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The 5 Best Chocolates in Hawaiʻi - Fun fact: Hawaii is the only state where cacao trees grow, and many local chocolate companies are using Island-grown chocolates in their candies and treats.
The 5 Best Chocolates in Hawaiʻi - Fun fact: Hawaii is the only state where cacao trees grow, and many local chocolate companies are using Island-grown chocolates in their candies and treats.
[FT] Catalog every orderable furniture, flooring, umbrella, wallpaper, and songs(2,162 items) [LF] 2-3 hours of your time
Hello and welcome to all those who wish to catalog the above! This includes all flooring, wallpaper, umbrellas, and songs that are ORDERABLE. Same goes for furniture Locations: -flooring, wallpaper, songs, and umbrellas are located NORTHWEST near the private beach. Upon arrival, go past nook crannys and continue WEST and then NORTH until you pass group #6 and there should be flooring, etc.. -groups #1-20 are located on the LEFT side of the wedding organ. #21-40 are on the RIGHT side of the wedding organ Major thanks to /fireplayer who helped collect a lot of the stuff! Rules:
Nothing in pockets
DIYs are free to take
3-4 people at a time on my island
Be nice to other people and wait till they're finished cataloging the group you want
You're welcome to skip groups, catalog some groups, or whatever you want
LEAVE THROUGH AIRPORT~~~
pls let me know if there's that catalog bug or you can't pick up items/drop items
you're ALLOWED TO RUN OVER MY FLOWERS/ PICK THEM UP. I don't mind since I don't play that much anymore
you're ALLOWED to shop at nooks or ables and buy anything you want
Table of contents(Credit to /par016 for the list) < Furniture ONLY
[FT] CATALOG MOST ORDERABLE PIECE OF FURNITURE, FLOORING, WALLPAPER, RUGS, SONGS and UMBRELLAS (2298 Total Items - Everything as of 4 Months Ago)!!! Or Just Some of It [LF] What I missed in the Last 4 Months
Alright here we go again... As of 4 months ago I had every piece of orderable furniture, Flooring, Wallpaper, Rugs, Umbrellas, and KK Slider Songs in the game laid out and ready to be cataloged on my island. A few rules, so please read the rules section!
Quick Guide
Potted Plants (39 Items) - 8 NMTs
Basic Insturments and Equipment (41 Items) - 8 NMTs
Intermediate Instruments (28 Items) - 6 NMTs
Advanced Instruments (36 Items) - 8 NMTs
Toys and Trinkets (49 Items) - 10 NMTs
Diner Set (54 Items) - 12 NMTs
Asian Items (37 Items) - 8 NMTs
Imperial Set (28 Items) - 6 NMTs
Rattan Set (60 Items) - 12 NMTs
Antique Set (30 Items) - 6 NMTs
Cute Set (50 Items) - 10 NMTs
Glow in the Dark (23 Items) - 6 NMTs
Fun at the Beach (63 Items) - 14 NMTs
Arcade/Gaming Room (49 Items) - 10 NMTs
Throwback Items (57 Items) - 12 NMTs
Containers (31 Items) - 6 NMTs
Work/Office (44 Items) - 10 NMTs
Living Room Essentials (65 Items) - 14 NMTs
Large Kitchen Appliances (38 Items) - 8 NMTs
Small Kitchen Appliances (52 Items) - 10 NMTs
Bathroom Furnishings (50 Items) - 10 NMTs
Audio / Video (44 Items) - 10 NMTs
Bedroom (55 Items) - 12 NMTs
BeaPanda Families (21 Items) - 4 NMTs
Pet (28 Items) - 6 NMTs
Clocks (39 Items) - 8 NMTs
School (59 Items) - 12 NMTs
Lighting (21 Items) - 4 NMTs
Workshop (24 Items) - 6 NMTs
Home/Office Electronics (48 Items) - 10 NMTs
Heating and Cooling (45 Items) - 10 NMTs
Home Furniture (66 Items) - 14 NMTs
Gym (54 Items) - 12 NMTs
Sports / Camping (57 Items) - 12 NMTs
Kitchen (65 Items) - 14 NMTs
Outdoor Items (65 Items) - 14 NMTs
Aroma Therapy (21 Items) - 4 NMTs
Interior Design (54 Items) - 12 NMTs
Exterior Design (39 Items) - 8 NMTs
Laundry and Sewing (47 Items) - 10 NMTs
Songs (90 Items) - 30 NMTs
Flooring (108 Items) - 20 NMTs
Wallpaper (144 Items) - 30 NMTs
Rugs (110 Items) - 20 NMTs
Umbrellas (54 Items) 15 NMTs
I want the items I missed in the last 4 months (I haven't really played since the end of May after getting burnt out from these posts). Looking for things I can catalog that were added to the game since then, Celeste or other DIYs I missed, Star Pieces I missed, Event Items/DIYs. I'm only taking 1 or 2 people tonight so I'll probably go by whomever can offer me the most stuff I missed, and potentially help me figure out what I missed. NOT INTERESTED IN NMTs so ignore the values in the groups below
More details about what exactly is in each group below
Rules:
Please do not DM me, Please do not offer me more than I am asking, I will not move people up the list.
I am only taking 1 or 2 people tonight. I am very sorry I can't get to everyone!
*Please be patient a full catalog takes 2.5+ hours
I may require you to have a full inventory before coming to my island. Depending on what you are bringing to trade.
