POSTED BY: KEELEY
Now that Erika and I have been living in Portland for a couple weeks, we are beginning to explore our area. During the long weekend we had some fun visits from some of our favorite ladies — my sister and our moms!
McKinna, my 17 year old sister, has the coolest taste in fashion, art, music and food. She loves trying new flavors of ice cream, so we headed down Mississippi Ave for a bite at Ruby Jewel, one of the most adorable ice cream places I have ever been!
Kinna got a Lavender Lemon Ice Cream Float with Boysenberry Soda (probably the coolest thing on the menu… told you she has good taste!)
I couldn’t decide, so I went with a swirled scoop of two flavors — Caramel with Salted Dark Chocolate and Singing Dog Vanilla Toffee. Both were incredibly fresh and delicious! After you’ve had freshly made ice cream, it’s hard to go back to storebought. Guess that means we’ll have to return to Ruby Jewel sometime soon…
As if that wasn’t a treat enough, the next morning, our moms came to visit! They are both teachers, so they were loving their three day weekends :) We headed down to a cute coffee shop only a few blocks from our house, Coffee House Five, to sip hot drinks and chat.
It was a wonderful, relaxing weekend with our families and friends! Hope you all had a good one too.
POSTED BY: ERIKA
Wow, two blog posts in one day…as Keeley hinted, that’s one for the record book!
One of the many great things about Wild Squirrel, is that is has allowed me to reconnect with people in my life who I have lost contact with. From old teachers, family members, friends and old neighbors, there are so many people who I might have never talked to again if it wasn’t for…peanut butter!
Our Wild Wednesday feature today is no exception! Mike is an old neighbor of my family’s and has known me since I was born. Over the years we’ve lost contact, but when Keeley and I started Wild Squirrel he was instantly one of our biggest fans!
Mike sporting his new Wild Squirrel t-shirt and a jar of Chocolate Sunflower Seed Almond Butter!
1) Where do you live and what makes living there so great?
I live with my wife Claire and son Pasha in a small city named Escondido, which is just north of San Diego. The best thing about living there is the weather. We have a typical Mediterranean climate of warm summers and cool winters, which is perfect for growing a garden.
2) Explain what your work is?
I work in regulatory affairs and quality in the medical devices industry. Essentially, I am responsible for navigating the pathway to approval of my company’s products by the Food and Drug Administration, as well as in the international markets such as Europe. This means that I am in meetings most of the day, or sitting at a desk preparing for meetings.
3) When you are at work, what would you rather be doing? What are your passions, hobbies, interests?!
I would rather be outdoors. We have half an acre which we are putting to use growing vegetables and fruit trees as a way to live more sustainably. So working in the yard is an enjoyable way to relieve stress.
Bird watching has been a passion of mine since I took the Field Ornithology course at the University of Oregon in 1987. I don’t get out on birding trips much anymore, but we have nest boxes placed around the yard and have had Barn Owls nesting 2 years in a row, as well as House Wrens and Bushtits. We’re not far from the ocean, so we enjoy playing with our son Pasha on the beach. Any time I am out hiking is a simple pleasure.
Mike doing what he loves most! Enjoying the outdoors and bird watching with his trusty helper :)
4) Which sports are your favorite? Do you compete or follow any sports diligently?
Ha! I used to be a runner, but I have not competed since the Jingle Bell Run 8K in Eugene in 1988. I have fond memories of running with your Dad around Mt. Tabor Reservoir in Portland.
Check out this speedster!
Age and overuse injuries have made me a spectator, so I follow the sport religiously on websites like Flotrack and Lets Run. I’m also a fan of soccer, particularly the English Premier League. And, my beloved Baltimore Orioles are currently atop the AL East. I’m hopeful, but not delusional.
5) Who/what inspires you?
My family. After a career in sales, my wife is following her passion and studying to be a Holistic Health Practitioner. She has already completed a certificate in Massage Therapy. Pasha is 10 and growing fast, testing out new things, and it is fun to watch him develop. And after graduating from Portland State, my daughter took off for Spain and is testing herself in a different culture while she works as a nanny to 2 young children. What you and Keeley have done with Wild Squirrel is inspiring to me. I know from the experience of starting my own consulting business how difficult it can be follow your dream and make it happen.
6) What has been the best vacation/outdoor adventure you’ve experienced?
My wife’s family lives in France, so we try to go every couple of years. The best vacation I ever had was the 3 weeks we spent in Paris, Burgundy and Provence. We spent a week in a place named Pralognan la Vanoise in the French Alps and had an amazing time hiking and enjoying the local wine and produce. It is my favorite place in France.
7) Finally, what is your favorite flavor of Wild Squirrel and favorite way to eat it?
Right now, it is Bright Eyed & Bushy Tailed, either on apple slices or a rice cake. Just the name will get you going and the combination of chocolate and espresso is killer.
(We’ll have to convert you to our new Vanilla Espresso Almond Butter!)
Thanks for all of your support throughout this past year Mike!
Erika
POSTED BY: KEELEY
Hello Everyone! It’s Wednesday. Erika is probably posting a Wild Wednesday later today, so it will most likely be a double blog post day! This is unprecedented… hope you readers out there can recover from all the excitement!
