The Female Founder Show

Ep. 8: The Rise of Schmidt's Naturals: Jamie Schmidt on Building and Selling a Brand

• Bridget Fitzpatrick • Episode 8

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What happens when a kitchen experiment turns into a global sensation? Jamie Schmidt, founder of Schmidt's Naturals, joins us to share her incredible entrepreneurial story. From creating body care products in her kitchen to building a brand worthy of Unilever's attention, Jamie reveals the highs and lows of her journey. Discover the pivotal moments that took her from selling at local farmers' markets to seeing her products on major retail shelves. Jamie opens up about the emotional rollercoaster of selling her company, the strategic decisions behind it, and the invaluable support network that helped her navigate these transformative times.

But Jamie's story doesn't end there. Post-acquisition, she's channeling her entrepreneurial spirit into the world of pickleball—a rapidly growing sport. As a part-owner of a professional pickleball team, Jamie is investing her time and resources into expanding this exciting industry. Learn how she's merging her business savvy with her passion for pickleball to create new opportunities and grow the sport's community. Tune in for an episode brimming with inspiration, strategic insights, and the excitement of new ventures.

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Speaker 1:

This is the Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick, exclusively on ASBN.

Speaker 2:

Hello and welcome to the Female Founder Show. Today's guest is Jamie Schmidt, the founder of Schmidt's Naturals. Jamie's also the co-founder of BFF, a brand that provides access and education in emerging tech and underrepresented groups. She's an investor and author of the book Supermaker Crafting Business on your Own Terms. Jamie is a two-time honoree in Goldman Sachs' 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs. She was on the Inc Magazine's Female Founders 100 list and she was Ernst Young's Pacific Northwest Entrepreneur of the Year. I'm so excited to talk to Jamie today about her exciting journey. So with that, jamie, welcome to the Female Founders Show. I'm excited to be here. Thanks for having me. Yes, now I would love to start from the beginning. Talk to us about before you started your company and the inspiration behind starting Schmitz Naturals.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, you know, my founding roots probably are very traditional. I didn't sit down one day and say, hey, I'm going to start a business and here's my whole business plan. I sort of just fell into it. I was living in Portland, oregon, at the time. It's the most creative city probably in the country.

Speaker 3:

Tons of creators, makers, artists and that was my way of fitting in was just by making things, specifically body care products. I loved making lotions and soaps and I just loved playing with essential oils. I was also pregnant at the time, so it just sort of made sense for my lifestyle. I was on a tight budget, you know, we didn't have a huge family household income and so making things just made sense and then started taking my products to the farmer's markets and I got a pretty positive response from the community, you know I started selling. People really took interest. We're coming back, you know, week after week, for more products. And then I realized there is something here, there's a business potential in what I'm doing, and before I knew it, I had retailers approaching me in my booth asking if they could sell my products in their stores. And then, once I went in, I went all in and never looked back.

Speaker 2:

That's awesome and then fast forward. I know you got into a ton of stores and you're working really hard and you got a call right and you weren't planning on this call right. Can you talk to us about that, yeah?

Speaker 3:

I think you're talking about selling the company.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it wasn't something that was ever in my thinking. I just loved what I was doing and for the first time in my professional life, I felt happy and fulfilled and never really looked too far ahead. Honestly, I think that was part of what helped drive the business was my resistance to look too far ahead and have an exit plan. I just enjoyed it. I was making customers happy, making myself happy, aside from all the stress that comes with entrepreneurship. Yes, one day I was approached by Goldman Sachs who said that Unilever, the biggest CPG company in the world, was interested in acquiring the brand. And so my feelers perked up, I guess, and I started thinking a little differently about the future of the business.

Speaker 3:

Right, and thinking, well, maybe there's something here, maybe the business would do well in the hands of a big corporation like Unilever. But, of course, lots of thinking and planning and questions that went into those conversations. But once that started, we were getting interest from others because generally how it happens with an acquisition if you have a broker like Goldman. From others because generally how it happens with an acquisition if you have a broker like Goldman, they will sort of shop the deal around and see if there's others who are interested and so once Unilever was interested, we were getting interest from Procter Gamble, l'oreal and some of the bigger companies that typically acquire brands early stage companies. So I entertained those conversations and had my know. I had my non-negotiables and was really excited about the potential of Sol. Unilever is a really strong strategic partner from that point of view.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, absolutely. I'm sure it was very exciting, but also a little bit scary or nerve wracking, Like you said. You were having fun and you were really enjoying it. And then I want to think about you know selling, and did you have a support system in place that you could go to for advice or what was going on in?

