starting a business

Sustainable Business – Remarkable Rejects: Interview with Braeden Wolf

 

 

We interviewed Braeden Wolf, founder of Remarkable Rejects, about socially conscious business. We thought this topic would be helpful to our listeners who are looking for meaningful employment and/or social change. In university, everything seems possible and many of us are inspired to create change in the world after graduation. However, after entering the workforce, we may start to feel discouraged and lose our spark. So, why not bypass the corporate world and its expectations and start something that you care about and that can create the change that you want to see in the world?

 

Screen Shot 2021 10 16 at 8.20.29 PM 283x300 Sustainable Business – Remarkable Rejects: Interview with Braeden Wolf

 

Braeden is a recent business graduate from Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario, who is passionate about nutrition, natural movement, and cooking. After graduating, he was inspired to turn his passions into a business that would reduce food waste and increase healthy eating. Braeden is also an avid baseball player, and previously was a team member of the Great Lake Canadians.

 

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Tell us a little bit about your business. What inspired it?

 

Our business is called Remarkable Rejects, and our mission is preventing unnecessary food loss in Ontario. How we go about achieving that is through sourcing two types of produce from local farmers. The first type is produce that is cosmetically imperfect. It could be something that got banged by a tree branch while it was on the tree, a pepper that is too small, or a cucumber that has too much of curves in it. The second type is surplus produce. It’s really hard for farmers to grow the exact amount of produce that they need to meet their exact demand because they can’t perfectly predict their supply changes based on the weather patterns. They also can’t perfectly predict their demand for a certain type of produce. Whenever they end up with too much supply and not enough demand, a lot of that produce is going to go to waste. There are outlets to donate, but the amount of surplus far exceeds the amount that’s getting donated.

My inspiration came from a book that I read, which is called Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming. In the book, a team of scientists and researchers from all over the world got together and made a list of around 150 comprehensive solutions on how we can avoid severe global warming issues. The third ranked solution was reducing food waste. Food waste has such a big impact because of the sheer quantity of food that’s being wasted. We’re not able to address the food waste issue around the world, but we’re trying to address a specific part of area and industry – Ontario’s supply chain.

 

How has your educational background helped you to develop this business? What are some key takeaways from your Undergraduate experience that are helping you now?

 

That’s a good question. First of all, I will talk about a few things that might be helpful for people who didn’t do a business degree. I think if you didn’t go to business school, one of the main misconceptions when you’re starting a business is that you have to come up with something brand new that no one has ever thought of before. And that is extremely hard, and almost never happens. If you just came up with something brand new, that can potentially be a bad idea. There’s a chance it’s a good idea, but it’s probably a bad idea if no one else is doing it in the world.

Instead, the easier approach has two paths. The first is taking an idea from somewhere else and doing it in a new geography where it hasn’t been implemented. The other path is to take a concept and improve upon it in a specific way and improve upon it by a lot. this is where a lot of the best businesses have come from. If you want to start a business, there’s no pressure to come up with something brand new. 

 Personally, I did two very different degrees: software engineering and business. I learned very different general themes from both. From my software engineering degree, I learned about budgeting time. The program is a ton of hours, and it forces you to have work ethic. It also forces you to break down a problem, which was helpful in brainstorming my business. From the business degree, one of my my main takeaways was learning to deal with ambiguity. In a lot of other programs, at least in engineering, every exam is multiple choice, which means answers are either right or wrong. There’s no ambiguity whatsoever. With business, you are literally making decisions all the time, but you have no idea what the right answer is because there’s way too many variables to know what’s going to happen. In real life, doing business is like that. You need to be comfortable with ambiguity as things don’t always go as planned. You can only make an informed decision as best you can and have a back-up plan in case it fails.

What advice would you give young students or adults who are thinking about starting something like Remarkable Rejects?

 

The biggest one, in my opinion, is if you want start a business, you should make sure that what you’re doing should be filling a need. Basically, the reason to start a business is you see a problem, and you don’t think anyone else can solve it. It’s extremely important to be certain of that. Otherwise, your business probably won’t be successful. Or, if someone else can also solve it, then you’re just gonna have annoying competition and you’re probably not gonna have a big enough market. In the end, you could probably make way more money doing other stuff that’s way easier. I would say that when you are thinking about starting a business, make sure there’s a problem that needs to be solved, and you think you’re the only or best person who can do it. Otherwise, I would do something else.

 

Recommended Books and Resources

The Lean Startup by Eric Reese

Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming by Paul Hawken (Editor)

Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin

 

 

Thank you, Braeden, for sharing the excellent advice with us and our readers! 

 

Missed Podcast? Watch Video Here:

 

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For more advice about writing, check out our weekly, podcast, videos, or subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

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Both the written, visual, audio, and audiovisual content of this post has been created by and is the intellectual property of Lisa Pfau and PFAU Academic Writing. Please do not replicate any of the above content without our consent. However, please do feel free to share this post and its authorship widely.