Her post will likely be a bit more eloquent than mine — I’m just popping in to share a few things that have been making life awesome this week:
1) City life. It feels great to live so close to everything! We had a meeting at a coffee shop downtown, and all we had to do was walk out the door and stroll a few blocks! A great alternative to the normal 30 minute drive from the suburbs.
2) Let My People Go Surfing, by the always eccentric Patagonia founded Yvon Choinard. I have this one lined up to read next, but might have to read something more fluffy in between to give my mind a break from the pending environmental doom.
3) New running routes! For the past four months I’ve been running in suburbia (literally the same routes I ran for 4 years of high school cross country… so they are getting a bit old) and it’s been great having a whole new neighborhood to explore.
4) My BIG bed! I’ve been a twin bed sleeper at the parent’s house, and I finally got my big comfy bed out of storage for the new house. Divine comfort!
5) Yummy food — we’ve made our own nut milk, delicious pestos, sauces, and asian meatballs, among other things! So much good cooking to be had in the new kitchen.
Now it’s a cloudy day and I’m getting some work done on the website and doing financials! Oh boy! Enjoy your Wednesday, everyone :)
POSTED BY: ERIKA
It’s official. Keeley and I are Portlanders! We have finally moved into our new home and we couldn’t be happier.
We celebrated the day by doing some of our favorite things.
1) Went for a run in our new neighborhood.
2) Visited Whole Foods.
Ingredients for a Mexican inspired dinner
3) Treasure hunted at Goodwill.
4) Shopped (and bought) at IKEA.
We got desks and chairs for our new Wild Squirrel office!
5) Tested a new recipe. We had so much fun making a delicious dinner in our new kitchen!
On the menu: Shredded lime+cumin chicken, stuffed poblano chilies, jicama+red onion+cilantro slaw, avocado + jicama on the side!
Our new house is quickly becoming our sanctuary. After living in our college apartment for two years, it was getting pretty run down. That apartment experienced a lot of wear and tear, mainly because of the fact that our unplanned peanut butter “careers” began there! Let’s just say that apartment will forever smell like peanuts…So moving into a fresh, clean home, signals a new chapter in our lives.
Stay tuned for more posts about our house as we continue to “nest” and make it our own :)
That’s all for now,
Erika
POSTED BY: ERIKA
It’s that time again! Time to highlight someone who we think is awesome! This week’s Wild Wednesday feature is Ms. Leah Leighter.
Even though it seems like it has been so much longer that we’ve known each other, it’s only been a year since we met! I met Leah at Vero Espresso, the adorable little coffee shop I worked at last year. Starting a new job is always intimidating because of the already established relationships between the employees, and finding where you fit into the dynamic can be a bit challenging. But I was lucky enough to have Leah who “took me under her wing” instantaneously. Leah taught me everything I needed to know about the coffee shop, introduced me to customers and pretty soon I felt right at home!
Since the first time I told Leah about Wild Squirrel she has been such a supporter. She has always offered to help, many times offering to do “whatever we need!” She is one of the most generous and genuine people I know and I was excited to finally get to interview her!
Leah (far right) hanging out with us in Eugene at the Street Fair!
If you could live anywhere in the world where would you live?
The Pacific Northwest has been my home and it has truly treated me well. However, as we are just coming out of the rainy season, its time for some Vitamin D! I guess the first place that comes to mind is to visit my good friend in Utila, Honduras.
What would you hate to live without?
It would have to be dark chocolate! Lately I’ve really had a thing for dark chocolate with orange.
If you were an animal, what would you be?
An otter! Because they float on their backs and eat! I used to swim backstroke competitively in high school and I love food.
What is one thing you do for yourself everyday?
I don’t always have the luxury or time to do this everyday, but I love taking long, hot showers. It’s one of the few places where I can just think.
What’s your favorite type of food, favorite restaurant?
Hmm…favorite restaurant would be any back porch with a barbecue. Ha! Can you tell I’m ready for summer? A family favorite would be a marinated flank steak, grilled medium rare, sliced thinly, and served with chimichurri.
Leah, something we love to talk about is…food! Can you tell me more about your new relationship and approach to food and nutrition? How has it changed your life?
I used to feel weighed down and bloated after I ate. I remember after one meal I ate while we were working together I felt particularly bad. You suggested that I eliminate gluten from my diet, so I decided to try it for a month to see if I noticed a difference. The first week was hard. I felt like I was missing out on something. I decided that if I was going to get through the month I was going to have to be more creative. I started to incorporate more vegetables, protein, and fruits into my cooking.
Second, I hit up Google. I found numerous gluten free cooking blogs where I learned tips on baking with alternative flours as well as cooking with alternative grains. After 5 months of eating gluten free, I have found I am more adventurous in my cooking and I have the tendency of making more of my own stuff which is pretty fun! Being bloat-free is nice too.
What are you most passionate about?
I am pretty passionate about acquiring new skills and refining old ones. I like projects of which you can physically see the progress being made and the fulfillment of doing them yourself.
What are you future dreams? Both professionally and personally.
I’ve been bombarded with this question since I graduated last spring. Honestly, I don’t know the answer to my dream job and at times that can be frustrating. At some points in the future, I would like to volunteer in Africa for public health education—either in women’s health and family planning or nutrition.
Some of my personal plans for the summer are to hike the South Sister, backpack in the Wallowas, run the Women’s Half Marathon in under 2 hours, participate in a triathlon, and to put together a game of slip n’ slide kickball with some friends.
