We were lucky to catch up with Lisa Jones Graham recently and have shared our conversation below.
Lisa, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
Having a child with a disability, and being a devoted dog lover and owner, helped lead me to the business of making dog treats from craft beer grains (malted barley). Witnessing the struggle for my daughter, Natalie, to find employment ignited a fire within me to help figure out a solution, not just for her but for many others in our community of Cincinnati, Ohio. Living in a city with such a strong German influence, you gotta love beer! Making the connection between beer and dogs manifested itself after a visit to San Diego, specifically to The Coronado Brewing Company, where I saw and purchased my first bag of dog treats made from spent brewing grains. It was like a light bulb going off and blinking incessantly telling me this was the thing I had been searching for: a viable non profit business model to help people with disabilities. The concept connected all the things I loved: dogs, beer, baking and helping vulnerable people.
That visit to CBC planted an important seed and helped grow our collaborative non profit bakery program. We got started in 2014 to foster meaningful vocational training and work opportunities for young adults with disabilities. We’re committed to a foundation that supports & enables the individual growth and development of commercial kitchen & bakery skills at all levels -for all participants- and provides an authentic platform for community engagement & active citizenship. We seek to provide a sustainable work space that is welcoming to all and has a positive impact in the community through empowerment, partnership & outreach. Our goal is to foster a fun, creative bake space in which people and all types of food businesses can thrive. We have had great success making our dog treats and renting out kitchen space to others! It’s always a bit fun to think of our early days and how much we have grown!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
I’m a hospital social worker with a background in clinical research. Making dog treats and scaling up to a commercial level has been a whole new world for me! I’m really proud of what we’ve accomplished and all our hard work to make this happen for our bakery crew! Being driven to make a difference in the life of someone with a disability keeps me motivated to make sure we continue to provide the right platform that allows for people to shine, that gives training and jobs for people who are typically overlooked and undervalued in today’s job market. We definitely have a unique product and brand in the dog treat world! Being new to the world of business and social enterprise many years ago meant a lot of very late nights researching business models and the nonprofit world; hard work pays off and here we are 8 yrs later still going strong after the pandemic!
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I was once told early on that “you won’t last 5 years.” I was crushed and left upset and crying that someone didn’t believe in my ability and mission to help others through our unique social enterprise model. I lost a popular business vendor because of this person’s lens on our product. When there are times I get discouraged, or have a bad day, I remind myself how far we’ve come and of all our successes and that we definitely made it past that 5 year mark! Those words still impact my daily life and make me ever more determined to work hard and keep us on the right trajectory. It’s important to realize there are some naysayers out there who want to dismiss ideas and creativeness inside their veil of “expertise” and superiority. Go with your gut feeling and stick with it! Even in a moment of failure, recognize your perseverence and entreprenurial spirit!
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Our team is critical to our success and is the backbone of any good business model. But because we are a non profit social enterprise with a small budget and not much glamour, it’s critical to recognize and acknowledge each person’s contribution and create an environment where everyone has a voice, where you truly listen and address concerns as an equal. Positive work morale is born from keeping people who believe in your plan, who wholeheartedly support the mission, and have a leader(s) who welcomes constructive dialogue in a supportive setting. Having a cute Golden Retriever visiting workers throughout the day for taste tests is also a great help!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.brewhausdogbones.com
- Instagram: @bhdogbones
- Facebook: Brewhaus Bakery & Dog Bones
- Linkedin: Lisa Graham MSW LSW
- Twitter: @bhdogbones
Image Credits
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