Organic growth

Their son’s allergic reaction to non-organic foods inspired Mike and Chantel Priddy to launch a range of award-winning organic drinks – and this year they’re determined to rapidly upscale the business. 

It was a cold, grey winter’s morning when NZBusiness caught up with the co-founders of an organic beverage company that’s running hot in the local market.

Mike and Chantel Priddy’s Greenleaf Organics brand is fast finding favour amongst stockists nationwide, including selected New World and PAK’nSAVE supermarkets, and the couple have major plans for expansion.

This story has its genesis almost 20 years ago when Mike, a Kiwi, and Chantel, an Aussie, met while working at a pub in the inner West Sydney suburb of Balmain. Although they’d both had varied careers, they also had a common interest in health, wellbeing and fitness.

But their passion for organics came to a head after their son Rocco developed a number of allergies or intolerances to a range of, mostly non-organic, food and beverages.

Mike remembers it as a particularly frustrating time, but it did encourage the couple to shop for more organic alternatives at Sydney’s local fresh markets and become more mindful of what they consumed as a family.

This is where the idea for Greenleaf Organics was spawned – to create organic drinks that people could easily incorporate into their lives, and with longevity in mind, he says.

Mike convinced Chantel to settle back over the ditch – and while a café in the Auckland suburb of Kingsland was their first business of choice, they maintained that desire to introduce organic products into the marketplace. “Even though back then, in all honesty, we weren’t even sure of what they would be,” he recalls.

However, the foot-traffic of “fans” generated by the café would soon prove instrumental in the eventual trial and launch of their cleansers and tonics.

They started out with a range of smoothies and “fresh-blended” cleansers. “Our cleansers were about getting as much nutrients into the body as possible,” explains Chantel. “Just by resetting everything it provided a two to three day break to make people think about what they’re consuming, and gave them the fibre to help flush the system, while providing nourishment.”

Their current range of Switchel tonics, however, is all about hydration and gut health – and again, the café proved instrumental in their development. One of their chefs was drinking cider vinegar in water, which led them to discover the beneficial properties of switchel – a probiotic drink made with apple cider vinegar (with the “mother” in it) that builds healthy bacteria in the gut and delivers a number of health benefits.

In comparing Greenleaf Organics’ Switchel drinks with other switchel products on the market, Mike and Chantel describe theirs as “true-to-recipe and more natural” – with its use of pure Canadian maple syrup (not stevia) and minimal processing being their primary USPs.

The couple describe the transition from café owners to drinks wholesaler as “a relief” – particularly once the café was sold and they were able to move into their production warehouse at St Johns at the end of March. They admit that 2018 had been tough as they tried to stretch themselves across both business ventures, and their latest venture has almost been like starting over again.

Time to scale up

Mike and Chantel are now devoting themselves 100 percent to scaling the business, and further developing their latest add-on product: GLO immunity shots. The shots, available in four flavours, were developed as an extension of the shot of apple cider vinegar, lemon juice and cayenne that had been offered within their original smoothie blend cleansers.

While they’re not quite ready for export yet (with Australia first on the radar), Mike and Chantel are focused on getting distribution sorted in New Zealand, with a newly appointed sales team already out on the road.

In a drinks market that’s more cluttered by the day, Mike and Chantel are keen to get brand cut-through. Boot-strapping the business has its limitations, however, and although they haven’t actively sought financial backing for Greenleaf Organics in the past, Mike says they’re now open to expressions of interest. 

For an investor, much of the product development work has already been done. Brand recognition is growing, particularly through social media. The awards have been forthcoming too, with a silver in the New Zealand Producer Awards, and Greenleaf Organics’ pineapple Switchel winning an Inspire New Zealand Artisan Award in 2018.

Mike and Chantel have aligned their brand with the New Zealand Mental Health Foundation – a cause they can personally relate to. A percentage of profit goes to this important cause because, as Mike puts it, their product is “directly related to gut health and therefore mental health.” 

“There is a lot of literature out now about the importance of your gut health in relation to your mental health; in terms of the way it communicates with your body.”

This is one of the key messages they convey to people during tastings at various supermarkets.

What’s next?

Looking at their journey, Mike and Chantel are pleased with their progress. They’ve proven themselves, and there’s a sense of pride – especially in accessing supermarkets, which provided a real test for Chantel’s logistical skills.

The journey has been challenging, and now everything’s riding on building sales further. “Getting product onto shelves and keeping it moving,” says Chantel.

Investor funding would be timely right now; it would make them run that much harder. But they’re committed to the long haul. They know business success comes from solid planning and preparation, hard work and time – not by overnight success or getting lucky.

They believe they have the patience and tenacity to succeed – and there’re solid plans in place. 

By this time next year the aim is to have a stronghold within New Zealand and a full range of shots and powders out in the market.

A walk-in fridge at their warehouse is one of their priorities, in order to increase production, as is automated machinery to speed up labelling. But they say the “handmade” aspect of their operation may remain one of the brand’s points of difference.

Because in the highly competitive healthy drinks marketplace there’s just no room for “me-toos”. 

As Chantel says – it’s all about being accountable and staying true to your values.