WEBVTT 00:01.001 --> 00:02.702 align:left position:20%,start line:5% size:70% [piano, guitar, and marimba arrangement] 00:02.802 --> 00:05.505 align:left position:17.5%,start line:5% size:72.5% (woman) It's my husband's favorite, and I love it on wings. 00:05.605 --> 00:08.308 align:left position:25%,start line:5% size:65% We love it on our burgers, but I love it mostly-- 00:08.408 --> 00:10.643 align:left position:25%,start line:77% size:65% (narrator) Meet Kissie Stroup from Davidson County 00:10.744 --> 00:13.446 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% by way of High Point, here busily sampling 00:13.546 --> 00:16.616 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% her line of all-natural refrigerated salad dressings 00:16.716 --> 00:19.552 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% in a Wake Forest grocery store. 00:19.652 --> 00:22.522 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% Kissie loves her work and her products, 00:22.622 --> 00:25.392 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% which have names like "Far East Flair," 00:25.492 --> 00:29.162 align:left position:12.5%,start line:83% size:77.5% "Honey, It's Dijon Dill!," and "It Takes Three to Tango," 00:29.262 --> 00:31.498 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% which combines ranch and Thousand Island 00:31.598 --> 00:33.500 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% with blue cheese crumbles. 00:33.600 --> 00:36.269 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% Oh, and by the way, her name really is "Kissie." 00:36.369 --> 00:38.204 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% (Kissie, voice-over) My real name is Christine. 00:38.304 --> 00:39.639 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% They called me Chrissy. 00:39.739 --> 00:42.275 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% My cousin, he couldn't say "Chrissy," said "Kissie." 00:42.375 --> 00:43.877 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% They thought it was cute. 00:43.977 --> 00:45.612 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% When you're two, it's really cute. 00:45.712 --> 00:47.480 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% When you're 50, it's not cute anymore, 00:47.580 --> 00:49.115 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% especially when you're in business. 00:49.215 --> 00:51.217 align:left position:40%,start line:5% size:50% That does not say a lot for me, 00:51.317 --> 00:53.520 align:left position:15%,start line:5% size:75% when I walk into a corporate board meeting 00:53.620 --> 00:56.089 align:left position:30%,start line:5% size:60% and I'm five feet tall and my name's Kissie. 00:56.189 --> 00:58.091 align:left position:30%,start line:5% size:60% I really have to assert myself. 00:58.191 --> 01:00.260 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% [piano leads string orchestration] 01:00.360 --> 01:03.296 align:left position:17.5%,start line:77% size:72.5% (narrator) Kissie created the Little Black Dressing line herself 01:03.396 --> 01:05.265 align:left position:32.5%,start line:89% size:57.5% in her kitchen. 01:05.365 --> 01:08.068 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% The first one, Dreamy Creamy Vinaigrette, 01:08.168 --> 01:11.504 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% was based on her grandmother's recipe. 01:11.604 --> 01:13.640 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% (Kissie) She was the salad-dressing maker. 01:13.740 --> 01:15.308 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% She had an organic garden. 01:15.408 --> 01:17.644 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% My brother and I worked it, um. 01:17.744 --> 01:19.846 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% We never ate anything in a bottle. 01:19.946 --> 01:21.848 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% We do everything to this dressing 01:21.948 --> 01:24.184 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% that my grandmother did 50 years ago. 01:24.284 --> 01:26.252 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% Mix it and put it in the refrigerator. 01:26.352 --> 01:27.520 align:left position:42.5%,start line:89% size:47.5% That's it. 01:27.620 --> 01:29.255 align:left position:22.5%,start line:77% size:67.5% (narrator) Like many kitchen-table entrepreneurs, 01:29.355 --> 01:30.990 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% the timing was right for Kissie, 01:31.091 --> 01:32.625 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% and people encouraged her. 01:32.725 --> 01:34.627 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% [violins lead busy arrangement] 01:34.727 --> 01:37.430 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% (Kissie) The economic turndown in 2008 01:37.530 --> 01:39.065 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% prompted me to realize 01:39.165 --> 01:42.435 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% that as an able, working body in the household-- 01:42.535 --> 01:45.538 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% the kids were older, so it was a lot easier. 01:45.638 --> 01:48.141 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% I started from doin' salad dressing at home 01:48.241 --> 01:50.543 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% for friends, and they liked it so much, 01:50.643 --> 01:52.645 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% and then it just turned into a business. 