Leah loves to bring Squirrel Size almond butter packets when she goes on bike rides!
What is your favorite Wild Squirrel flavor and why?
Oh, this is a tough one. I think it would have to be either the Chocolate Coconut or Honey Pretzel. Typically I eat it straight out of the jar but I also mix it in with ice cream, put it on pancakes, make sandwiches, and bak it into cookies and breads.
Thanks Leah for sharing a little bit about yourself! Keeley and I so appreciate all of the support and encouragement you’ve given us over the past year.
Until next time!
Erika
POSTED BY: ERIKA
What an incredible weekend of weather we had here in Portland! It couldn’t have come at a better time to celebrate our episode of Shark Tank airing! Keeley and I are still somewhat in shock that we have now been seen representing Wild Squirrel by millions of people on national television…crazy!!
In order to properly celebrate the big debut on Friday night, we had a Shark Tank viewing party with a group of our biggest supporters! It was so fun to share the evening with people who have helped us grow to where we are today.
A little far away…but here is the group shot of our supporters who watched the show with us Friday!
One of the strangest parts about Friday was reliving the whole Shark Tank experience. So much has happened since September that it was almost hard to remember 8 months back! But when I did start to think about the whole experience, many emotions and memories came flooding back to me! We spent an incredible amount of time last summer preparing (and stressing) about that show! I remember sitting at my kitchen table watching episode after episode on Hulu. I would write down all of the questions the Sharks asked each of the entrepreneurs and then rehearse my own answers. I spent hours thinking about that fateful moment when it would finally be our turn. We would be the two youngest women to ever present their company to the Sharks. I could hardly stand thinking about that fateful moment when we would finally get our turn to walk down that dramatic hallway and stand there facing those famous faces. This past Friday, we FINALLY got to share the experience with everyone who we’ve had to keep it a secret from!
Before we sat down and watched, we let out some of our excitement during an interview by the local KATU news station!
“We’re SO excited!”
Finally after months and months of waiting we took our seat and watched our 7 minutes of fame! As I said before, it was just too weird to see us on screen! We had never seen the clip so it was new for everyone! There were many laughs and screeches coming from the audience…mainly from me ;)
Some of our best friends were there to show their support!
And of course our wonderful families!
Even though we were SO happy to finally watch the episode, it almost was a let down. After all of that time waiting it was all over in 7 minutes! BUT, that feeling of letdown didn’t stick around for too long. We now are very occupied filling all of the online order we have received since the show aired!!
HELLOOOO BOXES!!
That’s all for now :)
Erika
When Erika and I walked into ABC’s studios to participate in Shark Tank seven months ago, we were brand new to the world of business. Our company was only a few months old, and it had just begun to pick up steam. Needless to say, the thought of presenting our company to five self-made millionaires on national TV made us a bit nervous.
Nonetheless, the opportunity to be a part of Shark Tank was a huge turning point for Wild Squirrel. The feedback and advice we were given, particularly from Robert, Mark, and Barbara, has profoundly impacted our company’s success as well as helped influence our own personal paths.
Now that we can finally share them, here are seven lessons we’ve learned since our dip in the Shark Tank:
1) Follow Your Dream
We had no idea what the Sharks were going to think of our tiny peanut butter company from Eugene, Oregon. It’s hard to put your passion on a tray and hand it over for judgment, but that’s exactly what we did.
The fact that the Sharks loved our peanut butter and saw potential in the company was a huge boost for us. Hearing such positivity about our product made us proud and reconfirmed the bottom line for us: making delicious peanut butter. We knew if we could continue to make great tasting products, the rest would follow. And so far, it has!
2) Be Realistic
If you’ve seen the episode, you’ll know that we felt very strongly that we could be both students and entrepreneurs. The Sharks tried to explain to us that this simply could not be possible – we needed to choose between pursuing our formal educations and building our company. Robert explained to us that if he was going to invest, he needed to have access to us 24/7 – that we needed to take our company seriously before any investors would.
Immediately after the show, Erika and I both called the University of Oregon and dropped our fall class load. Though we have continued to take online classes here and there, we have never once regretted leaving our full time student lives – we are full time businesswomen now and our company is so much better for it.
3) Be Tough and Persistent
Shark Tank was the first time we had ever truly had to defend our company. The crowd at Farmer’s Markets and Street Fairs is typically a pretty tame bunch; we were used to fielding compliments about our peanut butter, not criticism about our company’s viability in the marketplace.
The show made us really study the market, imagine what our long terms goal were, and then be tough enough to defend our company. Looking back at our pitch now, there is so much raw passion and excitement there. We hadn’t figured out how to harness it yet, but we were pretty tenacious already!
4) Remember Your Roots
We weren’t chosen for Shark Tank because we were a huge company making millions of dollars. We didn’t own any patents, and we didn’t hire a PR firm to pitch us to the producers. We entered just like everybody else – with a short blurb about our company and a snapshot of the two of us.
Wild Squirrel resonated with the show’s producers because of our story, and because of who we are as entrepreneurs. We are proud to be young college girls who took an idea and ran with it. We know we’ve gotten this far because of where we came from, and we’ll never forget it.
Our genuine enthusiasm and youth have really been beneficial and instead of shying away from this and pretending to be something we’re not, we embrace it and use it as another facet of our company that makes us unique.
