Ten Lessons we learned from two trees in our backyard

Times are tough, global economies are struggling, unemployment levels are high and most of us are battling to make ends meet.

Yet, in the midst of all of this, hubby and I found ourselves in the somewhat bizarre situation where our homemade apricot jam and peach chutney were in high demand. In fact, we couldn’t produce stock fast enough to keep up with the orders.

Weird? You bet.

Hard work? Absolutely.

Was it worth it? Yes. (Although it's probably safer to ask this question once we’ve had a few months to recover.)

To rewind a little, some six years ago “we” (meaning the hubby) decided it would be a super idea to plant some fruit trees in our backyard. With somewhat limited space in our garden, we settled on a tiny peach tree and an even smaller apricot tree. In 2020 both these trees made their presence felt [you can read more about that insanity here: The Fruit Situation]. In a valiant attempt to avoid a repeat performance of 2020 we planned ahead in 2021. One thing led to another and we decided to sell what we made from our trees in support of charity.

Our two trees receive almost no input from us. We don't treat them with any form of insecticide or pesticide, are sporadic about composting and most of the time we forget to water them. It's safe to say that we aren't the best fruit tree parents, any fruit produced is solely thanks to the valiant efforts of the trees. Neither of us could bear to allow their offerings to go to waste, and so we tried our best to preserve the fruits as well as possible. 

Peach chutney loading on our peach tree

About four years ago, we experimented with making jam - it seemed the most logical thing to do with an abundance of fruit. We tested a variety of recipes, made adjustments and tweaks here and there, and eventually refined our apricot jam recipe. Somehow (I’m still not sure how), the making of apricot jam ended up becoming my domain, 'Zoë’s jam' developed a reputation. Every year I'd churn out a few jars and gift them to friends and family. 

We weren't nearly as successful with the peaches. Figuring out how to preserve these was a hit-and-miss affair (with the emphasis on miss). First, we tried to make peach jam, but neither of us liked what we made, no matter how many different recipes we tried. Then we tried to bottle the peaches in sugar water which also failed dismally. After consulting Dr. Google extensively and then phoning a friend, we eventually landed on peach chutney as the most viable solution. 

To put volumes into perspective, our apricot tree usually yielded approximately 20 kgs of apricots. One batch of jam used 1kg of apricots, i.e 20 batches of jam. The peach tree produced around 50kgs or 33 batches of chutney. 

Basically, it's an awful lot of jam and chutney, far too much for us to consume even with help from family and friends. 

The decision to sell what we made was brought about due to a lack of options rather than any entrepreneurial aspirations on our part.

1. Use social media intelligently

Setting aside my doubts about our harebrained scheme, I tackled the problem head-on. We needed a plan (aka an excel spreadsheet). Some form of marketing would be required since logic dictated that if no one knew about what we had to sell then there'd be no sales. The global pandemic complicated matters somewhat in that both hubby and I were still working from home, with far less face-to-face interaction with others than we'd normally have had. Undeterred, I decided to start with my social media network and take it from there. Of course, this meant that I needed content that would attract attention. I'd gained invaluable experience whilst promoting my book, and used this knowledge as my starting point.

First, I contacted the charity that we intended to support and obtained permission to use their logo. Second, since hubby and I were in agreement that 'naked' bottles and jars didn't look appealing, I designed labels and found a place that could print stickers for us. I deployed my photography skills to capture images of our products and cobbled together a simple social media marketing plan.  

Marketing flyers showing our products

I posted content on social media, called a few friends, and sent out some text messages. My approach was to keep my connections informed and to share what happened behind the scenes, as opposed to a 'hard sell' each time. This method seemed to work and word spread quickly, it wasn't long before my efforts paid off and people started to send us messages and place orders. 

Some of the social media posts

The lessons I'd learned whilst promoting my book were reinforced. When one delivered content that was clear, simple, and engaging, social media can be a very powerful tool to reach a large audience within a short space of time.

It was truly amazing how, the more people interacted with our content, the more the algorithm delivered the material to other users. Also pretty cool was when distant acquaintances or friends who didn't typically respond on social media started to engage. 

Leveraging social media is still something that I am figuring out, and so, whilst it can be intimidating, I'm hoping practise makes perfect. One thing I do know for certain is that the use of this platform as part of our marketing strategy was key to successfully spreading the word and ultimately making sales.

2. Manage demand and supply, otherwise, it manages you

* Yawn*

Economics 101. 