01:52.745 --> 01:55.281 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% I thought, well, I'll just do that. 01:56.583 --> 01:58.218 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% (narrator) In case you hadn't noticed, 01:58.318 --> 01:59.953 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% Kissie has the wonderful ability 02:00.053 --> 02:02.355 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% to talk and smile at the same time, 02:02.455 --> 02:04.958 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% which she can turn on like a light switch 02:05.058 --> 02:06.993 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% when people approach her sampling table. 02:07.093 --> 02:08.995 align:left position:87.5%,start line:5% size:2.5% ♪ 02:09.095 --> 02:11.498 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% Of course, she also has a great product. 02:11.598 --> 02:13.967 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% "Catchy on the outside and yummy on the inside," 02:14.067 --> 02:15.702 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% she says, and clearly got 02:15.802 --> 02:18.671 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% some important things right from the get-go, 02:18.771 --> 02:22.308 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% her brand and her package design. 02:22.408 --> 02:24.811 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% But there were a few business-development issues 02:24.911 --> 02:26.613 align:left position:32.5%,start line:89% size:57.5% along the way. 02:26.713 --> 02:28.248 align:left position:40%,start line:83% size:50% Nothing-- I knew nothing. 02:28.348 --> 02:30.316 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% I graduated from Meredith in 1988 02:30.416 --> 02:32.051 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% with a degree in fine arts 02:32.152 --> 02:33.786 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% and a concentration in graphic design. 02:33.887 --> 02:35.522 align:left position:15%,start line:89% size:75% So the design part was easy. 02:35.622 --> 02:37.257 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% I liked doin' the name. 02:37.357 --> 02:39.259 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% I like a play on words. 02:39.359 --> 02:42.028 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% As far as doing a wholesale manufacturing business, 02:42.128 --> 02:45.098 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% I thought it was supposed to go into a cute package. 02:45.198 --> 02:47.400 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% I would drop it off at the grocery store. 02:47.500 --> 02:49.702 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% They would think it was awesome and buy it. 02:49.802 --> 02:51.571 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% That was the end of the story. 02:51.671 --> 02:53.439 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% I was gonna be successful after that. 02:53.540 --> 02:55.742 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% Well, that's not the way it works. 02:55.842 --> 02:57.944 align:left position:25%,start line:77% size:65% (narrator) Starting and growing a small business 02:58.044 --> 02:59.312 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% can seem unreal. 02:59.412 --> 03:01.881 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% You ask yourself, is it really happening? 03:01.981 --> 03:03.716 align:left position:32.5%,start line:89% size:57.5% Can I make it? 03:03.816 --> 03:05.718 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% And then something unexpected happens 03:05.818 --> 03:07.453 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% to boost your confidence, 03:07.554 --> 03:09.989 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% like what happened to Kissie in 2014 03:10.089 --> 03:11.724 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% in the form of an inquiry 03:11.824 --> 03:13.726 align:left position:25%,start line:5% size:65% from a caterer serving the US Open. 03:13.826 --> 03:16.262 align:left position:22.5%,start line:5% size:67.5% (Kissie) Actually, they sent me an e-mail, 03:16.362 --> 03:19.866 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% and I thought that the family was prankin' me, uh. 03:19.966 --> 03:23.770 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% We're a big golfing family, so when I got the--the... 03:23.870 --> 03:26.172 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% summons to send samples, I went around 03:26.272 --> 03:28.741 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% to everyone in the family and said, "That's not funny. 03:28.841 --> 03:30.610 align:left position:35%,start line:83% size:55% "You guys have got to quit this 03:30.710 --> 03:32.679 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% 'cause you're gonna get me excited for nothin'." 03:32.779 --> 03:34.113 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% Finally my husband said, 03:34.214 --> 03:35.982 align:left position:35%,start line:83% size:55% "Kissie, we did not send that e-mail. 03:36.082 --> 03:37.717 align:left position:37.5%,start line:83% size:52.5% You've got to call these people." 03:37.817 --> 03:39.786 align:left position:40%,start line:83% size:50% I didn't buy it for a whole month. 