5) Communication is Everything
As two best friends running a company, good communication is key to making sure everything runs smoothly. At the end of every day, we always have each other’s support, and we never blame each other for things that may go wrong in the process. We’ve done this by doing our best to keep the lines of communication open, and make all big decisions together.
Preparing for Shark Tank was the first big stress put on our business relationship. We have very different approaches when preparing for a big presentation. We learned that patience and strong communication through every situation will help us remain best friends and benefit our business.
6) Everything is a Learning Experience
One lesson we took away from Shark Tank is that everything doesn’t always work out the way you expected it to – but that’s half the fun! So what happened after Shark Tank? After further evaluation, the investment relationship didn’t end up being the best fit, so the deal with Barbara never materialized. But we did move forward with an incredible set of lessons and experiences. Barbara is an amazing businesswoman and helped us improve our “pitch,” our focus, and even our negotiation skills! Since we originally taped the show, we’ve had some amazing things happen, including being featured in O magazine, Glamour magazine and even winning “The People’s Choice” award at an investment competition. We hope to announce some other exciting news soon… so stay tuned!
7) Building a Company is a Marathon, Not a Sprint
Living the life of an entrepreneur means accepting the fact that the work will never be done. This isn’t a school project and we will never receive an A+ and be free to head off for summer vacation – but we don’t mind.
This is the beauty of running your own business – making your own schedule and setting your own priorities. There is never a dull moment and boredom is not in our vocabulary. We are learning to just be willing to wake up every day, work hard, and enjoy the journey. So far, Wild Squirrel has turned out to be an amazing journey, and we can hardly wait to see what the next weeks, months, and years hold for us!
- Keeley & Erika
POSTED BY: ERIKA
Every year, the University of Oregon puts on two street fairs; one in the fall and one in the spring. Local vendors set up booths all along the main street of campus and sell locally made food and crafts! Last year we applied to be a part of this highly anticipated week and as a very young company we were chosen to be a vendor! It was that week that Keeley and I made our big debut with Wild Squirrel, formerly known as Flying Squirrel!
Sampling peanut butter to fellow students- May 2011!
That first street fair in May of 2011 was a pivotal point for our then very grassroots p.b. company. In 4 days, we made and sold 1,000 8 ounce mason jars and had hundreds of people try our p.b. for the first time! We still call those days some of the best days of our life because it was then that we realized we had something “real” on our hands. That was the week that we started dreaming of selling our peanut butter blends in stores.
Looking back, SO much has happened since then and last week we got to revisit the excitement of the street fair! We combined forces this year with our friend Evan, whose family owns an organic blueberry farm and makes delicious jelly…we made many students happy when they realized we were giving out samples of the classic pb+j combo.
A satisfied customer with blueberry jam and Honey Pretzel Peanut Butter!
Unlike other fairs we have been a part of, this year was stress free! Before we started working with a co-packer/food manufacturer, Keeley and I were making every single jar out of Cuisinart food processors…a very laborious task. After each day of the fair, we would have to go to the store, buy more ingredients, and then stay up into the wee hours of the night making peanut butter. So in comparison, this street fair was a piece of cake! All we had to do was show up every morning with our sealed, beautiful jars of nut butter and hand out samples to enthusiastic students!
Another Honey Pretzel enthusiast!
Reasons this street fair was awesome:
1) We got to sample our new almond butters and Squirrel Size single serve packets to students!
2) Since Keeley and I officially moved out of the Eugene “college world,” it was SO fun to see all of our friends who have been there since the beginning of this peanut butter journey! We have realized over the past few months that moving out of Eugene has meant moving away from people our own age, so it was nice to be in the hustle and bustle of college life…without having to go to class ;)
Camping out on 13th street!
Friends!
3) We spend so much of our time on the computer, making phone calls, sitting at our desks or driving, that it was a nice break from the “norm!”
4) Another street fair perk?! The awesome food vendors! We ate Peruvian food, Thai, barbeque and snacked on many other delicious treats!
One of my yummy lunches!
5) The street fair culture is awesome! It encompasses everything that makes Eugene a great city…good people, good food and fun events!
To top off the week, we were on the front page of the campus paper!
Overall it was a great (tiring) week! We sold lots of jars, got awesome feedback about our new Chocolate Sunflower and Vanilla Espresso Almond Butters and enjoyed some down time :)
That’s all for now :)
E
POSTED BY: KEELEY
With all the craziness in the business lately, its always fun to think back to the very beginning of the company. I remember right around when we began making peanut butter, we were just trying to find friends to take it off our hands so we wouldn’t eat it all!
One day during Journalism class, I had forgotten my water bottle, and I borrowed an empty Mason jar from my friend Kalie. Rather than return an empty jar, I brought her jar back full of our very first batch of Chocolate Espresso peanut butter! As one of the first samplers of our peanut butter, Kalie can certainly testament that what we sell now tastes much better than our first crazy experiments!
Not only has Kalie always been a loyal Wild Squirrel supporter but she is also an incredibly inspiring student, barista, cyclist, outdoors enthusiast and all around awesome woman! Read on for her insights on fun trips, sibling love, and yummy camping food :)
Hey Kalie! Let start with the basics — where do you go to school/what are you studying?
