We recently connected with Melina Crabtree and have shared our conversation below.

Melina , thanks for taking the time to share your stories 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.

When my daughter was born, I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible and I knew I didn’t want to return to my time consuming corporate marketing job. So I took a leap of faith and started a wellness business with Sunrider offering moms the best plant based products for their family and a side business they could do from home.

My husband wanted a new hobby we could do with our daughter which would also help the environment. So he choose beekeeping and we started a local honey business. The risk paid off and we love helping the bees and offering local NJ residents the best raw, local wildflower honey!

Melina , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

As a tired and stressed out mom, I needed a solution! When I was first introduced to the Sunrider products, I immediately noticed I had better focus, calm and sleep! Now I love offering moms and women entrepreneurs the same solution with the Sunrider products. The foods provide a focused, calm and healthy mind, body, and spirit – all things we need as entrepreneurs, no matter our business! I also love how it offers them the nourishment and self-care they need so they can support their families. Happy mom, happy kids and better mom days!

Sunrider has always been there for me like a life-long friend. As a teenager, I was lucky enough to have parents who made me yummy Nuplus smoothies before school which helped improve my concentration… and my grades! In college, I stayed healthy and fit while making extra money for tuition with Sunrider.

When I met my husband and we started a family, we could truly appreciate the money-saving value of the Sunrider foods and nourishment for growing babies.

Now, a teenager herself, my daughter loves the Sunrider products for school. We have fun making product & lifestyle videos together and she gets to see first-hand that anyone can be an entrepreneur and have fun doing it!

Having a Sunrider business allows me the flexibility to be with my family while staying connected to the world with a business that I can take anywhere. I love that the founders are women and experts in the medical field and believe in nurturing the family first. Therefore, sharing the products with other moms has been natural for me. Sunrider is a true family business.

8 years ago, we decided to add a beekeeping & local honey business which naturally fit with my Sunrider wellness business. My daughter loves helping us with both businesses. She has learned how to be an entrepreneur and that it can be empowering and fun!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

In our beekeeping and local honey business, Crabtree Honey, we’ve learned it takes a lot of resilience to overcome many obstacles. For example, this past fall, a bear entered our yard and destroyed one of our beehives feasting on the honey. The next day, we managed to move the 2nd hive just minutes before the bear came back for more! It was difficult and sad to lose a hive after all the work we put into it. We’ve also lost hives in the past due to mites and weather which are sometimes unavoidable. But just like the bees do, we start again and never give up! Our local neighbors continue to support us and tell us how their gardens have thrived with the addition of our pollinating bees!

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

One of the best ways we built our reputation was joining a networking and women’s empowerment group called B.I.G (Believe, Inspire, Grow). B.I.G offers women entrepreneurs the inspiration, community, and tools they need to move their lives forward both personally & professionally. The women in this group were so supportive and curious about my 2 businesses. They shared our honey and my Sunrider products with their friends, families and neighbors in fun ways. It became customary for these women to call me whenever they needed a gift basket packed with delicious local honey and wellness tea. They enjoyed telling the recipient where it came from and why it’s so special. It’s exciting to know the beekeeper who makes your honey. It creates a close relationship with people and they learn more about bees, nature and wellness in return.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @crabtreehoney
• Facebook: @crabtreehoney

Image Credits
Melina Crabtree