Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Zachary Champoux, Co-Founder of Passionoat Inc., located in Calgary, AB, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We make powdered oat milk coffee creamer. Our customers are road-trippers, hikers, backpackers, busy vegans, and anyone else who wants a creamy cup of coffee with non-dairy milk they can enjoy anywhere.
Tell us about yourself
I first started working on my business in 2019 when I realized how in-demand oat milk products are. I am motivated by the fact that dairy milk requires the exploitation of a mother's reproductive system without her consent. I am motivated because there is no retirement sanctuary for dairy cows - they are all violently killed once their milk production drops too low. I am motivated by the understanding that our species desperately need to heal our relationship with nonhuman animals.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Achieving a $500,000 company valuation in a previous business through equity investment.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Finding a balance between my full-time job and Passionoat.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Please try to build something that creates a positive change, not just revenue.
- Obsess over your customer.
- Understand the difference between a finite and infinite game (business is an infinite game).
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
Adopting a vegan lifestyle is a moral imperative in 2022. Humans needlessly subject 70,000,000,000 chickens and trillions of fish to a life of misery and a premature, violent death each year when we can easily eat plants instead. We are the most oppressive and destructive force on this planet.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.passionoat.com/
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/zachary.champoux/
https://www.facebook.com/passionoat
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/starchyzach/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zachary-champoux-735896108/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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