been my secret guardian angel… I have the sense that she’s there with me and letting me know that it’s ok when I get the turn downs and cheering me on when I get the great big thumbs up!