I’m a 20-year-old journalism major at the University of Oregon, but I’m also studying women’s and gender studies, as well as ethnic studies.
That sounds like a pretty busy schedule! Do you have a job outside of school?
As a college student, I’m so lucky to have two on-campus jobs at the UO. I work as a barista and baker at a coffee shop in the Erb Memorial Union, where my job includes making lattes, baking cupcakes, and then consuming the leftovers. I also am an Event Coordinator at the university’s Outdoor Program. At the Outdoor Program I can exercise my passion for the outdoors with a community of people who share the love of self-propelled adventure! Working at the OP also allows to me connect with those who have the same interests as me. I spend my time creating posters and publicizing for cool events on and off campus.
She’s riding a stationary bike to help POWER a local music festival… Awesome, right?
Besides school and work, how do you fill your time? What are your passions?
When I’m not in class or at work, I’m either away rock climbing/exploring for the weekend or making dinner with my friends and roommates. What is even better is when these two things combine, and I get to make delicious dinners at camp after a long day of climbing in the sun. For some reason cooking is so much more rewarding when it’s done on a tiny stove, prepared with dirty hands and eaten with your best friend while the sun sets on an epic day.
So I guess she’s not afraid of heights..!
Who/what inspires you?
It may sound corny, but the people who inspire me most are my siblings. I have three siblings and we are all very close in age. Because of our close-ness in age (only five years between the oldest and youngest child), we’ve always been huge influences on each other. When my brothers graduated from college last year and they were swept up by “real jobs” and paying back student loans, I quickly learned how important it is to embrace the freedom of my youth. They keep me grounded when I’m feeling most stressed about my future. My younger sister, so laid-back and confident, forces me to face the things that make me most uncomfortable or anxious. Every thing about each of my siblings inspires me to be the best version of myself that I can be.
Cutest siblings… ever.
What was your most recent great vacation/trip?
For spring break, my friends and I spent 11 days on rock climbing trip in Red Rocks, Nevada! We camped right outside Las Vegas and spent every day on the beautiful orange-colored rock, climbing til we couldn’t move. We always try to explore a new climbing hotspot each spring break (last year it was bouldering in Bishop, California!). Despite the 16 hour drive and 70 mph winds, so far Red Rocks has been my favorite spot. On our rest day we hiked through winding canyons along the Colorado River to a secluded natural hot spring where we soaked our tired muscles. I always look forward to spring break each year as a break from technology and showers, and this year did not disappoint!
What are some of your favorite foods to make while climbing/camping — any cool recipes to share?
My go-to snacks are just ideas that I’ve copied from others. A snack that my climbing partner SWEARS by, is a “Peanut Butter Honey Roll-up”. He spreads a thick layer of peanut butter on a flour tortilla, drizzles honey on top of it and then rolls it up and eats it! He never leaves camp without this.
For breakfast, a friend of ours taught us to make a meal he calls “Hashbrown Happiness”. He shreds two potatoes into a skillet with a little bit of olive oil and breaks up brocoli to add to it. Near the end he cracks several eggs into the skillet and sprinkles some cheese over the top. We now love this meal so much that we make it at home too.
Enjoying a packet of Vanilla Espresso almond butter on the go!
What is your favorite flavor of Wild Squirrel?
My two favorite flavors of Wild Squirrel are Cinnamon Raisin and Vanilla Espresso! I like the Cinnamon Raison flavor on bagels and rice cakes, but I eat the Vanilla Espresso just by itself!
What’s your next adventure? Anything new/exciting you are learning how to do?
My next adventure is kayaking the McKenzie River in an inflatable kayak for my roommate’s birthday! It will be our first time floating the McKenzie outside of a raft, and we’re so excited to try it out!
Kalie, you’re awesome!
POSTED BY: KEELEY
Erika and I spend most of our time on the day to day operations of the business. This includes production, sales, sampling, marketing, PR, and the rest. Most days, we wake up and talk to retailers, customers and distributers, focusing on getting our products to stores shelves and then into grocery carts. We pack boxes to send to online customers, solve any pending problems at our production facility, negotiate terms with peanut providers, and more.
However, what we’ve come to realize is that the bigger your business, the more and more time you spend simply raising money. I was always confused when I heard about large and established companies opening up lines of credit with banks. Don’t they already have money? I would think. Now (as the company resident bookkeeper) I realize that it’s a constant cycle of cash flow, requiring a whole lot of work!
Thanks to many of you, we recently had a successful Kickstarter campaign. We’ve gotten loans and investments from family and friends. However with recent PR, and very successful sales at local stores, we’ve been given the opportunity to expand further. Since winter, we have been opening our eyes to the wide world of business financing.
One incredible resource we’ve found to help with this learning curve is Oregon Entrepreneur’s Network. Through OEN we found Angel Oregon, a yearly conference that helps ease entrepreneurs through the process of pitching a company to potential investors.
I am really proud of how Erika and I really rose to this challenge. In the past four months, we’ve written a business plan, laid out five year financial plans and given several presentations to room fulls of investors, all part of a competition to win a potential investment at the end of the line.
Erika and I have pitched Wild Squirrel next to many more seasoned companies, led by more experienced entrepreneurs, and really stood our ground!
Out of a group of over 30 companies, we survived through several rounds of cuts before finally making Top 5! We were recently given the opportunity to present on stage in front of hundreds of influential Oregonians.
