Entrepreneurship became Carol-Ann Carrington’s passion in 2018 when a sale of her corporate employer provided an opportunity to pursue entrepreneurship. She was juicing carrots when her son asked for pancakes. Carol-Ann suggested that he should drink some of the carrot juice — which he politely declined. Simultaneously a light bulb went off in her head. She blended some of the carrot juice into the pancake mix. Needless to say, her son ate the carrot pancakes and politely asked for more. Carol-Ann then pursued her passion of bringing colorful, vegetable or fruit-based pancake mixes to market. Kickerfeast Pancake & Waffle Mix was launched in Fall 2020.
Please tell us a little bit about your company – what is Kickerfeast Pancake & Waffle Mix all about?
Kickerfeast Pancake & Waffle Mix is the transformation of a basic pancake mix into a colorful, healthier, natural, flavorful, fruit or vegetable-based powder pancake and waffle mix. Our intent is to create a healthier option to a basic pancake mix by adding 100% fruit and 100% vegetable powder to the mixture.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
The thought process to begin Kickerfeast in 2018 was accidental. I was juicing carrot and asked my nine-year-old son to drink some of the carrot juice. He politely declined, but request pancakes instead. Acting on intuition, I mixed some of the carrot juice into the pancake mix, gave him carrot pancakes which he gobbled up and asked for more. This alerted me to a niche in the market. I began my research to bring fruit or vegetable-based pancake and waffle mixes to market.
Prior to this venture, I was terminated through a one year phased-out process from my corporate job as an accountant based on the sale of my employer. I had worked as an accountant in various industries including, investment, entertainment, medical insurance and media and was fortunate to obtain my Masters in Criminal justice.
What are your plans, how do you plan to grow this company?
First, I intend to seek financing since I am self-financed.
Secondly, I will focus on extensive marketing strategies for Kickerfeast to gain recognition and become a household brand with quality products, offering more natural flavors, some seasonal, others permanent will be pursue.
Another goal is to expand the brand to offer gluten free pancakes and waffle mixes, establish a frozen line of pancakes and waffles for the time-constraint consumer and seek Kosher certification. The opportunity to launch Kickerfeast internationally (South America and the Caribbean) cannot be ruled out.
What were the top mistakes you made starting your business and what did you learn from it?
Mass production is different from personal production. In my original concoction of Kickerfeast pancake mixes, I included natural vanilla powder which was later extracted because the costing of the recipe would be unreasonable to consumers.
Additionally, it is imperative to perform edits and review when you are alert and to ask as many people as possible to assist in the process. My original pouches had an error in the fine print which was flawed to three of the flour flavors. That mishap had a negative impact on the finances.
How do you separate yourself from your competitors?
Kickerfeast Pancake & Waffle mixes are made with 100% fruit or 100% vegetable powder which are directly attributed to the intense flavor and vibrant color of the final product when mixed with water.
What is one thing that you daily to grow as an entrepreneur?
Research: Whether it is Googling, webinars, due diligence or utilizing other platforms to learn, expand, listen or view topics or practices, it is imperative to be aware of changes and the areas that require improvement.
What are three books or courses you recommend for new entrepreneurs?
- The Successful Business Plan by Rhonda Abrams.
- Little Red Book of Selling by Jeffery Gitomer
- Foundations of Cost Control by Daniel Traster
It is important that new entrepreneurs connect with their local Small Business Administration or Small Business Development Center to network and build relationship with other entrepreneurs.
If you only had $100 dollars to start a new business, knowing everything you know now, how would you spend it?
I would take a potential investor or two to breakfast to pitch my idea to them, creating a business relationship and securing financing throughout the business. The cost of registering the business exceeds $100.
How can we get in touch with you?
Follow Kickerfeast and founder Carol-Ann Carrington on social media:
- Carol-Ann Carrington: Kickerfeast Website
- Kickerfeast Facebook
- Kickerfeast Instagram
- Kickerfeast Twitter
- For inquiries, please email info@colorfuleatsusa.com
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