"First Order Came in 15 Minutes" eCommerce Giant You've Never Heard Of!

Download the CFO's Guide to AI and Machine Learning for FREE at https://NetSuite.com/UpFlip Scott Webster and his brother started The Fruit Company from their parents’ basement, and now it’s a fully fledged agriculture company generating a whopping $18M per year. With one small idea, both Scott and his brother launched a farming business now considered to be a fruit empire. Ben’s parents already owned an orchard, and the idea for The Fruit Company began with the desire to deliver fruit nationally. In 1999, other online businesses had started to take off, so Ben decided to try it out for himself and launched on November 1. Within 15 minutes, The Fruit Company had its first online order. By the following year, orders increased to over 1,800 and kept doubling year after year. When the farming business officially hit over 8,000 orders, The Fruit Company was featured on O, The Oprah Magazine’s holiday cover. The journey hasn’t been one definitive path. With the housing crisis in ’08, the company lost $1M, and their biggest competitor went through bankruptcy. Scott, however, turned the economic downfall into an opportunity to invest in real estate and enter partnerships with big distributors like Costco. In this episode, Scott shares key strategies to scale in the business of agriculture, what makes his company stand out from the competition, and the unique phases of growth in his business. He also explains the importance of quality staff and how operations run differently during peak times. Resources: Gain Access to the Upflip Academy - https://bit.ly/4fo1KOh The Fruit Company: https://www.thefruitcompany.com/ Timestamps: 00:00 - Start 00:44 - A landscape steeped in history 01:33 - Scale of operations 02:03 - Focus on tourism 02:34 - Train tour 03:39 - Thrills and chills of hospitality (as a newbie) 04:13 - Revenue across businesses 05:01 - Two decades in the making 06:53 - Gift box varieties (over 100 SKUs!) 07:32 - Conquering early challenges 08:32 - Third generation ownership 09:43 - The four “non-negotiables” 10:49 - Monthly overhead 11:09 - Fan blitz 14:50 - Keeping perishables fresh (a lesser-known secret!) 16:28 - Secret to scaling 17:04 - Number of employees 18:12 - Profit margins: Wholesale vs Retail 19:30 - Winning strategy to attract customers 19:48 - Digital marketing through the years 21:29 - Curating the perfect gift basket 22:05 - Successful family partnerships… How? 22:42 - A building built in 30 days 23:28 - Top-notch customer service 24:10 - Overcoming a crisis 25:16 - Seeking powerful counsel 25:56 - Effective work delegation 26:50 - Riding the “Orchard Tram” 27:42 - Media exposure 28:39 - Mastering employee role-matching 29:23 - Bet on yourself! 30:07 - Picking pears (the right way!) 31:05 - The only regret 32:24 - Wisdom for the next generation 32:59 - Hiring the right people 33:40 - Building retailer relationships 35:01 - Opportunity in every crisis 36:03 - Empire-worthy financial advice 37:17 - Key metrics of success 37:57 - A unique microclimate 38:33 - Habits of a season-driven business owner 39:29 - Fears of going solo 40:57 - Pricing fruits 41:59 - Book recommendation 42:27 - Indulging in life’s true luxuries 43:09 - Outro #farm #farmer #farming

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