When on my island please be patient and let me show you around to each group. This is both so you don't get lost and so you don't accidentally miss a section.
Due to the size of the catalog and the limitations of my island I have grouped all the items into 40 groups listed below. I will let you catalog any combination of groups, but it's too difficult to pick specific items out of the groups, please don't ask me to do that. Disclaimer: I had everything as of the end of May, not sure what else has been added since then, but I don't have it yet.
[FT] Catalog my island [LF] 2 hours of your life and bells/art/mix between the two
I'm looking for 9 bags of 99k bells, or 9 pieces of any art, or a mix between the two. Only taking 5 people this round Huge thanks to /fireplayer who helped collecting items! **Important notice** I see your guys' messages about wanting to be notified; I cannot do that as it'll be too hard to keep track + timing of things, instead I'll be posting more often with a lowkey title to lessen the amount of new people Rules: -9 bags of 99k bells/9 pieces of art/ mix between the two is the payment -nothing in your pockets except payment -DO NOT ASK TO CATALOG A SPECIFIC GROUP(not doing that yet) -flooring, wallpaper, umbrellas, and songs are NOT included this round -DO NOT CATALOG ITEMS IN A DIFFERENT GROUP THAN THE CURRENT GROUP YOU ARE IN(in other words: CATALOG THE ENTIRE CURRENT GROUP BEFORE MOVING ON TO THE NEXT!!) ^they're separated in groups for a reason Table of contents(Credit to /par016 for the list)
Hello! Who are you and what business did you start?
Joey van Koningsbruggen, 29 years old and started Jimmy Joy in May 2014 at age 24 to make nutritionally complete meals. We create different products to make eating as healthy as easy as possible. Our products are: Plenny Shake, Plenny Bar, Plenny Drink. The meals are ideal for anyone who wants to eat fast but avoid fast food because they value nutrition. It is popular amongst high earning, ambitious males in big cities. They use it to kick start their day and as fuel during demanding work hours; think coders, accountants, top-level gamers, etc. Another audience is sustainability-conscious and vegans. Our products are plant-based and have a long shelf life making it 3.5 times more sustainable than an average Western diet. We also compensate for our CO2 emissions through charities like TreesForAll. We currently make around $440,000 per month. I started in my dorm room and expanded globally over the years. image
What's your backstory and how did you come up with the idea?
I got annoyed with having to choose between healthy or fast food. So I set out to create healthy fast food. Which then became a mission to create the healthiest meal scientifically possible. Starting with interns from the University of Wageningen and by partnering with a large manufacturer of baby food, the first recipe was created to be as close to health recommendations from the World Health Organisation. When the company grew I hired a food technologist, a research analyst and worked with certified dietitians to do in house research to improve further health. Food is more than just the nutritional makeup however and recent updates focussed on flavor and sustainability too. Real fruit was added to improve flavoring and the highest quality ingredients were sourced to create not only the best in nutrition but also in texture, creating a smooth milkshake-like experience. When I started there was nothing like it in Europe, I made it because I really wanted the product to existing here like it did in the US. The US company was focussed on making meals as close in the experience of drinking water. I immediately felt the need to work on taste. Even though the focus of our meals is nutrition, the taste is still very important, which is why I started with different flavours and options, flavoring with real fruit, vanilla sticks, and cacao. The idea wasn’t very validated at the time. I wanted it, soon my friends wanted it, then their friends, etc. It grew from there and got a lot of media attention, BBC, Men’s Health, etc. Later a lot of other companies joined with big funding, Huel started making nutritionally complete meals in the UK with millions in funding only one and a half years after me, a company called Feed popped up two years later also with millions of funding. The idea is very validated now but back then it was a very bizarre thing to be able to have all nutrients for a meal in one go, which the media loved. The free press was lovely but we had to change our name because we got sued for the former brand name. I got a lot of free press because a friend of mine wrote a piece for Vice. He really liked the fact that I was a drug dealer once and so he made it a prominent part of the article which made it go viral. It got translated and published on all the Vice sites in the world. That spiked interest, which drove more journalists to write my story. It got really crazy, I got invited to a big national talk show, the BBC made an item on us. At one point I was even followed around by an entire video production crew trying to make a reality TV show out of my life. Joey’s Wereld it was called ‘Joey’s World’ in English. I enjoyed the whole ride but it was a little over the top. Media trembled over each other just to write and shoot the exact same item that another outlet already made just because it did well there. It was fun nonetheless and it drove a lot of traffic so I am not complaining lol. When I started the company I just finished college and had no funding at all. At one point we had a 14-day backlog and used the funding from customers to actually create the product. Those early customers are really what made the company and were very supportive for example during delays, almost like friends, the internet is such an amazing place. As long as I was able to explain what I was doing in blogs and video’s they were very forgiving on delays.
Take us through the process of designing, prototyping, and manufacturing your first product.
When I started I used pea protein which tasted horrible. Because I told my friend that I was going to live exclusively off my recipe for 30 days I felt the need to improve the taste and switched to whey and soy. After selling some meals I used the money to gather nutritional expertise and instructed them to create the healthiest meal scientifically possible. Most iterations after that first recipe were focussed on health & nutrition. I currently employ 3 MSc in nutrition to work on that. We do our own production because outsourcing is expensive. I think it is great to make healthy meals accessible so the price is a big factor. This is a picture of me in our first production space. image After this one, I invested $220,000 to build a BRC certified production space which is under pressure so no particle from outside can come in. Employees enter via a lock system. We also automated the majority of the production process, mixing, filling and sealing of the bags.