This wasn't my favorite subject by any stretch of the imagination. I waded through the enormous textbook and passed my exams, but have to admit I had no real-world experience or appreciation for the concept of supply and demand. 

In November 2021; with numerous jars of jam and bottles of chutney stacked in neat rows on our dining room table; I wished I'd paid better attention in class. We had a classic situation of oversupply and I was freaking out. Who would want to buy homemade jam and chutney? What if it all went to waste? 

ARGH!

A fraction of the jam. We hadn't yet started on the chutney at this stage

The response was the complete antithesis of our concerns - demand for homemade products was extremely high. So high, in fact, we found we had a new problem: In the space of a couple of hours, we went from having way too much stock to not having enough. I started to panic about the availability of ingredients. What seemed like an enormous amount of fruit on our trees suddenly became too little, and I had to source fruit from a nearby farm to satisfy the orders. It was totally overwhelming and the stash we'd accumulated on the dining room table literally vanished within a few days.

It's safe to say the situation managed us. Once word got out that we had homemade products for sale we were perpetually on the back foot. We never seemed to have enough stock to meet the perpetual stream of orders. Had I known there was such a need for homemade products, I'd never have advertised until we'd finished preserving all the fruit, to be sure to know how much stock we actually had available. 

With a better understanding of the market, we'll handle things differently next time around - I'll make very sure we finish cooking everything before I let anyone know what we have for sale. 

3. Mental maths is an important skill

When people hear I'm an accountant, they often respond by saying "oh, so you do maths". I typically object, since whilst there is an element of math involved in doing my day job, it's certainly not the main focus. 

Preserving fruit, on the other hand, demanded an enormous amount of mental maths. I became proficient at calculating and then converting quantities of fruit, sugar, vinegar, spices, and other ingredients into shopping lists in my head. I still recall, early on in the process, telling the hubby I thought we needed at least 150 chutney bottles. 

"No, that can't be right. That's a lot, we'll never make that much chutney." He replied with a shocked look on his face. My math proved to be correct, we eventually churned out 148 bottles of chutney.

My parents were adamant that I be able to do my multiplication tables out of my head. At the time, I didn't understand why but diligently practiced endless examples whilst on the way to school. Nowadays calculators and computers have become part of our daily existence, and mental math is even less of a requirement. 

However, since I don't frequent the grocery aisle with my laptop under my arm, it's very handy to be able to quickly do sums for the required number of bags of sugar or litres of vinegar in my head. 

Perhaps the next time someone says to me "oh, so you do math" I won't be so quick to correct them...

4. Networks work

'Network' is a word often bandied about. Oxford definitions include, (noun) "a group or system of interconnected people or things.", or (verb) "interact with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts". I'd never given the matter all that much thought and had (naively) accepted that connecting with people was an inevitable part of life. 

Whilst 'leveraging one's network' has become the norm, it wasn't something at which I excelled. Typically I only asked for help when the situation was dire. In this instance, with overripe fruit demanding to be preserved and customers clamoring to collect their orders, I was desperate. As reluctant as I was to ask for help, I realised we'd never succeed without support. 

The response was phenomenal. 

People helped spread the word, placed orders, and provided us with reviews. We received unequivocal support from every single special soul we reached out to.

I've since decided that the definitions I've read about 'network' don't do it justice. Maybe it's just as simple as the word implies. It is a net, ready to catch you when needed, and it works - albeit only when you actually ask. The amount of support received was humbling, and we would never have done it alone. I have newfound respect and appreciation for why a network is so powerful, and (more importantly) for how kind and willing most people are to help.

Trying to organise all the orders (check the sticky notes!)

5. Stick to the recipe

Recipes providing guidance on 'how to' are everywhere - kitchens, classrooms, businesses. They typically provide a list of requirements and then an order of events, which should result in a reasonable deliverable. Hubby is a lot more adventurous in the kitchen than I am. I'm always too scared to change the recipe for fear of messing up. 

When making a product that one intends to sell I realised there comes a point when you have to firm up the recipe and then stick to it. Hopefully, customers loved what you'd made and returned for more. The thing is - once you've set the standard, and received feedback, you can't start changing things as you run the risk of adversely impacting on quality and undermining your brand.

We had a few instances where we accidentally forgot to include an ingredient or added too much spice for example. In some instances, we could remedy our error, but there were occasions where we had to declare the batch a flop and start again. Sticking to the recipe would have prevented such mistakes. 

