Simple Sugar is Reinventing the Dessert Business

LEA BLACK

By Grant Ayers

Food allergies can often get in the way of enjoying a treat. And if an allergy were present, a family might just decide to cut out that particular food altogether would look for a second option if their child wanted a specific dessert, rather than work around it by searching for an alternative. For Mark and Rebecca Binstock, however, a food allergy wouldn’t stop them from letting their daughter enjoy cotton candy. In November of 2018, the Binstock family founded Simple Sugar, a cotton candy company that specializes in creating flavorful, local, allergenfriendly alternatives.

Simple Sugar offers a product that is different from other cotton candy because of what isn’t in it, rather than what is. Instead of using a pre-packaged and pre-flavored mix, their cotton candy is made using local fruit and beet sugar. While Mark and Rebecca have found a successful path over their past three years of operating Simple Sugar, their reasoning for beginning is what put them on that path with such ambition.

“We decided to start Simple Sugar in response to our daughter’s food allergies (and our love of cotton candy),” Rebecca Binstock said. “The problem that we would frequently experience — you go to a party or event and a kid cannot partake in treats because of allergies or diet restrictions. Our motivation behind Simple Sugar was to let everyone enjoy something sweet.” Binstock’s high standards made the selling point of an “allergen-friendly alternative” easier said than done. “When we started Simple Sugar, we operated out of our basement office—spinning cotton candy after our kids were asleep for the night. We operated under the cottage food act, which limited our ability to sell our cotton candy through e-commerce or wholesale. The cottage food act also limited how we labeled our product, and we couldn’t identify our product as allergen-friendly. This limitation conflicted with our mission,” Binstock said.

Despite not having the resources for a full cotton candy-focused kitchen at the beginning they chose to face the problems their challenges head-on. While it was a major setback, it was also a critical moment for the Binstock’s to leap one step further in their endeavor. The leap of faith that the Binstock family took launched their venture into unknown territory.

Simple Sugar Stands Out

Simple Sugar operates in a kitchen completely free of the top 8 allergens (milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans) and uses local fruit to flavor the cotton candy.

THE GOOD KIDS

“We had to change our process. Our new process had to match our family’s schedule. This meant that we needed to be in a licensed, commercial kitchen without allergens at the same time as our kids were snoozing. We worked with the city of Bismarck and the state health department to build a licensed kitchen in a newly constructed house. This meant we had to sell our current house and rent a temporary home while we built our new home (complete with a licensed kitchen); all during a pandemic,” Binstock continued.

Over the year that it took to build their new home, they moved their family four separate times. This was all done for them to have a compliant and fully-licensed kitchen where they can ensure—and advertise—an allergen-friendly product. Today, their additional kitchen is dedicated strictly to cotton candy, with nothing else being made in the workspace. “It’s very important to us that we can tell our customers exactly what is in the kitchen,” Binstock emphasized.

Offering a product that could be advertised as truly “allergen-free” meant a great deal to the Binstocks, as they were selling to family, friends and other longtime community members. After all, the family has roots in the area long before the beginning of Simple Sugar. Rebecca has deep ties to Bismarck through her childhood, leading her to develop a personal connection with the place she’s proud to call home. Years later, Rebecca thought that she knew the town well enough to the point of starting a business. However, she quickly learned that the business landscape has changed greatly over the years. “Bismarck has changed a lot since I was a kid. Still, since returning to Bismarck, we have found that it’s very connected,” Binstock said. “It’s still small enough that when you meet someone new, you’re likely to have a friend in common, whether or not you know it yet. Those connections foster business relationships and encourage us all to support local businesses.” local connections.

While the team behind Simple Sugar has managed to keep their circle small, they continue to be adamant about their deep appreciation for their customers and business vendors supporting them. The Binstock’s rely heavily on their community and wordof-mouth, as Simple Sugar’s success depends on healthy business relationships and local connections.

Getting Behind a Good Cause

Simple Sugar supports charities such as BIO Girls, North Dakota’s Gateway to Science, GABR (Great American Bike Race) and many others!