Describe the process of launching the business.
There was no real launch of the product. I started making videos for my friends on Youtube and Facebook about a recipe I made and my commitment to live off it for 30 days. Three days later a writer who is well known in Holland asked if he could join so I made some meals for him. He shared my videos amongst his social media following (30-40k) and more people contacted me if they could have some. I created a simple website using WordPress and orders came flowing in. Back then the production process was very labor-intensive so I soon found myself creating meals full time. I had to order and weigh all 18 individual ingredients. Because I was getting them from B2C sites they quickly could not supply my demand so I had to switch stores and brands, each with different densities of the active compound, which had to be factored in during the production process, making it even more time-consuming. I hired my roommate and remodeled our 60m2 house in the center of Amsterdam into production space. The kitchen, the living room, we used everything for production. I removed my bed and slept on a mattress under a large table which I used to weigh micronutrients on. It was quite a hectic period because there was a lot of media attention, which demanded time, I carried all individual orders to the post office, which was heavy and time-consuming, I did supply chain management by buying dry the local stores, delivery times were slow so there was a lot of customer support, the ingredients that I did order B2B confused delivery chauffeurs because I requested pallets to be delivered to the center of town and to be left on the pavement so I could carry the individual 25kg bags 4 stories up. I hired two more friends, they still work in my company today, but I ran out of space. Which is why I sold 30% of my stocks to a guy who had a small warehouse and promised to do the production. It later turned out to be the worst decision of my life. I started working with a manufacturer of baby food to create our micronutrient premix. It took some time for me, my newly hired food technologist and them to work out the formula but when we finished, it saved so much production hassle. It dropped our ingredients from 18 to 4 and we could finally aim to lower delays. We switched from my business partner his warehouse back to Amsterdam where I rented space of 250 m2 which was 9 meters high. Because we could stack pallets on top of each other it seemed to last us for years. I did $1,700 in the first month and $350,000 in the 4 months after. The growth kept increasing however and six months later we had to move to a 2000m2 warehouse close to the harbor of Amsterdam. image Below you see one of our two production areas where we produce our Plenny Shake Active which is a product that is higher in protein and in a bigger bag, which we produce manually. image image In the second year, we did 4 million in revenue and I wanted to expand into the US. I made a verbal agreement with my former business partner to create a new legal entity to do the US from for liability and tax reasons and that I would run R&D and marketing from it. I resigned from the company as CEO and created the new entity to become CEO again there. I saw this as a small foot as I trusted my business associate and did not do proper legal work. It was a big mistake. I saw my paycheck disappear while he increased his own salary 2 fold. He started doing business with himself creating a distribution company that charged $3 per package more than what we were paying. When I found out it was very difficult to get back. I hired a lawyer and battled for two years. The company dropped 40% in revenue under his leadership. I recently settled in the arbitration to buy back his stock. Now half a year in we are growing again. 13% in the first quarter, building it back up slowly.
Since launch, what has worked to attract and retain customers?
Word of mouth is important. We fuel it by having loyalty and refer a friend program. We run ads on Facebook and Google mainly. We aim to sell a starter box in which new customers get a free t-shirt, shaker, and scoop so they can familiarize themselves with all our products and choose their favorite in a second order.
How are you doing today and what does the future look like?
We are profitable and are focussed on launching more products and flavors. We are also expanding in the US were we recently set up local fulfillment in LA and NY for fast deliveries. We just launched a new bar called the Plenny Bar which is completely vegan making all our products entirely vegan.
Through starting the business, have you learned anything particularly helpful or advantageous?
I really only have cliches to mention here tbh: work hard, fail fast (A/B test), trust but verify, take time to choose business associates wisely and have clauses to break up quickly when things go south.
What platform/tools do you use for your business?
We use Shopify as a platform and offer subscriptions. We are about to launch three new plant-based bar flavors and are actively improving our whole product line still on a mission to make the healthiest meal possible.
What have been the most influential books, podcasts, or other resources?
Four Hour Workweerk, Tim Ferris. The main takeaway is to do what you love, reduce your cost of living to be able to live off your hobby asap. I never worked for anyone as a result. I started for myself as an artist painting portraits of people and experimenting a lot with art and eventually food. I also really like Ending Aging from Aubrey de Grey. The reason I like Jimmy Joy is that it helps be healthy. But eventually, though we will still die from the damage that occurs from being alive. Aubrey proposed a damage repair approach to medicine which recently has really taken off. Google started Calico to combat aging with a billion USD in funding, Insilico Medicine uses AI to dramatically reduce the time to discover drugs to help repair damage from old age, Jeff Bezos invested in Unity targeting the removal of senescent cells etcetera, etcetera. The whole longevity field is exploding right now with billions in funding and it all started with this book from Aubrey de Grey and Peter Thiel funding him.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?
Create something you’ll love. I was a visual artist before this and would not have the energy to persists if I did not truly want this product to exist. I think Naval Ravikant is a good guy to follow on this topic on Twitter.
Are you looking to hire for certain positions right now?
I fired, hired, reshuffled and rehired the team after I bought the company back and am currently not hiring.
If you have any questions or comments, drop a comment below! Liked this text interview? Check out the full interview with photos, tools, books, and other data. For more interviews, check out starter_story - I post new stories there daily. Interested in sharing your own story? Send me a PM
[Review] Mini-Reviews of my Black Friday Haul (Benton, Klairs, The Plant Base and more!)