We had a great time at the conference, sampling our nut butters and answering questions from investors.
Giving our presentation was another great learning experience. Erika and I are so passionate about our company, and, despite our nerves, I think we did a good job expressing the potential of Wild Squirrel not only as a product, but as a brand.
Plus, the icing on the cake… we won the Audience Choice award! We didn’t expect to win the final investment (all top five companies were very impressive), and winning the vote of the audience was a huge compliment. Plus, we got $7,500 to spend on market research, and a super awesome TROPHY!
Angel Oregon was a great opportunity to sit back and celebrate how far we have come in the past few months — not only as a company, but as business women. And, come on, let’s face it, there is nothing cooler than winning a trophy. Nothing like some shiny swag to boost company moral!
POSTED BY: ERIKA
It is Wednesday once again and you know what that means…time for another special Wild Wednesday feature!
This weeks guest is someone who I will confidently say consumes the most peanut butter out of any person I know. He is a p.b. lover through and through and eats it on pretty much anything, apples being his favorite! So naturally he came to mind when I was brainstorming who my next feature would be. Not only does he just love our peanut butter (and any for that matter), but he also plays an important role in Wild Squirrel’s history. Besides Keeley and myself, he was the very first person to try our peanut butter creations! The very same day we made it, we began giving it out to our friends. Our first stop was to a house where a few of our friends lived…one of those friends being AJ!
AJ-aka peanut butter model
There are two words that comes to mind when I think of AJ…architecture+ wind surfing!! Choosing the most time demanding major at the University of Oregon, AJ spends a lot of his time devoted to pursuing his major that he is incredibly passionate about. During the summer months when he is not hard at work in an architecture studio, he spends his days pursuing his passion for outdoor adventure!
It wasn’t until the following year that I realized that PB was something that could be perfect straight out of the jar. This is when you guys came along with your first batch of peanut butter from your kitchen. The Wild Squirrel revolution began, and my love of peanut butter was renewed!
POSTED BY: ERIKA
These last couple weeks have been quite busy in Squirrel World! I know that is not a good excuse…but that’s my excuse for failing to do a Wild Wednesday feature last week!
But I’m bringing it back this week and couldn’t be more excited to write about my special “guest!”
Todays WILD WEDNESDAY featureis someone that I have great admiration and respect for. He has been called “one of the greatest rising fashion photographers in the Portland area.” He is composed, intelligent, and has incredible passion. Oh and I can’t forget to mention that he is 17 years old and just so happens to my cousin. Can you tell I love to brag about him ;)
Hi Nick!
Nick makes our nut butters look so classy ;)
Nick has been featured on many blogs and in various publications for his work, so I was thrilled that he agreed to be on ours! Here is what he has to say…enjoy!
-Most people reading this don’t know you or your talent, so I will get everyone up to speed! You are an INCREDIBLE photographer…so tell us, why photography?
We sort of just found each other at the perfect time. I had never really intended on being a photographer, but when I picked up a camera I knew something was right. I love letting my imagination wander and seeing what I am able to create.
-You are clearly passionate about the photography path you are currently pursuing, where does this passion come from?
My passion with photography all strives from capturing a moment-keeping it in time forever. Creating other worlds that only I can see. I love to find the beauty in the unusual and capture what I have in my imagination. I have always had a love and appreciation for fashion and design which really lends itself to what I love doing.
-Even though you are only 17, do you feel confident that this is what you want to be doing for the rest of your life?
Definitely. Almost every time I am behind the camera. It reminds me of how special my relationship with what I do is to me. At this point I can’t really imagine doing anything else, its what I love and I never want to look back.
-What are the best/hardest things about photography?
The best thing is getting to make a living off of what you love doing and not being chained down to a desk. The idea that I can travel the world and get to do my work wherever is such an exciting feeling. The hardest might be learning to stay driven and motivated even when you aren’t feeling it. Taking photos for me has become somewhat of a ritual. Like having a best friend you can always count on no matter what the consequences.
Nick’s work was featured in the May issue of Portland Monthly. Read the full article here.
-Can you define your style, whether that applies to general life, fashion, photography etc.?
Technically speaking I am a Fashion and Portraiture photographer. But for my style, I like to think of it as creating my own magical world. I tend to think of my photos as an extension of myself and how I am feeling at the moment. That is mostly for my more personal work. My overall style I would say is clean, warm, expressive and dreamy. I try to always have a magical or interesting element to all of my photos.
-We are both in similar situations…young people who are “defying the norm” in a sense. We have both chosen a non-traditional path and are not currently pursuing a formalized higher education. A lot of people tell me, you need to be in school and I get so tired of that. I know people have told you the same thing, do you ever feel like you will pursue a college degree later on in life?
Not at all. I think the social standard that college is the necessary next step for every person after high school is highly incorrect. If I was not pursuing my career then I could understand the dilemma, but going head first into what I love seems to be the only path I can see myself taking. I feel as if life experience is much more valuable in the terms of what you and I are doing. Now if I were to become a lawyer then yes, I think higher education would be very necessary. In the creative world it isn’t necessarily about the formal training you have had, it’s about what you can do, and what you have done. I do want to take classes on business to sharpen my knowledge on the business side of the job, but education will always be there if you decide you need it.