Speaker 3:

your mind. Yeah, it was tough. A lot of emotions attached to it. The business had become a big part of my identity. I couldn't really imagine a future without it. But of course it was the lure of a big compensation. I would go along with that in this nice package. But yeah, it was hard.

Speaker 3:

I was really concerned about the future of the business. Right, and there were so many things that made it special. It was a homegrown brand. I literally sold it in my kitchen and I had in-house manufacturing and I was scared to put it in the hands of somebody that didn't love it as deeply as I did. But I knew it was the right choice after a lot of conversations. In terms of advisors, definitely our brokers were helpful. I didn't have a whole lot of colleagues or friends who had been through a similar process, but there are resources out there. There are communities you can connect to and, um, you know, I'm pretty tapped into the, the female founder world, uh, that so, just you know, started reading other people's stories and feeling really inspired and understanding that you know, hey, this is the right movement. You know, as scary as it is, it's good for the business, it's good for me, yeah now.

Speaker 2:

if someone is watching right now and planning on selling one day, what are some of the steps they should be taking to be prepared?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, yeah, I think, even if you're not thinking about selling, I think it's a good idea just to sort of consider it as an option someday and, with that said, maybe have an idea for what type of companies you would sell to or what timing that might look like and how you could get ready in the event that that was something that my interest is someday. I think one thing that I didn't do well was keep clean books, because it started in my kitchen. It was such a homegrown brand in the beginning. I was mixing personal and business expenses, so those first few years were a little bit messy. We were able to clean it up with the right accountants and things, but it took extra work.

Speaker 3:

We do get acquired. There's a whole diligence process that happens, and so everything should be as organized as possible. Another thing that was really important was making sure that I didn't have any long-term contracts that I was tied into. That was one thing that was really important to them was what kind of supplier relationships did I have? Any agreements with manufacturers, things like that? That we would be locked into for too long. So we are signing agreements. It's easy just to sign them and not think twice, but really be sure you're digging into those terms and understanding what they look like and negotiating where you can.

Speaker 2:

Great, great advice, thank you. And now, since your exit, you've been giving back, which is great. Talk to us about your platform, supermaker, and your investment fund, color, if you would.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I'd love to. So Color was one of the first moves I made after selling Schmidt's Naturals. It's an investment fund started by my husband and I, so it's a home office. We don't have other investors, but our goal there was really to, of course, invest financially in businesses, but also to tap in and provide the expertise and experience that we've gained hands-on. He was alongside me in building Schmitz, and so we learned so much. We were eager to jump into other businesses and help where a lot of investors maybe don't have the actual experience of growing their own business. So we've been investing for the past five years now. And then you mentioned Supermaker, and that was a media company that we had started primarily during the pandemic to support businesses that were struggling to stay afloat during the hard times and just providing resources in the network and community to help them do so. So just through articles we were publishing, making connections, featuring small businesses and creators sometimes Nice.

Speaker 2:

Now, as an investor, is there something specific that you look for when investing in a company? There's a lot of things.

Speaker 3:

Sometimes it's hard to articulate, other times it's very obvious. But we invest primarily in consumer products companies because that's where our expertise is. But we've deviated from that a little bit because we can. It's just the two of us, um, but I get, you know, really excited about a founder who's passionate about their business. You can hear it in the conversations. Um, I like the businesses that can kind of start small or niche and then expand, uh, just some, you know, into the mass market, and you know schmitz is a great example of that. So I had started, you know, catering to the natural consumer, people with healthy products. But then as the business grew I recognized there was an opportunity to compete in the mass market for any dealer and consumer, and so I like that idea where you can start small but have the potential to grow.

Speaker 2:

That's great. Now there are some people watching that may be working or thinking about working with their spouse, like you do and like I do. And what do you all do to make that work? Because I know the rewards and challenges that go along with that. But what do you guys do to make it work?

Speaker 3:

I think you said it perfectly there are rewards and there are challenges, you know, and I think that's what makes it fun. That's what makes it fun. I don't think there's a perfect recipe or formula to do it, but I think it's all about boundaries and listening to yourself. You can tell when you're getting stressed or annoyed. Take a little break. But having your own thing I think that took me a little time to understand too.