“There are a few business vendors that we couldn’t do our dream job without. The Bis-Man Community Food Coop was the first retail store to sell our cotton candy. We started with the Co-op in December of 2021, and they have been such huge supporters of Simple Sugar and our mission. We love what the Co-op has created for local farmers and producers,” Binstock said. “Second, we couldn’t do what we do and keep it local without our local producers. We use as much local fruit as possible for our cotton candy, so our local farmers and producers are the ones growing the backbone of our product.”

While the Binstock family is seeing success with Simple Sugar across the community through these connections, they admitted that they do have their occasional struggles. Currently, their biggest struggle with operating is time. Simple Sugar is a side venture after business hours to both Mark and Rebecca, as they’re both busy working full-time jobs.

However, Mark and Rebecca were thrilled to announce that they recently hired their first (and only other) employee. This addition to their team should ease the stress of time and allow them to expand in the future. Regardless of the number of hurdles they may have to overcome in the future, they’re not going to let time stop them from pursuing their dream.

“When we started Simple Sugar, we were completely out of our comfort zones. My background is in law and education, and Mark's background is in engineering. We had never operated a business or even made cotton candy. But, we dug in and figured it out. The process pushed us to learn new skills and grow. In other words, embrace ideas that go beyond your zone of comfort. It is scary, but totally worth it,” Binstock said. No matter the obstacle that the Binstock family may come across, it’s evident that they’re prepared to overcome any challenge with a smile on their faces. “We are still pretty fresh at this and are constantly in the process of learning from our failures. If we try something and it doesn’t work, we try something new. All the time. However, that’s how we like to grow,” Binstock said. With the growth mindset and positive attitudes that have been present since their first days of business, the Binstock family is prepared to satisfy Bis-Man’s sweet tooth for quite some time.

Support Simple Sugar!

(701) 471-7737 simplesugarnd.com simplesugarnd@gmail.com @simplesugarnd

Women You Should Know: Hope Sisk

Written and photo provided by

Ladyboss Midwest

Q. Tell me a bit about yourself.

A. I’m from California originally. I’ve been in Bismarck for the last six years. I met my husband when I started as a reporter in Fargo, and now Bismarck is our home, which is where he grew up. I have two daughters; an almost four-year-old and an almost four-month-old. I’m the assistant news director for KFYR TV in Bismarck, as well as an anchor.

Q. California to North Dakota must have been quite the shock.

A. This past winter reminded me of my first winter here. In 2013, I landed in Fargo in January and I was a fish out of water. I had never driven in the snow, had never shoveled snow and didn’t own snow pants or a coat. It was a new world, but I am so thankful for that. I’ve spent time traveling around and living in different areas; that was the most formative experience for me. There is a reason North Dakotans are tough and goodhearted people. So many people helped bail me out of the snow; I don’t even want to admit how many times because that is embarrassing!

Starting at KFYR TV in 2018, Sisk is coming up on her fourth year at the station.

Q. How did you get involved in the work you do?

A. At KFYR, I have a role in anchoring newscasts. Since coming back from maternity leave, I started as the assistant news director here. With that role, I get to play a part in planning out our news coverage for the day, as well as longterm. For example, we have a primary election coming up so I get to help make a plan on how to cover our election coverage. I get to work with reporters and help them develop and grow, which I really love. I studied broadcast journalism in college, and my internship there was the most impactful experience. It was all about finding mentors who got me excited and helped me realize you could go from a shy, quiet college student to someone who could lead a news room.

Q. What was so important about having a good mentor early in your career?

A. That was everything. I started off with so much self-doubt and was constantly wondering if I was good enough or cut out for this. I think any young professional that’s just starting out is questioning every move they make and whether they could take a situation on with more confidence. Having good mentors who could show me the path and cheer me on when I felt discouraged was so important. I think for women especially to build that community makes such a difference. We spent a lot of time proving our worth and that we deserve a seat at the table, but to see that there were so many women willing to lend a hand gave me a lot of hope.

Q. Were you always interested in broadcast journalism, or when did you get introduced to that as a career option?

A. I never thought about it until I was in college and met some classmates who were doing that. I always loved to write. It was my passion. I thought I wanted to be a poet, but I loved telling a story. Through those mentorships, I got to see news from a different perspective than I had gotten as a consumer. I got to see people really masterfully tell a news story as an actual story, as if you’re reading it in a book. That’s what clicked with me, and set my heart on fire about it. These events that happen in people’s lives could be told in such a beautiful way, and we could all benefit from hearing them. That’s what keeps me going, and it’s where the spark started.

