Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Melissa Wierema, owner of Up North Heritage Farm, located in Williamsburg, MI, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are Up North Heritage Farm, a small family farm near Traverse City specializing in high-quality meat. We raise the healthiest and most nutrient-dense meat using regenerative practices and the shortest supply chain. This means we are helping and improving the environment, and our animals get to live outside the way nature intended. We make it easy for locals to get to know us as farmers and get to know our farm by delivering meat right to your table from our pastures. If you are a foodie, you need to try our meat!
Tell us about yourself
We left the suburbs of Chicago for Northern Michigan in 2017 after being done with the grind of life. I was working in a hospital as a therapist. I saw the negative effects the hustle of life was having on our lives, and we wanted more for our family. We had a passion for regenerative agriculture, nutrient-dense. Beyond organic food, so we took the leap and started our own farm. We are passionate about keeping things local and supporting local businesses, and keeping our supply chain short. Good should come from your community if it can. We care a lot about animals and want them to live the best life possible. If I am making the ethical choice to eat meat, I want to know they lived the best life; that’s what we do on our farm.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
We created the Up North Meat Club, which has is a quarterly meat club that sold out the first year we opened it. Our meat club members are part of our farm family, and we get to have events on the farm with them, and they get to visit get to know us as farmers. It is a great way for us to connect with our community, and our members get awesome discounts and perks.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The hardest part is running a website and farming at the same time. There is a lot of Ordering, packing, email, and website work that keeps me busy and Farmer Justin out with the animals.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Don’t give up.
- Know your customer, you aren’t for everyone, and that’s ok.
- Start small and grow when you can.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://upnorthheritagefarm.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UpNorthHeritageFarm/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/upnorthheritagefarm/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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