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Becki's
Mediterranean Olive Salsa
Becky
Spina, an admitted “foodie,” began giving her olive salsa as gifts to
friends
who loved it and subsequently asked if they could purchase
more. Already
having a career as a music therapist, Becki declined.
However, when she
lost her job and found herself caring for her wheel chair bound son,
she knew
that she needed to find a way to make ends meet. From the
advice of a
friend, Becki decided to build a business around her olive salsa.
As
with many start-up businesses, Becki identified her largest hurdle as a
lack of
money. According to Becki, “I was out of work and my son was in rehab
for a
life-altering event so I had no money. I went from being a
professional
to being dirt poor and I was sure I couldn’t do this without
capital.” To
access capital, Becki knew she needed a business plan and turned to the
Western
Dairyland Women’s Business Center for help where a Business Development
Specialist
urged her to apply for two local business plan contests and then helped
her put
together the business plan and financial projections necessary for
submission. Becki went on to win both business plan contests
that
year. The financial awards from these contests granted Becki
the ability
to launch Becki’s Mediterranean Olive Salsa, LLC and move into her own
space.
On
July 8, 2006, Becki had her first sale at the Eau Claire Farmers Market
when
she brought 87 containers of her salsa and sold out in
just two hours. By
the fall of 2006, she was able to get her salsa into several local
grocery
stores. Three years later, Becki’s Mediterranean Olive Salsa, now in
four
varieties, can be found in approximately 50 grocery stores and she
continues to
sell at the local farmers markets. To keep up with demand,
she has hired
five part-time employees and continues to enjoy a steady growth in
sales.
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