We were lucky to catch up with Kris Benner recently and have shared our conversation below.
Kris, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?
We are in the agritourism business, but more specifically, our agritourism business includes llamas and alpacas. In the 5 years that we have owned and raised llamas and alpacas, we have learned quite a bit about the culture of llama and alpaca farms. Llama and alpaca owners are very protective of these animals. These mystical animals aren’t that common and therefore not that many people understand their care and behaviors. Therefore I need to be cognizant when I am providing information about them so as not to mislead people into thinking about them in a derogatory way or in a way that could lead to unknowing harm. For example, the most common question that we get about them is, “Do they spit?”. The truth of the matter is, yes they do. But only for good reason, and typically not on humans. They spit on each other to communicate displeasure and warnings. The disagreement in the industry comes in regards to how that information is communicated so as not to propagate negative information. Another example is educating people that these animals cannot live by themselves and, as cute as they are, they can’t live in somebody’s house. Overhandling baby alpacas and llamas, especially males, can lead to a dangerous situation when they mature. Hence, as much as I want to post a funny pic about spitting, or a cute pic of a child holding a baby alpaca, it is frowned upon in the alpaca and llama community, as it is very important to provide accurate and educational information. The educational piece adds an extra level of responsibility.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I co-own a llama and alpaca farm, Lucky Us Farm, with my husband. We purchased this property on a whim, wanting to escape our routine suburban lifestyle and create a life that brought us more joy, challenges and purpose. We had never seen an alpaca or llama before and were certainly not seeking out a farm with livestock. But we saw the potential of a property with 13 acres, and the llamas and alpacas just happened to come with it. Challenge accepted. We had no grand plan, no intention of starting a business, and no idea where this would all lead. We were simply excited to embark on a new journey and immerse ourselves in farm life. Being a nurse and an animal lover, the care and wellbeing of the herd came naturally to me. After quickly learning about how wonderful these animals are, what a gentle and serene disposition they have, and what a special feeling of peace and calmness being on the farm provides, I could not wait to share the animals and the farm with others. One thing quickly led to another and I excitedly created my social media accounts and created a website so that I could educate, entertain, and invite the community to share this experience and journey with us. Initially friends and family took an amused interest in our newly acquired farm lifestyle. But as we offered unique farm events and farm visits, the interest for our farm grew. And the more that people took an interest in our farm, the more inspired that I was to evolve and offer a wide variety of farm activities. My creativity soared and I quickly realized that if I could dream it, I could create it, and people would embrace it. I worked hard to have one of my llamas registered as a Therapy Animal so that I could take her to schools and senior centers. I opened a gift shop on the farm and sold not only commercially made alpaca and llama products, but crafts that I learned to make with the herd’s fiber through felting and weaving. I learned photography and editing skills, so that I could offer my own photo shoots. I wrote and published a children’s book called, “The Day the Farmer went on Strike” teaching children about cooperation and gratitude. I worked with other talented small business owners so that we could collaborate on styled farm photoshoots and other endeavors. We offered painting and felting classes, alpaca yoga, live music events, farm picnics, birthday parties, llama walks and so much more. In the past year, we have focused on using the farm to be a venue for celebrations and hope to one day incorporate an Airbnb on the property. So much has happened in the past 5 years since we purchased this property and it is overwhelming even for me to reflect on our progress and journey. But I am very clear on the fact that we didn’t do this alone. Creative, talented, generous and kind people have come into our lives to become a part of our story. People who helped me to learn new skills, helped us care for the animals, offered their own talents and time and in the process have become incredible friends. We are so grateful for these friends and for our supporters who have helped us see the path forward and to enjoy the journey. The long term vision is becoming more clear, as we head in the direction of event venue and with that clarity comes a more clear business plan. We truly are so grateful for the life that this farm has given us. It has already far exceeded our initial search for purpose and meaning.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
I do not, by any business standards, have a huge social media following. I do watch a lot of YouTube videos regarding analyzing algorithms and increasing engagement. I don’t do a great job marketing our business on social media, but I’m taking good notes! But what I do spend a lot of time thinking about is how I want to represent myself and our business on social media. I give a lot of consideration as to what posts and information people relate to the most, and try to create content that is either educational, entertaining, or story telling. What I have learned is that people like when I keep it real. A post with a story about how I got spit on by an alpaca who was not interested in breeding will get so much more engagement than a magazine-cover worthy photo that is picture perfect. A post with a harrowing story of a high risk llama birth helps people connect to the animals and feel the emotions. Funny posts of bloopers and goofy animal antics helps people relate to our imperfect world. And posts that give the llamas and alpacas human-like personalities help people to understand that each of the animals has a unique personality and they, just like us, play a vital role in their herd. So even though I have a long way to go with using social media to market my business, I am content for the moment to slowly grow my social media following, and by keeping it real, I am laying the groundwork and building a strong foundation that represents my values and mission.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
A lesson that I had to unlearn is that I can’t give it all away. In the beginning, because I didn’t intend to approach our farm as a business and because we started all of this just for fun, I completely undervalued and undercharged for our services and events. Because we weren’t using the farm/agritourism income to pay for our groceries, I didn’t think that it mattered that I developed a wise business sense. And because I didn’t know how to balance generosity and availability with value and monetary exchange, I gave away everything that I could. I gave away my time, my energy, and my resources. I wanted people to enjoy the experience and I felt like if I asked them to pay the market value, that they might think that I was greedy or doubt my intensions. After about 3 years, it became clear to me that even though I truly enjoyed getting to know our visitors and teaching them about the herd, I was providing everybody else with a positive experience, while I did not have the time or energy to enjoy my own.. I became totally burned out. I have spent a lot of time over the past 2 years trying to unlearn this approach. For survival sake, I have to. I am learning how to find work-life balance, how to say no, how to be generous and giving, while still being able to approach this as a true business that will one day allow me to quit my full time job as a nurse and run a successful agritourism business. I’m still learning, but I have come an incredibly long way.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.LuckyUsFarm.net
- Instagram: @luckyusfarm
- Facebook: @luckyusfarm
Image Credits
Marisa Kinney Photography