Just a little about my skin type and areas of concern. I am 40 years old with skin that is very, very dry especially on my cheeks and forehead. I also have red patches on my cheeks and my chin that vary in intensity depending on what’s going on with my skin. When my skin is happy the redness is so faint that I barely need makeup, when my skin is pissed I look and feel like I have a sunburn. My skin is VERY fussy, but a random kind of fussy that makes me very nervous about trying out tons of new products since I never know what is going to set my skin off. It will react to an ingredient in some instances but not others, for instance it loves the Klairs scented toner but will react really poorly to other products with citrus oils. I try to stay away from most alcohol, dimethicone and anything with heavy artificial fragrance since those seem to be the consistent things that make my skin most unhappy. My skin is quick to let me know when it doesn’t like something and reactions range from small, itchy breakouts to full on blood red/burning reactions. Thankfully it’s also quick to forgive and recover as long as I immediately stop whatever the offending product is.
Despite all of this, I decided to take a chance on Gothamista’s Box of Holiday Skincare Wishes since the products seemed like they would suit my skin, plus it was such a good deal! I also splurged on several items from Soko Glam plus one ill-fated Amazon purchase, so I thought I’d give little mini reviews!
I'm From Rice Toner Observations: This toner is watery in texture and milky in color with zero fragrance. You have to shake it up a little before using since there is separation. It sinks in quickly and doesn’t leave any stickiness. The bottle is a fairly generous amount, and even though I’ve used it almost daily in both my morning and evening routines, there is still plenty of product left.
Verdict: I immediately fell in love with this toner! I noticed brightening effects within a week, and it also seemed to make a huge difference in the redness of my cheeks/chin. When I use 2-3 layers of this, my skin feels calm and beautifully hydrated. I also love that there is no scent to it! Will definitely repurchase.
Klairs Soft Airy UV Essence SPF50+ PA++++ Observations: The texture of this was surprisingly pleasant, almost like a lightweight day moisturizer as opposed to a sunscreen. There is a very faint scent to it, kind of a citrus type thing, but doesn’t smell like alcohol or that typical “sunscreen” smell. There is zero white cast, and I have found that this manages to be moisturizing while also being cosmetically elegant. I didn’t observe any pilling or greasiness while using this.
Verdict: I need to use it a few more times before I can really come to a will/will not repurchase decision, but it seems to be good so far with no breakouts, irritation or clogging!
I’m From Honey Mask Observations: This mask has a gorgeous scent, almost like caramel but without being sickly sweet! The texture is thick and easily spreadable (a little goes a long way), while also managing to stay in place and not be drippy or runny. It doesn’t ever dry down, so it’s very comfortable to wear even for an hour or longer. It rinses off easily, especially if you do it in the shower.
Verdict: I was nervous about this mask since I’ve had issues with honey products in the past, but this mask is so comforting and a pleasure to use. I like to put it on when I first wake up (after washing my face) and leave it on for an hour or so while I drink my coffee and get ready for work. I leave it on for my whole shower to keep my skin from drying out from the hot water, and then rinse it off right towards the end. My skin is always soft, intensely hydrated and glowing afterwards with no irritation, redness or breakouts. Will absolutely repurchase if I run out before the winter is over.
Klairs Midnight Blue Calming Cream Observations: This is the 1st time I’ve gotten the 60ml tube as opposed to the 30 ml jar. The tube is SO much easier to use and I find myself reaching for it a little more than when I purchased it before in jar form. It’s fragrance free with a texture that seems to be about half gel, half cream. I find that it seems to sit on top of my skin rather than sinking in.
Verdict: This is the second time I’ve purchased Klairs calming cream during my AB journey. I can’t say that I am super blown away by it, I’d love to use it as a day cream but it’s not hydrating enough for me. In fact, it also seems to dry out my cheeks a bit. It is decent to have around as a spot treatment for my cheeks and chin when they are very flushed, but I think I’ve finally determined that the Soon Jung Cica Balm might perform better for me as a calming aid. Probably wouldn’t go out of my way to repurchase unless it's part of a gift set.
I’m From Vitamin Tree Mask Observations: This is a truly interesting mask. The texture is a very thick paste and isn’t quite as easy to spread/apply as the I’m From Honey. You have to be more generous with application due to the thick texture, since it has a tendency to skip over areas during the spreading process. It does have a very natural, earthy smell that I didn’t mind, but may bother some people, kind of like a cross between cut grass and vegetable soup. You need a little bit more elbow grease to wash this one off, and I found that little bits ended up in my eye. I highly recommend washing it off in the shower. You have to store this mask in the fridge, so it’s a little less convenient to use unless you do your routine close to the kitchen or have a skincare fridge. While it doesn’t dry down completely it does dry out a little bit, but not an uncomfortable amount to where you can't move your face.
Verdict: I’ve only used this mask 4 times so I don’t know that I’ve had enough time to form a full opinion about it, but will say that it doesn’t irritate my skin or cause any issues. My skin did feel smoother after using it, but I don’t know that I noticed any major brightening afterwards. Probably won’t repurchase.
Benton Cacao Moist and Mild Toner Observations: This is a very light, watery toner with zero fragrance (sorry to disappoint you chocolate lovers!). It is easily layerable and I’ve found it to be very gentle. It plays nicely with other toners when used in the 7 skin method.