Speaker 3:

Our lives are so intertwined in so many ways. We parent together, we live together, we run our businesses together, so it helps to have your own thing. You know um, but we, you know we share a lot of the same hobbies too, and so it's special. But you know it's also good to. You know step away when you can, um. But I think it's just being honest and recognizing your own weaknesses is huge, because in any relationship, you know you're dealing with, you know egos and things, and so just understanding you know your strengths, your weaknesses and respecting you know dealing with you know egos and things, and so just understanding you know your strengths, your weaknesses and respecting you know those of your partners For sure, couldn't agree more.

Speaker 2:

Now can you share with us? You mentioned having things to do on your own. Can you share with us what you do for yourself? You're a busy mom with so much going on in your professional life. Talk to us about what you do to take care of you.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I, you know, recent years have really tapped into fitness. Um, you know it was. It's always been important to me, but it's hard as an entrepreneur to make time for it. Um, so I have a personal trainer now and that is really just a good way for me to focus on me and, of course, you know, build a healthier body. Um, because, well, as a huge part of my life, um's as well. We started to play together, but we also have our own groups. That's cool.

Speaker 2:

I'm going to be playing pickleball for the first time on Saturday, so I'm excited. I'm a tennis player, so I kind of feel like I'm going to be okay, but I'm excited just to learn how to play.

Speaker 3:

I mean, you're starting with a good foundation. Yeah, it's amazing that sport has truly changed my life in a lot of ways. I've met a ton of friends that way. I'm out in the sun all day, which is fun, and so that's a big part of my life too. And then I like to read. I'm truly down time to spend just with a good book, not an audio book, but an actual paper book.

Speaker 1:

Very nice, you can curl up with a book, not really a computer right, or I guess you could with earphones, but it's not the same.

Speaker 2:

It's not the same now for those watching that might be thinking about starting a business. What advice would you have for them? I?

Speaker 3:

mean so much. I think the biggest thing is you have to, like, truly love and believe in your idea, because you're going to be challenged and tested all the time, you know, by people around you, by customers, you know, potential investors, by yourself, um, but if you like, if you really think what you're building is is incredible, and then you support it, you know, with your whole self, then you can power through anything. And so just you know, checking in, making sure it resonates, um, and if it doesn't, you know changing course is okay, like allowing yourself to pivot it, and you know, even step back, take a break, or, you know, start something new.

Speaker 2:

Great advice. That's so important because you really have to be all in. You really have to believe in it, like you said so much. Now I would love to talk about your book, supermaker.

Speaker 3:

Crafting Business on your Own Term to talk about your book Supermaker crafting business on your own terms. What are some of the takeaways you'd like for your readers to take away from the book? I think my goal in writing that was not to tell you how to build your business, but to sort of equip you with a general framework for you know when you need a little bit of guidance. Right, and just sharing my experiences and letting people know that like things are going to happen, they're going to go and like here's a general sense of like you know what I learned through my experience and how it might apply to you. Um, I don't think there's a right. There is a playbook for building a business. I mean, with many business books that exist, like it's not relevant to everybody, um, and so I think it's just important to understand that your journey is yours alone and that you know you are on your own timeline and you have to build in a way that makes sense for you.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that's great. Now. Your story is so inspiring and you've accomplished so much. What's next for you? Where do you see yourself in the next five to 10 years?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's fun. I'm in a position now where I have a lot of freedom to explore and take my time, so I'm investing. That will continue. I'm playing a ton of pickleball and I'm now investing in the pickleball space, so that's really fun to bring my hobbies and my business life together. I'm part owner of a pickleball team, a pro team and so more there in that space. I think I really like that intersection of business and pickleball and it is the fastest-growing sport in America. So the more I can do to introduce more players and to help brands that might want to explore opportunities in that space too, that's exciting to me.

Speaker 2:

I love it. I love it. Can't wait to play pickleball Now. Thank you so much, Jamie, for your time today. I really appreciate it. I know your story and advice will be very, very helpful to our viewers, so we appreciate it.

Speaker 1:

Thank you. This is the Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick, exclusively on ASBN. If you're a female founder and would like to help other female founders with your inspiring story, we would love to hear from you.