Q. What do you love about what you do?

A. Connecting with people. It’s funny because I’m sitting in the studio talking to a camera, but the beautiful thing with broadcast journalism is that you can use your voice to make a story apply to another person’s life. You can create connections between people. I love it when I run into someone and they say they watch or mention a story that we’ve done. It reminds me that we are such a segmented community, but we care about each other and pay attention.

Q. What is it like to have a public persona or have a known face in your community?

A. I feel like I get the benefit of flying under the radar. When I take my makeup off and put my hair up I’m practically unrecognizable, which is just fine with me. I do get little reminders when someone stops and says hi. It warms my heart because it puts this experience into perspective. I work out of our newsroom, so I don’t get to be out in the community as much, but it’s encouraging to hear from the public about their experience watching the news. I also have two daughters that I’m raising to hopefully have confidence and be kind, so I feel like I’m always an example for them of how to interact with people. And I’m representing the stations, so I’ve got to be careful if I honk at somebody driving downtown!

Q. When you’re passionate about your work it can be especially hard to strike a work-life balance. I’m wondering how you find that balance in your life, and if you're able to do anything, in particular, to keep from burning yourself out?

A. I’m a work in progress, and balance is probably where I struggle most. I’m an all-or-nothing type of person. With a new baby at home, I feel like I have to be everything at home, and everything at work at the same time. It’s a struggle. Where I fall short usually is sleep, because I’ll give my time to

my family or my work. But if there is one thing I’ve found that has helped me and I’ve been able to actually incorporate into my life is exercise. It took me a while to learn, but it’s such a good stress reliever and gives me the energy to actually get through my day. Even only thirty minutes is thirty minutes that is just for myself, and I really needed that.

Q. What is a piece of advice you would give a young woman entering your field?

A. I would say do some research on what you get excited about and whom you admire. Reach out to those people. Send a cold-call type of email and share what you noticed that you were excited about and what you hope to do. I think people are willing to share advice or get on the call even just once, and they’ll probably give you information or advice that you will hold with you for a long time. I think people are afraid to ask, but I think people are more open and eager than you would think.

Q. Is there a piece of advice you remember getting early in your career that has stuck with you?

A. Make yourself invaluable. I think it sometimes gets me into trouble, which is why I’m working on boundaries! But I’ve seen it really pay off to take a step back from whatever organization you’re working in and find where there might be a missing piece. Then fill that missing piece. When you are invaluable in that sense it will lead to new opportunities that you didn’t even expect. In my experience, it’s rare to find the type of person who wants to think outside the box and figure out what we’re missing and step up to the plate.

Hope Sisk

Q. What do you think women need right now?

A. I think we have a tendency to want to prove that we should be in the position we’re at or deserve a seat at the table. I think opening up and showing some vulnerability, even for men in the workplace as well, is beneficial to us. It humanizes us a lot more, and I think a softer approach can be what everyone needs. I am a proponent of seeing that more, especially in our workplace. When we had 24/7 coverage of these blizzards, I noticed my managers being empathetic to the fact I had young children at home, and that made me want to work harder, seeing that someone was recognizing my situation and needs. I really appreciated that softer, human approach to what we were doing with work.

Support KFYR TV

Web: kfyrtv.com

Email News Tips or Inquiries:

newsinquiries@kfyrtv.com

hese days, sales intelligence is all the rage. However, just knowing the term won't get you very far as a sales representative or an account manager. So, the question is: How can Sales Intelligence be used? And how can it support you and your sales team?

Having your goal in mind is essential – using software aimlessly has never helped anyone. Still, some sales reps use Sales Intelligence but don't know their goal and what they want to achieve with it.

This article intends to help you understand the essentials of Sales Intelligence and how it can help you achieve your sales goals. Let's get started!

What is sales intelligence and what are its key components?