03:39.886 --> 03:42.021 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% So I sent samples not expecting anything, 03:42.121 --> 03:43.456 align:left position:27.5%,start line:89% size:62.5% and they loved it. 03:43.556 --> 03:45.058 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% The first order was OK. 03:45.158 --> 03:46.926 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% I knocked it out in three days. 03:47.026 --> 03:48.861 align:left position:30%,start line:83% size:60% I thought, yeah, I've got this. 03:48.962 --> 03:52.498 align:left position:12.5%,start line:83% size:77.5% The second order I think was-- it was like 2,000 bottles, 03:52.599 --> 03:55.602 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% and I had to have it done in less than a week, 03:55.702 --> 03:57.470 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% so we called in the troops. 03:57.570 --> 03:59.906 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% My--thank goodness my family and friends helped me 04:00.006 --> 04:02.875 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% 'cause that was the only way I was gonna make it. 04:02.976 --> 04:05.812 align:left position:17.5%,start line:77% size:72.5% (narrator) Kissie has been fortunate to find help along the way 04:05.912 --> 04:07.814 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% not only from her family 04:07.914 --> 04:10.350 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% but the North Carolina Department of Agriculture 04:10.450 --> 04:12.352 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% and a group in Greensboro 04:12.452 --> 04:14.587 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% where entrepreneurs share their experience. 04:14.687 --> 04:16.556 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% She found food-safety regulations 04:16.656 --> 04:17.890 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% particularly daunting. 04:17.991 --> 04:20.193 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% (Kissie) There's a lotta paperwork that goes into it. 04:20.293 --> 04:21.961 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% Everything is noted from the time 04:22.061 --> 04:24.597 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% it walks in the door until the time it leaves. 04:24.697 --> 04:26.666 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% That way, if we ever had a recall, 04:26.766 --> 04:28.768 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% I would know where those ingredients came from, 04:28.868 --> 04:30.770 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% when they came in, when they left, 04:30.870 --> 04:32.405 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% what bottle they were in, 04:32.505 --> 04:34.707 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% and it all has to be written down. 04:34.807 --> 04:38.111 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% So it--75% of my time is spent doin' paperwork, 04:38.211 --> 04:41.447 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% and 25% is spent actually making the dressing. 04:42.715 --> 04:45.418 align:left position:15%,start line:77% size:75% (narrator) Unless you can get advice from somebody who's done it, 04:45.518 --> 04:47.153 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% the idea of pitching your product 04:47.253 --> 04:48.588 align:left position:27.5%,start line:89% size:62.5% to a grocery store 04:48.688 --> 04:51.391 align:left position:12.5%,start line:83% size:77.5% and having them greet you like you're the next big thing 04:51.491 --> 04:54.160 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% seems to make sense, but that's not how it works. 04:54.260 --> 04:55.895 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% (Kissie) They have to make sure 04:55.995 --> 04:57.964 align:left position:37.5%,start line:83% size:52.5% that you're in it for a long time-- 04:58.064 --> 04:59.832 align:left position:35%,start line:83% size:55% you're not gonna be fly-by-night, 04:59.932 --> 05:01.768 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% and two months from now you decide, 05:01.868 --> 05:04.070 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% really I don't wanna do this; it's too hard. 05:04.170 --> 05:06.372 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% (narrator) A big plus is that Kissie's products 05:06.472 --> 05:09.475 align:left position:12.5%,start line:83% size:77.5% are locally made during a time when grocery stores 05:09.575 --> 05:12.945 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% want to offer more local products to their customers. 05:13.046 --> 05:16.149 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% But perseverance helps too, as Richard McKellogg, 05:16.249 --> 05:17.784 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% a senior produce executive 05:17.884 --> 05:20.386 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% with North Carolina-based Lowes Foods confirmed 05:20.486 --> 05:24.223 align:left position:12.5%,start line:83% size:77.5% during a store reopening event in the town of Wake Forest. 