-Another similarity we share is that we are always busy! Whenever I talk to you you always have some cool, new project you are working on our some event that you are planning for. With your hectic schedule, what is one thing you do for yourself everyday?
I give myself some form of down time everyday. I am the type of person who really needs time to myself, to recharge my metaphorical battery. It keeps me sane and happy, so I find time everyday to just relax and forget about everything I have going on.
-Since Wild Squirrel began, many people have asked me this question and I find it so hard to answer… but I’m interested in seeing what you have to say. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Well I am headed to NYC in the fall to start working and assisting/interning. I hope to have scored an incredible assistant job where I can develop invaluable skills and connections. Beyond that, I hope to be shooting for large magazines, working with companies/designers, and being able to see my work on a very large scale. I want someone to be able to pick my photo out of a magazine and recognize it as my work. My goal with photography is ultimately to travel, photograph what I love and of things that I really care about.
Some of his photos that I love…
Not only is he good behind the camera, but he is also beautiful in front of the camera!
-So….back to peanut butter :) What is your favorite flavor and favorite way to eat it?
I love the Honey Pretzel! It is such a genius combination of yummy things. I make the craziest sandwiches with chocolate chips, peanut butter, Oreo’s, jam…the list goes on and on and the Honey Pretzel is the perfect addition to my sweet concoctions.
If you want to check out more of Nick’s work, here is his site!
Nick, I just want to say that you are amazingly talented and I cannot tell you how proud I am of everything you have already accomplished! You are such an inspiration and I cannot wait to watch you go and conquer the world of photography :)
That’s all for now, have a great week everyone!
Erika
POSTED BY: ERIKA
The last two weeks have been very exciting for us PR wise! We’ve had two appearances in national magazines, an article and picture on the front page of a local newspaper, a radio interview, and we were also featured in the New Seasons ad along with our picture and story!
The word of Wild Squirrel is spreading and we couldn’t be happier :)
Here we are in Oprah! This is on page 183 of the May issue, on stands now! The whole article features other women who are doing interesting things around the country…we were honored to have been selected!
I was at a New Seasons the day it came out, and there I was, standing in line staring at our smiling faces. That was a surreal moment to say the least!
Hi Oprah! Maybe we will actually get to meet her someday…
Last year Keeley entered a scholarship contest through Glamour magazine. She ended up being selected as one of the top 10 college women in the country for her scholastic efforts and entrepreneurial endeavors with Wild Squirrel! She recently was in NYC to accept her scholarship and is featured in this months issue of Glamour magazine, also on stands now! Click here to read the article!
She had a photo shoot in one of the New Seasons stores! How glamourous does she look!
As much as we love the national press, we always appreciate the local PR. Having support from the area we grew up in and where Wild Squirrel all began is so very important. This interview was fun because we were featured in the paper one year ago by the same photographer and reporter. They couldn’t believe how far we had come in a year and we were thrilled to be able to share our successes with them both! Here is the full article!
After selling our nut butters in New Seasons since the end of October, this week was the first week we have been on sale and also the first time being in their ad! We have received a lot of positive feedback, people love a good sale :)
Looking forward to more PR in the next couple of months-stay tuned!
Erika
POSTED BY: ERIKA
Hello hello! I find myself writing this post on what has turned out to be a very sunny afternoon here in the Portland area!
Although I am always excited about our Wild Wednesday feature, this week is especially exciting because I am featuring not only one, but two amazing Squirrel supporters :)
The coolest part about these two individuals…they just so happen to be the cutest mom and daughter duo ;)
This weeks extra special Wild Wednesday features are Kathy and Bella!
Mrs.Hollamon and daughter Bella representing Wild Squirrel at local auction!
Kathy, or who I known as Mrs.Hollamon, taught both Keeley and I when we were students at Tualatin High School! Because health and nutrition have always been something I have been interested in, I have fond memories of going to her class and actually being excited to learn. As opposed to dreading my other classes such as physics for example, not exactly my strongest subject…
After graduation, I lost contact with Mrs.Hollamon, but once Wild Squirrel began, that all changed. Believe me when I say that she has been one of our biggest supporters since day 1. I remember “way back when,” as we were just launching into stores, my mom, who also works at the high school, would call me to tell me how enthusiastic and supportive Mrs.Hollamon was of our entrepreneurial endeavors! We are lucky to have many people behind the the “nut butter revolution,” but unlike others, Mrs.Hollamon doesn’t only support us with her words, rather she shows her support through her actions. For example, she has been one of our most consistent orderers, placing an order for 8 jars of Sneaky Cinnamon to give away to her Thanksgiving guests! How cool is that?! Also, when Keeley and I were out of town, she took it upon herself to coordinate a sampling table complete with a hand painted squirrel poster, hand out cards, our rap video etc. at the local high school auction. She is constantly sharing our story and products, not because she has to, but because she wants to. It’s people like her who make Wild Squirrel a success.
-Clearly you are a huge supporter of Wild Squirrel, as simple as this sounds…why?
*I get to work with some amazing kids at TuHS, and I love to hear stories of them becoming successful. I also happen to love peanut butter, so why WOULDN’T I support Wild Squirrel Nut Butters?
*Bella also loves peanut butter, so she is my sidekick. :)
-Tell me a little more about your love of peanut butter!