Verdict: If you are a fan of the Soon Jung toner, then you will likely like the Benton as well. While this is gentle, hydrating and my skin liked it, I probably won’t repurchase simply because Soon Jung is a better value for the same performance.
Neogen Rose Cleansing Water Observations: It’s very generous bottle for the price point, and my first bottle lasted me at least 4 months. While I typically try to stay away from scented products where I can, it’s hard to resist this one since it smells like fresh roses. The scent is pretty strong so if you’re not into that, you won’t like this. There are real rose petals in the bottom of the bottle, which is fun when the bottle is full and annoying when the bottle is nearing the end and you’re trying to get the product to come out but they clog it up! It does a really nice job of sweeping away makeup without being irritating.
Verdict: This is actually my second bottle of this cleansing water, but I really love it! I am unable to use oil cleaners, so this is part of my nightly 2 step cleansing routine. I start with the Neogen Cica Cleansing Foam, then use the cleansing water to catch any rogue makeup. In my experience it’s very gentle and doesn’t irritate my skin at all. Will repurchase.
The Plant Base Time Stop Collagen Ampoule Observations: Very thick, amber colored ampoule that is fragrance free. I absolutely love the dropper packaging it comes in, and it always dispenses the perfect amount of product. The texture almost comes across as a light facial oil without being greasy, and it sinks easily into the skin.
Verdict: This ampoule kicks the ass of the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair serum both in performance and price point. I was shocked at how much of an immediate difference this made in my skin when I started using it. I’m a month in now and the fine lines near my eyes have definitely plumped out, as have the lines near my mouth/forehead and my skin is GLOWING. Will definitely repurchase!
Soon Jung Cica Balm -Panthensoside 5 Observations: Thick, creamy texture with zero fragrance. Melts nicely into the skin and spreads easily. Performs decently under makeup if you give it enough time to dry down a little, but I prefer using it at night.
Verdict: I’ve found this balm to be a nice tool in my skincare kit for spot treating my skin when it’s irritated, and for me it performs a little better than the Klairs Calming Cream, and at a better price point. I definitely notice improvements in redness and texture after using. Probably will repurchase, although this current tube should last me awhile.
Soon Jung Sleeping Pack-Panthensoside 5 Observations: The texture is thick but silky without having that gross oily silicone feeling that I can’t stand. It spreads easily, and if you give it a couple of minutes before laying down, it does seem to sink in and cause less pillow transfer. No fragrance. It has a weird twist cap that makes getting the product out a bit difficult, but at least you won’t over apply I guess?
Verdict: I had given up on the idea that I would ever be able to use a sleeping pack until I found the Soon Jung. Most packs seem to be loaded with dimethicone, which my skin hates, and/or are loaded with fragrance and other stuff that majorly pisses off my skin. This pack is an absolute dream to use and I fully credit it for being the thing that turned my skin around this winter since I wasn’t waking up with dried out skin, so it had a fighting chance of starting the day off right. It feels like a hug for your face when you put it on at night, and I wake up with the softest, calmest skin. I even like to use it on my lips after I apply toner and lip balm to them, and my lips have never felt better. I was worried this may clog my pores, but I’ve gone a month now without any issues. I’ve only skipped using it a couple of nights and immediately paid the price the next day when my skin felt dried out by lunchtime. After a week I ordered a second tube to keep in my Smaug skincare stash since I don’t want to be without it this winter! Will repurchase forever!
The Plant Base Waterfall Moist Balanced Hyaluronic Acid 100 Observations: Ampoule is fragrance free and has a thick, clear gel texture that spreads easily on the skin. If you apply it towards the end of your routine, it's very sticky and will pill up, but I had success applying it first thing. Just like the Time Stop ampoule, it comes in a really neat dropper packaging that easily dispenses the right amount of product.
Verdict: At first I was so disappointed in this ampoule that I was close to giving up on it. It was causing my other skincare and makeup to pill up when I would attempt to apply it like a typical ampoule towards the end of my routine. I finally figured out the secret to using it, which was to take a pea sized amount and gently press it onto my still wet face as soon as I stepped out of the shower in the morning. Total game changer! This makes my face feel so calm and hydrated, and stops that instantly tight feeling that usually happens when I get out of the shower. It works beautifully when used with the 7 skin method. Will repurchase!
Klairs Midnight Blue Calming Sheet Mask Observations: Mask comes in two pieces and is heavily fragranced with tea tree. The essence in the mask is clear and slightly thick. The fit of the mask worked decently for my face, and the texture of the mask itself was fairly comfortable.
Verdict: I don’t know what is supposed to be calming about this sheet mask, because not only is it a complete pain in the ass to get out of the package and unfold, but it smells like turpentine. It also made my face feel like it was on fire after I took the mask off. When I woke up the next morning, my skin looked irritated and I had a pimple on my cheek. Will not repurchase.
Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask Observations: Interesting texture! It starts out almost as a jello type texture, but immediately melts into the skin when you start rubbing it in. It smelled heavily of lemon oil, in fact I may have said “Oh God, this smells like Pledge” when I opened the jar. If you have sensitive or reactive skin, this is not the product for you.