In addition, the more batches we made, the learning curve became easier and we became more efficient. I think the same is true for most situations in life - find something that works, push the boundaries a little, accept and incorporate the feedback, refine the process and then stick with it. 

The phrase 'practice makes perfect' was never more true than in this instance. We definitely became more efficient as our confidence grew, finding better or quicker ways to achieve the same end result. 

Sticking to our recipe resulted in us being able to produce consistent, high-quality products fairly efficiently.  

Getting ready to make a batch of jam

6. Have a purpose

Yes, we had a target to make money, but since the money made was in support of a charity, our goal took on a new meaning. We had a very clearly defined and meaningful purpose. 

The process of preserving fruit is a repetitive task, and not always the most exciting. It would have been easy to abandon the project, let the birds and other critters in the garden eat the fruit, and spend our evenings watching Netflix. But, since we'd committed to helping a cause, our mission took on a whole new meaning. Reminding myself of this regularly went a long way to keeping me motivated as we tackled the seemingly neverending reality of chop, stir, clean, bottle, and clean some more.

That feeling of accomplishment when we reached our target was indescribable. Positive feedback along the way provided affirmation that we were fulfilling a need in the market, but the fact that we were supporting a worthy cause justified the many late nights and hard work. 

Having a purpose helped enormously, it's a lesson I'll continue to remind myself of in other aspects of life. 

7. Managing margins is a challenge

As an accountant, the core of what I do is to offer a service. I've never actually worked in an environment where I've sold a tangible product; so it was a whole new experience figuring out how to cost and then price something I could hold in my hand. 

Calculating the cost per unit required more math (this time I used an excel spreadsheet) and a healthy amount of common sense. It was a little tricky calculating the true input cost, but once that was done it was fairly easy to conduct some market research to determine the selling price. per unit. 

From what I could establish, sales prices of homemade products were pretty standard. Thus, the only way to improve margins was to reduce input costs, and I quickly became a pro at bargain hunting for ingredients to keep these as low as possible. One of my biggest frustrations was the price volatility of some ingredients - for example, the cost per kg of lemons and onions changed regularly. To counter this I sourced the best prices possible and then bought in bulk to protect our overall margin. 

Smaller businesses typically don't have the purchasing power of the larger stores, which will adversely impact margins. I've developed a newfound respect for successful small businesses - they've perfected the art of managing and maintaining margins.

8. Customer reviews matter 

People are busy. Sometimes too busy to provide a review, or they often just forget. I learned this the hard way when promoting my book. Book reviews really help provide an independent view and ultimately help with sales. This was an area that I should have focused on a lot more; by following up with people who had purchased from me and requesting that they provide feedback.

In the jam/chutney scenario, we were lucky in that we had customers who voluntarily sent us reviews. Adding this feedback into our marketing helped an awful lot to build confidence in our product and established credibility. 

Some of the comments we received

Next time I'll keep a record of each sale and then make a concerted effort to ask for a review, the time spent is well invested. 

I've resolved to be more proactive at providing feedback to small businesses in the future.

9. Farmers are amazing

Once hubby and I realised that we needed every single fruit our two trees produced we became a lot more attentive. We obsessively monitored the weather and every time a storm threatened, we'd dash outside to bring ripe apricots and peaches indoors to try and protect them from the elements. To prevent bugs and birds attacking the peaches we'd collect unripe peaches and allow them to ripen on the table. In 2020 strong winds resulted in the peach tree losing an entire branch, and so every small breeze we viewed with much suspicion. 

Whilst the trees were bearing fruit we metamorphosed into overprotective parents - any loss of fruit would upset our supply chain. 

Peaches ripening on the table indoors

This made me think - can you imagine being responsible for an entire farm of tree babies? I'd be a nervous wreck every time there was bad weather. Yet, our farmers face far greater challenges day in and day out. Going to the grocery store and selecting a punnet of fruit has taken on a new meaning for me. Farmers really are amazing.

10. Money does grow on trees

The two humble soldiers in our backyard showed us that trees can indeed provide a channel to generate value. I'd even go so far as to say that money does grow on trees, you just have to add some sugar, heaps of energy, and a whole lot of love!

“Happiness is homemade” - Unknown

Have you read my book yet? Published by Quickshift Publishing, Running in Heels is available on Amazon and from good bookstores. For up-to-date information on when and where you can find your copy, please check out my website, sign up for my newsletter, or find me on Linkedin, Facebook, or Instagram.