05:24.324 --> 05:26.793 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% (Richard) When someone like Kissie gets in front of you, 05:26.893 --> 05:28.461 align:left position:10%,start line:5% size:80% it's hard to say no. 05:28.561 --> 05:30.363 align:left position:10%,start line:5% size:80% And you can just see her passion 05:30.463 --> 05:32.332 align:left position:10%,start line:5% size:80% and just her willingness 05:32.432 --> 05:34.767 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% to go about things the right way. 05:34.867 --> 05:36.969 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% She comes to every one of these events. 05:37.070 --> 05:38.971 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% She's out in the community. 05:39.072 --> 05:41.374 align:left position:15%,start line:89% size:75% She talks to our guests, uh. 05:41.474 --> 05:44.510 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% She educates them and really educates us. 05:44.610 --> 05:47.313 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% We have a lot of people that bang down our door 05:47.413 --> 05:49.048 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% and would like to get in, 05:49.148 --> 05:51.784 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% but not quite as many as a Kissie, 05:51.884 --> 05:54.087 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% who literally is so committed to just saying, 05:54.187 --> 05:55.455 align:left position:32.5%,start line:89% size:57.5% I wanna learn. 05:55.555 --> 05:57.056 align:left position:22.5%,start line:89% size:67.5% I got a great product, 05:57.156 --> 05:59.359 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% and I wanna deliver it to your guests. 05:59.459 --> 06:02.095 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% So it's been pretty exciting to work with her. 06:02.195 --> 06:05.198 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% (narrator) What's a typical day like for Kissie Stroup? 06:05.298 --> 06:08.901 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% First off, she faces the task she likes least. 06:09.001 --> 06:11.571 align:left position:17.5%,start line:77% size:72.5% (Kissie) I do my terrible accounting in the mornings. 06:11.671 --> 06:14.374 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% Yes, I get that over with, and then I either-- 06:14.474 --> 06:16.509 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% I'm at a grocery store sampling. 06:16.609 --> 06:19.178 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% We're--we really, if-- to be successful 06:19.278 --> 06:21.047 align:left position:17.5%,start line:89% size:72.5% and to just talk to people 06:21.147 --> 06:24.083 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% and get it in people's mouths one bottle at a time. 06:24.183 --> 06:25.818 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% Settin' up a table and talking, 06:25.918 --> 06:27.553 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% settin' up a table and talking. 06:27.653 --> 06:29.856 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% That's all I do, which obviously, I'm good at. 06:29.956 --> 06:31.924 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% I like that better than the accounting part. 06:32.024 --> 06:33.526 align:left position:27.5%,start line:89% size:62.5% But it's long days. 06:33.626 --> 06:36.095 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% It's hard work, but when you produce it also, 06:36.195 --> 06:38.164 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% you have to make sure that you're there 06:38.264 --> 06:40.967 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% and it gets made 'cause you don't have anything to sell. 06:41.067 --> 06:42.568 align:left position:25%,start line:89% size:65% So, um, typical day, 06:42.668 --> 06:47.006 align:left position:15%,start line:83% size:75% I'm either in the car drivin' or, um, at the office mixin'. 06:47.106 --> 06:49.709 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% My father-in-law does all the bottling now, 06:49.809 --> 06:52.712 align:left position:17.5%,start line:83% size:72.5% so he's taken some of the pressure off of me. 06:52.812 --> 06:54.147 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% We don't have weekends. 06:54.247 --> 06:56.582 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% I don't know what day it is sometimes. 06:56.682 --> 06:58.584 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% (narrator) But all the hard work, 06:58.684 --> 07:00.586 align:left position:27.5%,start line:83% size:62.5% even the occasional 70-hour week, 07:00.686 --> 07:02.522 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% appears to have been well worth it 07:02.622 --> 07:04.424 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% to this high-energy country girl 07:04.524 --> 07:06.526 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% with the full-speed-ahead attitude. 07:06.626 --> 07:08.661 align:left position:25%,start line:83% size:65% Besides, how can you go wrong 07:08.761 --> 07:11.597 align:left position:12.5%,start line:83% size:77.5% with an award-winning dressing for every occasion, 07:11.697 --> 07:13.866 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% each one straight from the heart, 07:13.966 --> 07:16.936 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% handcrafted with pride and presented with love, 07:17.036 --> 07:19.071 align:left position:15%,start line:89% size:75% plus a great line of chatter. 07:19.172 --> 07:23.376 align:left position:22.5%,start line:83% size:67.5% Truth tell, your salad never had it so good! 07:23.476 --> 07:25.478 align:left position:87.5%,start line:5% size:2.5% ♪