At its core, sales intelligence is the process of gathering and analyzing data to inform your sales strategy. By understanding the trends in your industry, you can make more informed decisions about where to focus your efforts and how to position your products. A few critical components of sales intelligence include market research, competitive analysis, and customer insights. Market research helps you understand the overall landscape of your industry, including key trends and growth areas. This research can be conducted through surveys, interviews, and data analysis. Competitive analysis entails taking a close look at your competitors to understand their strengths and weaknesses. This information can be used to develop strategies for positioning your own products or services. Finally, customer insights involve understanding the needs and wants of your target customers. This knowledge can be gathered through surveys, focus groups, and customer feedback.

By taking the time to gather sales intelligence, you can develop a more effective sales strategy that will help you close more deals and grow your business. So how does it help salespeople thrive?

How does sales intelligence help salespeople be more successful?

In a highly competitive sales environment, salespeople must have all the information they need at their fingertips. This is where sales intelligence comes in. SI software gives salespeople access to data about their potential customers, such as contact information, web activity, and social media posts. This information can help salespeople identify potential leads, assess their needs, and craft more targeted pitches. Additionally, sales intelligence can help salespeople keep track of their progress, identify patterns in customer behavior, and troubleshoot any problems along the way. In short, sales intelligence is an essential tool for anyone looking to succeed in sales. With its ability to provide accurate and up-to-date information, sales intelligence gives salespeople the power to close more deals and drive more revenue.

Benefits of using Sales Intelligence

Let's get into the true benefits of SI. Sales intelligence helps businesses make better decisions about their sales strategies. By providing insights into customer behavior and buying trends, sales intelligence can help companies target their marketing efforts more effectively and improve their overall conversion rates.

In addition, this technology can also help companies avoid potential pitfalls, such as overspending on ineffective marketing campaigns. Simply put, sales intelligence helps improve bottom lines by allowing businesses to make more informed decisions about their sales strategies.

How to get started with sales intelligence

Getting started with these sales’ tech solutions can seem like a daunting task, but it doesn't have to be. There are a few key things to keep in mind that will simplify the process:

Shawn Peterson is the CEO of Quantum Business Solutions. He comes with a decade of experience in the technology services industry as an executive. Shawn is a visionary focused on high growth and performance through sales, marketing, and client experience.

First, it's essential to define your goals. What do you want to achieve with sales intelligence? Once you know this, you can start to gather data that will help you reach your goal. This data can come from a variety of sources, such as customer surveys, financial reports, and online research.

Once you have this data, it's time to start analyzing it. Look for trends and patterns that can help you understand your customers and your market. This analysis will help you make better decisions about your sales strategy.

Finally, don't forget to keep track of your progress. Sales intelligence is an ongoing process, so it's essential to regularly review your data and adjust your strategy as needed. By following these simple steps, you'll be well on your way to using sales intelligence to boost your business.

Sales Intelligence in Action

It's all about providing organizations with information about their customers and potential customers. Access to this information can help marketers understand customer needs and develop marketing campaigns. Sales intelligence can also be used to identify new sales opportunities and track the progress of ongoing sales efforts. Furthermore, sales intelligence can improve customer service by providing information about customer preferences and buying patterns.

There are many examples of how sales intelligence has been used successfully by businesses. For example, a clothing retailer might use sales intelligence to understand its customer base's needs better. By tracking customer purchases, the retailer could identify trends in customer behavior and develop targeted marketing campaigns accordingly. In another example, a sales team might use sales intelligence to track the progress of their efforts and identify new leads. By understanding which methods are most effective at generating new business, the team can focus its energy on those activities. Ultimately, sales intelligence can be a powerful tool for improving sales performance.

Conclusion

Today's modern marketplace demands advanced sales intelligence technology. With the help of data, you can understand the trends within your industry and make more informed decisions about where to place your efforts. As a result, sales intelligence helps salespeople close more deals and increase revenue.

If you're ready to implement SI technology within your sales force, Quantum Business Solutions specializes in helping businesses leverage this game-changing technology. Schedule a meeting with us today and let us show you how SI solutions can take your business to the next level!

Quantum Business Solutions Phone:

712-389-4639

Email:

shawn@thequantumleap.business

Web:

thequantumleap.business