Here’s how they went from trying to cook up a new product in their home kitchen to having their product on shelves in Sobeys.
Back in November 2019, Sheppard and Gillespie were co-workers at Toronto-based Clearco, which provides equity-free capital to startup founders.
“We realized that a typical mint is two-thirds sugar,” says Sheppard.
As they began to refine the idea, they decided they also wanted the product to be vegan, gluten-free and made from simple ingredients.
After further experimentation, they chose a mix of peppermint, spearmint, cinnamon, clove and lemon extracts.
By early 2021, they were ready to refine their business strategy.
Over the course of the five-month program, advisors helped Sheppard and Gillespie build out their business plan.
Mintier isn’t actually a mint but a concentrated herbal extract.
“People aren’t used to putting a tincture into their mouths,” says Gillespie.
After completing the program, Sheppard and Gillespie launched a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter, which allowed them to test the market and validate that there was demand for Mintier.
Through the VenturePark Labs accelerator program, they were introduced to the provincial representative for Sobeys Local and their pitch was well received.
“On our website, we have room to show that it’s 120 servings and replaces so many packs of mints, but it’s harder to do that at the point of sale.
Gillespie’s advice to other aspiring founders is to just get started.
If there’s one lesson Sheppard wants founders to know, it’s that you will always be running against the clock and your bank balance.