Sustainable Business – Remarkable Rejects: Podcast Episode Live!
PFAU 30 panel 2 01 2 291x300 Sustainable Business   Remarkable Rejects: Podcast Episode Live!

We interviewed Braeden Wolf, founder of Remarkable Rejects, is a recent business graduate from Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario, who is passionate about nutrition, natural movement, and cooking. This week’s episode is about socially conscious business. We thought this topic would be helpful to our listeners who are looking for meaningful employment and/or social change. In university, everything seems possible and many of us are inspired to create change in the world after graduation. However, after entering the workforce, we may start to feel discouraged and lose our spark. So, why not bypass the corporate world and its expectations and start something that you care about and that can create the change that you want to see in the world.

 

HIGHLIGHTS

 

Business background and inspiration of Remarkable Rejects

How can students benefit from Remarkable Rejects

Tips to consider when developing a business

Challenges faced when starting a business

Advice for students who want to start a socially conscious business 

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To get more help with academic writing, application coaching, or professional development, book a 20 minute discovery call with us and start your journey to reaching your full potential on the page, and in life.


All the written, visual, audio, and audiovisual content of this post has been created by and is the intellectual property of Lisa Pfau and PFAU Academic Writing. Please do not replicate any of the above content without our consent. However, please do feel free to share this post and its authorship widely.

Finding Suitable Housing: Podcast Episode Live!
PFAU 10 panel 1 297x300 Finding Suitable Housing: Podcast Episode Live!

We interview Yinan Xia, Real Estate Broker and Sr. Vice President at the Bay Street Group, as well as an adjunct lecturer teaching Real Estate Investment courses at Victoria International College of Business and Technology about how can students find suitable housing. For students living outside of the dormitory or their parents’ home for the first time, where you live can have a huge impact on how you feel, and in turn, how you do in school. Factors such as location, quality of the building, price, and co-inhabitants can greatly affect the quality of life you have in your living space. So, it is important to know what to look for when looking for a place to live.

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS

Journey of an entrepreneur in the real estate industry

Top 3 things to consider when renting a property

What to look out for when negotiating a lease in Ontario

Resources worth consulting before embarking on a property search

Advice for students preparing for their first purchase of property

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To get more help with academic writing, application coaching, or professional development, book a 20 minute discovery call with us and start your journey to reaching your full potential on the page, and in life.


All the written, visual, audio, and audiovisual content of this post has been created by and is the intellectual property of Lisa Pfau and PFAU Academic Writing. Please do not replicate any of the above content without our consent. However, please do feel free to share this post and its authorship widely.

Starting Your Own Creative Business: Interview with Mary and Penelope

 

 

We interviewed Penelope and Mary, two sisters on a mission to create empowering relatable designs that highlight social issues, about starting your own business without a business degree. The professional world isn’t exactly the same as generations before us. People change careers often, work multiple jobs or gigs, and often prefer to work for themselves than a large established corporation. Long gone is the dream (or reality) of working the same job until retirement. So, we thought it would be interesting for students and recent grads to learn about young adults who have started some creative and meaningful businesses.

%name Starting Your Own Creative Business: Interview with Mary and Penelope

 

Penelope and Mary showcase their meaningful designs on an array of clothing and accessories. They also try to do their part to give back to the community by donating a portion of their profits to non-profits that represent their personal and professional values. They are the epitome of a socially conscious business. Ultimately, Penelope and Mary’s goal is to make people feel good about themselves and brave enough to shed light on some really important issues.

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How do you think your creative educational backgrounds and your own kind of work experience have helped you as you ventured into the world of entrepreneurship?

 

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Penelope: I am a believer that all of our skills are transferable in many ways. For my undergrad degree, I majored in film studies, and then I did a diploma in social work. Two, what seems to be different avenues, really required a lot of the same type of skills such as: perception, communication, seeing things that are not necessarily right in your face. For example, when you are making or studying a film, you are analyzing it, breaking it down, looking at the story that is being told, learning about the characters… Films are such a beautiful medium for storytelling, and to also create social change. Learning how these types of mediums can tell stories that can change people’s lives and shed light on a lot of topics was the one thing I really took away from my Film degree. With my experience in social work, I learned all about looking at the world as a whole and lifting the veil to seeing it through a lens of understanding of issues like white privilege, and oppression. These experiences really opened my mind. Now, I am taking all of that and putting it into this business in terms of our concept and what we are trying to achieve with this business. We strive to become a socially responsible and conscious business.