Verdict: Have you ever opened a skincare product and known immediately you shouldn’t have put it on your face, but did it anyway? There were so many glowing reviews online, plus my skin loves the Klairs toner, that I figured it would be fine. But dear readers, it was not fine. Not only did this cause a slight burning sensation, but I woke up with two big pimples and redness on my cheeks and chin the next day. I gave it to a friend who absolutely loves it, so at least it didn’t go to waste! It’s a shame, I really loved the texture and it also made my skin feel hydrated, just irritated. Will not repurchase.
Benton Cacao Moist and Mild Cream Observations: Before I get into my observations, I must note that I got this from Amazon. I don’t think it was a fake, but I wonder given that it smelled heavily of alcohol, which is not something that is noted in any reviews of this cream I’ve seen online. I’d be interested to hear from other people who use/like this cream if that’s typical or not. The texture was fine, just like any other typical lighter weight cream, and it spread easily on the face and sank in nicely. There was a cooling bordering on burning sensation that I didn’t like AT ALL after application.
Verdict: This was my biggest disappointment, especially since I was looking for a good basic day cream. My skin absolutely HATED it, which was surprising given that it likes the toner in this line and also loves the Steam Cream. I tried to use it for a week, and started getting redness in my cheeks and bumps/breakouts where I normally don’t get them. My skin also looked greasy by the end of the day, which is hilarious given that my skin is normally so dry that I often use facial oils during the day under my makeup just to keep hydrated, and even that doesn’t make me look oily. As soon as I stopped using it, my skin texture became smooth again and the breakouts/bumps are starting to heal, so it was definitely the cream. Will not repurchase.
Hello! Who are you and what business did you start?
Joey van Koningsbruggen, 29 years old and started Jimmy Joy in May 2014 at age 24 to make nutritionally complete meals. We create different products to make eating as healthy as easy as possible. Our products are: Plenny Shake, Plenny Bar, Plenny Drink. The meals are ideal for anyone who wants to eat fast but avoid fast food because they value nutrition. It is popular amongst high earning, ambitious males in big cities. They use it to kick start their day and as fuel during demanding work hours; think coders, accountants, top-level gamers, etc. Another audience is sustainability-conscious and vegans. Our products are plant-based and have a long shelf life making it 3.5 times more sustainable than an average Western diet. We also compensate for our CO2 emissions through charities like TreesForAll. We currently make around $440,000 per month. I started in my dorm room and expanded globally over the years. image
What's your backstory and how did you come up with the idea?
I got annoyed with having to choose between healthy or fast food. So I set out to create healthy fast food. Which then became a mission to create the healthiest meal scientifically possible. Starting with interns from the University of Wageningen and by partnering with a large manufacturer of baby food, the first recipe was created to be as close to health recommendations from the World Health Organisation. When the company grew I hired a food technologist, a research analyst and worked with certified dietitians to do in house research to improve further health. Food is more than just the nutritional makeup however and recent updates focussed on flavor and sustainability too. Real fruit was added to improve flavoring and the highest quality ingredients were sourced to create not only the best in nutrition but also in texture, creating a smooth milkshake-like experience. When I started there was nothing like it in Europe, I made it because I really wanted the product to existing here like it did in the US. The US company was focussed on making meals as close in the experience of drinking water. I immediately felt the need to work on taste. Even though the focus of our meals is nutrition, the taste is still very important, which is why I started with different flavours and options, flavoring with real fruit, vanilla sticks, and cacao. The idea wasn’t very validated at the time. I wanted it, soon my friends wanted it, then their friends, etc. It grew from there and got a lot of media attention, BBC, Men’s Health, etc. Later a lot of other companies joined with big funding, Huel started making nutritionally complete meals in the UK with millions in funding only one and a half years after me, a company called Feed popped up two years later also with millions of funding. The idea is very validated now but back then it was a very bizarre thing to be able to have all nutrients for a meal in one go, which the media loved. The free press was lovely but we had to change our name because we got sued for the former brand name. I got a lot of free press because a friend of mine wrote a piece for Vice. He really liked the fact that I was a drug dealer once and so he made it a prominent part of the article which made it go viral. It got translated and published on all the Vice sites in the world. That spiked interest, which drove more journalists to write my story. It got really crazy, I got invited to a big national talk show, the BBC made an item on us. At one point I was even followed around by an entire video production crew trying to make a reality TV show out of my life. Joey’s Wereld it was called ‘Joey’s World’ in English. I enjoyed the whole ride but it was a little over the top. Media trembled over each other just to write and shoot the exact same item that another outlet already made just because it did well there. It was fun nonetheless and it drove a lot of traffic so I am not complaining lol. When I started the company I just finished college and had no funding at all. At one point we had a 14-day backlog and used the funding from customers to actually create the product. Those early customers are really what made the company and were very supportive for example during delays, almost like friends, the internet is such an amazing place. As long as I was able to explain what I was doing in blogs and video’s they were very forgiving on delays.
Take us through the process of designing, prototyping, and manufacturing your first product.
When I started I used pea protein which tasted horrible. Because I told my friend that I was going to live exclusively off my recipe for 30 days I felt the need to improve the taste and switched to whey and soy. After selling some meals I used the money to gather nutritional expertise and instructed them to create the healthiest meal scientifically possible. Most iterations after that first recipe were focussed on health & nutrition. I currently employ 3 MSc in nutrition to work on that. We do our own production because outsourcing is expensive. I think it is great to make healthy meals accessible so the price is a big factor. This is a picture of me in our first production space. image After this one, I invested $220,000 to build a BRC certified production space which is under pressure so no particle from outside can come in. Employees enter via a lock system. We also automated the majority of the production process, mixing, filling and sealing of the bags.