*It has been probably 10 years or more since we started eating Adams natural peanut butter. We made the switch to all-natural after hearing that some peanut butter companies, like Jif, put ground up plastic in their peanut butter. Gross! I have always eaten fairly healthy, but from then on I started being more conscious of what we ate. When I first tried the Sneaky Cinnamon, I loved it! Recently, I had the opportunity to help with tasting at the auction and I tasted the Pretzel Pizazz on pretzels, which was delicious, and the Cocoa-Nut with graham crackers, which was also fantastic.
Sneaky Cinnamon…her favorite!
*Bella just simply loves peanut butter and likes all the Wild Squirrel flavors! She also is a big fan of the new label design.
-What’s your favorite food?
*Believe it or not, peanut butter. I remember growing up and PB&J was my favorite sandwich, and my peanut butter cookie recipe is my favorite still.
*Bella’s favorite food is cherries.
-Favorite hobby/activity/sport/thing to do with your daughter?
*Anything, really. I love listening to her read to me, or play board games tag, working in the garden/yard, or camping/fishing as a family with my husband- she really loves it when we are all together. We love swimming together too!
*Bella says her favorite thing to do with me is to go swimming!
-What is one thing you do everyday for yourself that makes you happy?
*I love starting the day with a work out! We have a bike in our living room, so I will do that, or recently I started back going to the YMCA at 5:00am. It makes for a great start to the day- energizes me!
-What part of the world is most intriguing to you/where do you want to travel?
*I love Mexico. We have been to Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo San Lucas. We have also been to Kauai, which was beautiful. Anywhere sunny and warm!
-I’m always brainstorming new ways to use our nut butters, any ideas?
I haven’t tried using any of the Wild Squirrel Nut Butter in cookies yet. But I have a good peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip recipe that would be delicious with the Curious Cocoa-Nut or my favorite, Sneaky Cinnamon! I also have a great enchilada recipe that I might try with the Pretzel Pizazz.
-From your life experience, what’s a valuable piece of advice you would give Keeley and I regarding Wild Squirrel?
*You guys are really onto something BIG here. My cousin lives near San Jose, CA and she heard about Wild Squirrel online, ordered some and loved it! I didn’t even know she knew about you ladies until I posted on Facebook the link to Wild Squirrel last fall. She replied and told me she already knew about you! I was like, “Wow! This is going to go BIG!” I am so excited for you gals. Here’s the advice: keep your lives in balance. Yes, grow your business; yes, enjoy the ride to success knowing that it all started on a “rainy, cold Sunday”. Document all of the steps along the way; it might make a great book someday. Always make time for family; I know they have helped guide you along the way. They will always be your biggest fans! There is no greater job than getting to do something you love every day, and getting paid for it…eventually ;)
Thank you to both Mrs.Hollamon (and Bella!) for the kind words and support you have shown us throughout this past year!
And that concludes another Wild Wednesday!
Who will we feature next?!
Erika
POSTED BY: ERIKA
There are few things more comforting on a gloomy, rainy afternoon then baking a yummy treat while dancing around to John Legend in your sweats ;) This afternoon was made even better by Keeley’s sister McKinna, aka my adopted little sister, an equal food enthusiast. We always have a wonderful time cooking and eating together-today was no different!
Our goal: to create a gluten and dairy free banana muffin recipe using one of our 5 nut butters. I have made many a baked good with our peanut butters, so I was excited to finally be able to experiment with our two new almond butters: Joyful Java and Chocolate Sun-Sation.
We figured Chocolate Sun-Sation with dark chocolate and sunflower seeds would be the best accompainment to the ingredients we had already chosen to use in the muffins! So alas, this one stole the show.
Since I cannot tolerate gluten or dairy, I wanted to create a recipe that was free of both of these things. Not to say that I won’t be creating recipes for those of you lucky ones who can happily consume dairy and gluten, but today I wasn’t in the mood to test my willpower that keeps me from eating glutinous, dairy filled treats!
I decided my flour base would come from oats. Depending on the severity of a gluten intolerance, some people may or may not be able to tolerate regular oats because they are processed on the same machinery that wheat is making cross-contamination highly likely. For this reason I try my best to buy gluten free oats-Bob’s Red Mill sells some at most grocery stores!
You can buy oat flour at the store but if you have a food processor, it’s cheaper and more fun to make your own! Just add 2 cups of oats, blend for 30 seconds and you have yourself some “freshly milled” oat flour!
Here are some of the other ingredients we used!
I wrote this recipe using a few other banana bread/muffin recipes for reference.
Ingredients:
3 very ripe bananas
2 cups raw oats
1/3 cup Chocolate Sun-Sation Almond butter (any nut butter will work)
2 egg whites
1/3 cup almond milk (any alternative milk will work or regular milk)
1/4 cup agave nectar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped dairy free dark chocolate
3/4 cup chopped almonds
The result!
Regular size
Whenever you write your own recipe or tweak a combination of recipes as I did, the result is always a surprise. Luckily, the surprise was a good one! Kinna and I both agreed that these were the best muffins we may have ever had.
Mini size! As requested by Kinna ;)
One of my many projects at the moment is to develop a variety of recipes, like this one, for our website using each of our nut butters. My goal is to show their versatility and to spark creativity in all of you chefs out there! I will be adding more detailed recipe instructions later in case any of you feel inspired to make them!
That’s all for now,
Erika
