We were lucky to catch up with Ben Pilon recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ben thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

If we first zoom out, starting Minimal Market as an idea was a risk (as most businesses are). Our particular business model is placing a big bet that people are ready to significantly shift how they shop and live toward a more sustainable and healthy focus. There seems to be growing awareness to the fact that not every food, household, and personal/health care product is created equal. In fact, many would argue that perhaps these products are more problematic than their marketing would suggest. However, there are significant hurdles to changing the status quo. We are several generations deep into a commercial/corporate system that has normalized processed foods, synthetic products, pre-packaged amounts, plastic wrapping and containers, and generally supports the idea of convenience over quality. We are swimming upstream against a system that encourages people to stay home, shop only for lowest cost, and to disregard the details of where and how products they consume are made. In many ways that leads to much uncertainty in this type of business.

At ground level, launching a business from nothing is also risky. Funding the project, developing a business plan, finding/building out a space, gathering infrastructure and connecting with vendors all require a lot of time and effort. Not to mention, it’s rare that someone will hold your hand through the process and it’s easy to make costly mistakes. Small businesses often don’t have the deep pockets to afford too many mistakes up front, so every decision counts. Less than 5% of our startup and ongoing costs have come from outside investment, which adds a high level of personal risk to this venture.

Right now we are mid-flight of having jumped off this cliff and there is uncertainty about how this will turn out. However, we feel it’s important to double down on things we know will make a difference in our community and for the betterment of the world. We have faith and are encouraged everyday that more and more people want different and better options for themselves, their families and for our planet.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Our background has included work in various business-facing and leadership roles over the last 20+ years. This has led to a general education of how to successfully operate a business, with the caveat that we’re always going to continue to learn and adapt along the way. Coupling a low fear of failure and leaning into risk (in a strategic, thoughtful way) seem to be traits necessary to succeed in many things, including opening a new business. Minimal Market started as a passion project and something we feel would benefit the communities we serve. The idea came from shopping local and small ourselves for a number of years and finding the process of gathering food, using natural products and returning to a more holistic way of eating and living to be quite gratifying. We have seen the benefits in our own health and happiness firsthand. We believe that a key missing ingredient from most people’s willingness to make these same shifts is having access to a store like Minimal Market near where they live.

Minimal Market is an organic, low-waste grocery store. We source mainly organic foods, all-natural household and personal care products, and partner with many local small businesses as vendors. The majority of the store is package-free, which means our customers purchase by weight. We provide compostable bags for free, glass jars for purchase, or most commonly, customers will bring in their own containers and refill them. This is valuable for them as they are not paying extra for (often plastic) packaging or marketing costs. They also control the amount they purchase so that can further drive down costs which allows them additional flexibility to try new items without buying more than they want or will use. Re-using containers is perhaps our best shot at reducing the amount of waste and single-use plastic in the environment and our hope is to bridge the gap for people who can’t fully go zero-waste but want to do more (or in this case, less).

We are encouraged and humbled every day when someone comes in genuinely excited that they now have a store like ours near them. It seems that many people agree that the traditional grocery store experience is no longer meeting their needs/preferences. People want to live healthier lifestyles. They want their families and the environment to thrive. They want to buy local products and to see small businesses adding character to where they live. We really do vote with our dollars and it’s exciting to see how many people are starting to vote differently.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

We write a monthly newsletter, consistently post about new products/events on social media a few times a week, developed a tiered loyalty program where customers can see real savings (the highest tier is a $25 coupon), use tools that help with engaging customers that haven’t shopped in a while, offer birthday coupons, and are always seeking to cross-promote with other businesses near us.

This is an area that we continue to seek innovation and expansion as we see this as an enormous priority. At this stage, we don’t have the marketing power that some larger organizations do. However, we recognize that keeping the customers we have happy and delivering a great experience for every new person who visits the store is key.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Word of mouth is a big one for an early stage business like Minimal Market. If someone visits the store once, we hope and often see that they spread the word to their friends and become a regular shopper themselves. We are deeply focused on great customer service, cleanliness, and a peaceful atmosphere as every positive impression we can make counts.

We also have developed a good following on Facebook, Instagram, and Next Door. While we offer domestic shipping and delivery as a convenience to our customers, the concept of the store is highly focused on shopping and supporting local with goal of building a stronger community and limiting travel and packaging waste. We try to connect with local groups and spread the word within the community as best we can.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.minimalmarket.co
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/minimalmarketco/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/minimalmarketco