We were lucky to catch up with Joe Koopsen recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Joe thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you scale up? What were the strategies, tactics, meaningful moments, twists/turns, obstacles, mistakes along the way? The world needs to hear more realistic, actionable stories about this critical part of the business building journey. Tell us your scaling up story – bring us along so we can understand what it was like making the decisions you had, implementing the strategies/tactics etc.
When I first started Joe’s Farm, it was on a 2.5-acre lot just outside of town. There was nothing on the property except a mailbox. But as an ambitious 15-year-old, I somehow could see what this little 2.5-acre farm could look like with a little sweat equity! With help from my dad, we started with a chicken coop that held 150 egg-laying hens. These hens could free-range during the day and be locked up in their coop at night to keep them safe. It didn’t take long for the community to start noticing a 15-year-old starting a farm from scratch! We eventually added two more larger chicken coops and a farm stand. We ended up with 600 egg-laying hens on that farm. We started selling eggs at a farmers market inside a local hospital that first winter. The hospital had just started a campaign to purchase food from local farms, and we just so happened to be at the right place at the right time! After building a state-licensed egg-washing facility, we started selling to that hospital and a local bakery. This gave me the confidence to continue down this entrepreneurial path. Over the next few years, as I finished high school and into my early adulthood, I would work other jobs so I could reinvest all my profits back into the farm business. Reinvesting the profits allowed me to scale up more quickly without taking on any debt.
Now, I am 27 years old and farm on 175 acres. We have changed our production model to a regenerative/pasture model where we move our chickens, turkeys, and cows around the pasture to build soil health and to produce more nutrient-dense food for our customers! Over the years, we have picked up other customers, including farms that ship our chicken and turkeys all over the USA right to customers’ doorsteps! From 150 egg-laying hens at the age of 15 years old to 2,500 egg-laying hens, 35,000 broiler chickens for meat, 2,500 Thanksgiving turkeys, and 30 cows at the age of 27 years old, I can attest to the value of patience and looking at the long term investments in a business.
Joe, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I started Joe’s Farm on a 2.5-acre vacant lot just outside of town with 150 chickens in 2011 at the age of 15 years old. We now have a small team of employees, farm 175 acres, and raise over 35,000 chickens annually! We practice regenerative agriculture, which means we are healing the soil on our farm as well as providing happy/healthy lives for our animals, and producing nutrient-dense food for our customers!
We raise chickens for meat and eggs, thanksgiving turkeys, and beef cattle.
Have you ever had to pivot?
When I first started Joe’s Farm, I thought we would primarily produce eggs, but over the years, the market has demanded more of our chicken meat than our eggs. We are now producing about five times more revenue from chicken meat than selling eggs.
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
I am always listening to podcasts or watching YouTube videos! As a first-generation farmer, I have needed to learn everything from scratch. My dad and uncle owned their own construction business, so I have learned a lot of business skills from them as well.
Here are a few podcasts I really enjoy:
Valuetainment/PBD Podcast
How I Built This
The Iced Coffee Hour
Business Movers
The Joe Rogan Experience
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.joesfarm.us/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joesfarm.us/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joesfarm
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-koopsen-3850b7a8/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeKoopsen
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5CqY8z1ht_5ph8mnDYwbqA