Describe the process of launching the business.
There was no real launch of the product. I started making videos for my friends on Youtube and Facebook about a recipe I made and my commitment to live off it for 30 days. Three days later a writer who is well known in Holland asked if he could join so I made some meals for him. He shared my videos amongst his social media following (30-40k) and more people contacted me if they could have some. I created a simple website using WordPress and orders came flowing in. Back then the production process was very labor-intensive so I soon found myself creating meals full time. I had to order and weigh all 18 individual ingredients. Because I was getting them from B2C sites they quickly could not supply my demand so I had to switch stores and brands, each with different densities of the active compound, which had to be factored in during the production process, making it even more time-consuming. I hired my roommate and remodeled our 60m2 house in the center of Amsterdam into production space. The kitchen, the living room, we used everything for production. I removed my bed and slept on a mattress under a large table which I used to weigh micronutrients on. It was quite a hectic period because there was a lot of media attention, which demanded time, I carried all individual orders to the post office, which was heavy and time-consuming, I did supply chain management by buying dry the local stores, delivery times were slow so there was a lot of customer support, the ingredients that I did order B2B confused delivery chauffeurs because I requested pallets to be delivered to the center of town and to be left on the pavement so I could carry the individual 25kg bags 4 stories up. I hired two more friends, they still work in my company today, but I ran out of space. Which is why I sold 30% of my stocks to a guy who had a small warehouse and promised to do the production. It later turned out to be the worst decision of my life. I started working with a manufacturer of baby food to create our micronutrient premix. It took some time for me, my newly hired food technologist and them to work out the formula but when we finished, it saved so much production hassle. It dropped our ingredients from 18 to 4 and we could finally aim to lower delays. We switched from my business partner his warehouse back to Amsterdam where I rented space of 250 m2 which was 9 meters high. Because we could stack pallets on top of each other it seemed to last us for years. I did $1,700 in the first month and $350,000 in the 4 months after. The growth kept increasing however and six months later we had to move to a 2000m2 warehouse close to the harbor of Amsterdam. image Below you see one of our two production areas where we produce our Plenny Shake Active which is a product that is higher in protein and in a bigger bag, which we produce manually. image image In the second year, we did 4 million in revenue and I wanted to expand into the US. I made a verbal agreement with my former business partner to create a new legal entity to do the US from for liability and tax reasons and that I would run R&D and marketing from it. I resigned from the company as CEO and created the new entity to become CEO again there. I saw this as a small foot as I trusted my business associate and did not do proper legal work. It was a big mistake. I saw my paycheck disappear while he increased his own salary 2 fold. He started doing business with himself creating a distribution company that charged $3 per package more than what we were paying. When I found out it was very difficult to get back. I hired a lawyer and battled for two years. The company dropped 40% in revenue under his leadership. I recently settled in the arbitration to buy back his stock. Now half a year in we are growing again. 13% in the first quarter, building it back up slowly.
Since launch, what has worked to attract and retain customers?
Word of mouth is important. We fuel it by having loyalty and refer a friend program. We run ads on Facebook and Google mainly. We aim to sell a starter box in which new customers get a free t-shirt, shaker, and scoop so they can familiarize themselves with all our products and choose their favorite in a second order.
How are you doing today and what does the future look like?
We are profitable and are focussed on launching more products and flavors. We are also expanding in the US were we recently set up local fulfillment in LA and NY for fast deliveries. We just launched a new bar called the Plenny Bar which is completely vegan making all our products entirely vegan.
Through starting the business, have you learned anything particularly helpful or advantageous?
I really only have cliches to mention here tbh: work hard, fail fast (A/B test), trust but verify, take time to choose business associates wisely and have clauses to break up quickly when things go south.
What platform/tools do you use for your business?
We use Shopify as a platform and offer subscriptions. We are about to launch three new plant-based bar flavors and are actively improving our whole product line still on a mission to make the healthiest meal possible.
What have been the most influential books, podcasts, or other resources?
Four Hour Workweerk, Tim Ferris. The main takeaway is to do what you love, reduce your cost of living to be able to live off your hobby asap. I never worked for anyone as a result. I started for myself as an artist painting portraits of people and experimenting a lot with art and eventually food. I also really like Ending Aging from Aubrey de Grey. The reason I like Jimmy Joy is that it helps be healthy. But eventually, though we will still die from the damage that occurs from being alive. Aubrey proposed a damage repair approach to medicine which recently has really taken off. Google started Calico to combat aging with a billion USD in funding, Insilico Medicine uses AI to dramatically reduce the time to discover drugs to help repair damage from old age, Jeff Bezos invested in Unity targeting the removal of senescent cells etcetera, etcetera. The whole longevity field is exploding right now with billions in funding and it all started with this book from Aubrey de Grey and Peter Thiel funding him.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting out?
Create something you’ll love. I was a visual artist before this and would not have the energy to persists if I did not truly want this product to exist. I think Naval Ravikant is a good guy to follow on this topic on Twitter.
Are you looking to hire for certain positions right now?
I fired, hired, reshuffled and rehired the team after I bought the company back and am currently not hiring.