Mary: It is a little more obvious how my background would help out this business. I have always loved to draw and it is something that I have been doing since I can remember. Naturally, I became an artist and decided to learn about graphic design. With graphic design, I had to come up with designs all the time. I had to always come up with different concepts and learning to design different things, such as posters, websites, and photographs. All these things that I learned in school, I have tied into this business. I have taken those creative and designing tools and applied them directly to our products. My educational background has been a huge impact on our business. 

 

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What would you tell your 25-year-old selves, who are thinking of starting a business in the next few years? What kind of warnings or tips would you give them?

Mary: I would tell my younger self to not be overly confident. Do not go into this thinking that things need to fall into place right away. Do not assume that things need to work out right away for things to be successful. Everything takes time. Even now we are still growing and learning and we are still not at the point where we want to be yet. When we first started this whole business, I was under the assumption that I am pretty good at designing, so we are gonna get sales, and everything is going to work out perfectly. However, that has not been the case. That has been a learning experience to be patient and just keep going. Sometimes, you have to let go of expectations. Do not give up and things will slowly get better. 

Penelope: Personally, I think one of the challenges of starting a business is not necessarily the process of starting it, but rather figuring out how it is going to evolve and your vision for the business. What direction do you want it to go? This question can be hard because you may have a really good idea, but not really know what the vision is like. Even if you have a vision, there is a lot of stuff you are not going to think about or know. You have to learn a lot of new things and skills and everything takes time. As Mary said, you cannot just go into it expecting to make money right away or get sales right away because it is not going to happen. You have to build up to that. 

Tell us a little bit about the values in your business. Where does the inspiration come from?

Penelope: Empowerment is like, a major one for us. We want our design to make people feel good about themselves. We want our designs to make people feel seen, Mary and I have often felt very misunderstood throughout our lives. Personally, I felt like a very misunderstood person most of my life. I felt like an outsider who did not always fit in. We just really want our designs to reach out to people that do not feel like they are important or special, or that they matter. For example, our AF collection, such as Queer AF, Sensitive AF was actually my idea. I have felt ashamed my whole life for how sensitive I am and I want to reach out to people who have felt ashamed for being who they truly are, and let them know that they should not feel that way. A lot of our values come from our hearts and personal experiences. We aim to create something that it speaks to people. It is always about love, acceptance, inclusivity, and empowerment.

 

Mary: My answer would be really similar to what Penelope said. Through our designs, we try to make people feel relatable. For example, I identify as pansexual, so that is why we have the queer design. I know how hard it is to come to terms with who you are and even now I am still discovering myself more and more as I get older. All of our designs are a piece of us. It all comes from personal stories, our personal journey or those close to us and their journey. We are always just trying to make everything really authentic. Thinking about the keywords about our values, another one would be kindness. Treating people with kindness is highly valued for us in a world where everyone is so competitive. For women, especially, sometimes we feel not enough: not pretty enough, not smart enough, or not doing enough. As a result, we want to speak on that issue through our designs and a big part of our focus is on female empowerment.

Book Recommendations

A Piece of Cake: A Memoir by Cupcake Brown

She Comes Undone by Wally lamb

MOODish

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Thank you, Mary and Penelope, for sharing the excellent advice with us and our readers! 

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Missed the podcast? Listen here:

_

_

For more advice about writing, check out our weekly podcast or subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

_

To get more help with your assignments, book a 20 minute discovery session with us and start your journey to reaching your full potential on the page, and in life.


Both the written, visual, audio, and audiovisual content of this post has been created by and is the intellectual property of Lisa Pfau and PFAU Academic Writing. Please do not replicate any of the above content without our consent. However, please do feel free to share this post and its authorship widely.

Starting Your Own Creative Business: Podcast Episode Live!
Comic 15 Panel 3 300x300 Starting Your Own Creative Business: Podcast Episode Live!

We interview Penelope and Mary, who are two sisters on a mission to create empowering relatable designs that highlight social issues that they feel deserve a spotlight, about starting your own creative business without a business degree. The professional world isn’t exactly the same as generations before us. People change careers often, work multiple jobs or gigs, and often prefer to work for themselves than at a large established corporation. Long gone is the dream (or reality) of working the same job until retirement. So, we thought it would be interesting for students and recent grads to talk to some young adults who have started some creative and meaningful businesses as a result of COVID. 

 

HIGHLIGHTS

 

Inspiration and the path leading to starting a creative business and career

How does a liberal arts degree help in the world of entrepreneurship

Challenges and rewards of business operators

Advice for a recent grad thinking of turning a creative passion into a career

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To get more help with academic writing, application coaching, or professional development, book a 20 minute discovery call with us and start your journey to reaching your full potential on the page, and in life.


All the written, visual, audio, and audiovisual content of this post has been created by and is the intellectual property of Lisa Pfau and PFAU Academic Writing. Please do not replicate any of the above content without our consent. However, please do feel free to share this post and its authorship widely.