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When I look back, I can’t remember a great deal from my childhood. Oh, it’s not due to any great unhappiness during that period- it stems more from my subsequent, liberal use of hashish whilst at college studying medicine, along with a lack of sentimentality on my part, having no particular desire to paw through old memories and fetishise the past. As a result, my younger years are veiled and indistinct. However there is one dark episode from those days which has survived the passage of time, and which I feel should now be set down in writing, in the interest of your edification, as is this forum’s raison d'etre. My parents were never wealthy, but they were indeed ‘fair’. If my sister received a treat, this favour would be extended to both sides of the equation. Our birthday and Christmas gifts would be of equal magnitude. But there was one occasion whereat I, unminding, received the raw end of the deal. Whilst I was busily fitting together a Scalextric track, Sophie was absorbed in a grand old handmade doll’s house that our parents had picked up at a car boot sale. I was unaware of the value at the time, as was the seller it transpired, having offloaded it for the princely sum of a fiver. My ten-year-old self couldn’t help but be secretly fascinated by the house, although I wouldn’t admit it to Sophie. It was the extreme level of detail that drew the eye. Two storeys, ten rooms, all fitted out in the Victorian gothic style from floor to ceiling. The exterior was replete with arches, gables and turreted chimney stacks, interiors with real carpet and wallpaper printed with miniature woodblock patterns. The insane profusion of accessories caught my particular interest. Tiny china dinner services with cutlery the size of grains of rice. Framed paintings which appeared to be executed in real watercolour. Livery for the (now-missing) horses and drivers, hand-carved individual clay logs in the fireplaces. And most thrillingly, a set of Lilliputian game-hunting shotguns that really broke at the middle. Of course, I studiously ignored the dolls house and focused on my cars and Meccano until my sister was at dance class or youth club. Then I would paw through the drawers that slid out of the base, intrigued yet perplexed by the profusion of accoutrements provided for the now-absent inhabitants. I would discover new marvels each time, from cookware to clothing to furniture, all perfectly moulded from wood or a clay-like substance, painted with realistic detail. I once found an exquisitely formed metal-and-wood replica of what I recognised to be an antique car, complete with a brass bulb and spigot which looked suspiciously like it could be filled with water and heated to produce locomotion. But when I returned with water and a candle to test my suppositions, it would no longer be found. Sophie was, as one might expect, rightly obsessed by this new addition to her arsenal of toys. It swiftly rose through the ranks to become her preferred plaything. Rarely to be seen in front of the TV after school with the rest of us, bolting her food at dinner and excusing herself early- this was the pattern to be discerned. With healthy tolerance, there was no concern amongst the rest of our number that such behaviour might lead towards untoward habits in our youngest. Until one Sunday evening just before bedtime, when the usually tranquil air of the house was disturbed by a shouted argument in the room next to mine. “IT WASN’T ME!!” Sophie shrilled, yelling through a snotty gale of tears. I heard parental voices, low and urgent. A few minutes later Sophie’s door banged and she ran into my room, throwing herself on the bed. “Mark-yyyyy-huh-huh-huh,” hitching around the sobs as she tried to get the words out. “snif- Daddy said I hurt Swimmy!!” Swimmy was the family goldfish, who had been circling his bowl in the dining room for the best part of two years. Whilst she was busy getting mucus all over my sheets, the adults drifted in with guilty expressions on their faces. Father, in his softened tone of voice, spoke first. “Okay you two... time to calm down.” Even though only one of us was making a fuss. “Oh, Sophie, perhaps we were a little hasty,” began Mother. I put down the book I had been trying to read. “What’s going on?” I asked confusedly. My parents glanced at each other, something unspoken passing between them. Father sat down on the bed and explained that Swimmy had gone to fish-heaven, or whatever line he fed me, and that we would get a new pet soon enough, maybe even a cat like I’d been clamouring for. Although I remember seeing the misgivings in his eyes as he spoke. Mother had levered Sophie off the bed with one arm and led her downstairs for a mug of hot cacao and, I assumed, a similar lecture. It was only later, by piecing together overheard fragments from their whispered conversations downstairs that I figured out precisely what had transpired. They’d found the goldfish drifting lifeless in a murky bowl, mortally injured, missing something important. Following a trail of water drops up to Sophie’s room, they’d conducted a thorough search. That included the doll’s house. Stuffed into one of the painstakingly crafted, working drawers of the ornate bureau in the first-floor dressing room, they’d found his tiny, slimy, fish heart. “...how did she even know enough anatomy to dissect it so accurately?” “...in his room the whole time…” ”... bizarre to think someone could have gotten into the house for the singular purpose of murdering a goldfish..” “...being ridiculous...” “...still beating…” “...always with that house, always talking to herself. Those voices she does...” “...just being creative, what girl wouldn’t dream of having such a fine old dollhouse, I longed for one just like that...” “...worth a fortune…” “...can’t believe our girl was responsible for... this. Perhaps a therapist...” “...don’t know, Ted. I don’t like the idea of it. Maybe we can just wait and see…” This was the first event in a series which proved to be one of the (thankfully) few times my experiences have brushed up against the supernatural. When I drifted off to sleep that evening, I was immediately plunged into a fully-formed dream. I stood on the driveway of a grand old Victorian mansion at night, gazing up at it’s shuttered windows. Sure enough, it was the real-life version of the high-end antique dollhouse my sister had been gifted with, in which she’d seen fit to conceal Swimmy’s vital organ. I mounted the stone steps and pushed against the front door, which swung open heavily. With a child’s enthusiasm I ran from room to room, seeking out the shotguns which I knew must be about the house somewhere. I wanted to play! I skidded to a halt in the dining room. There was a cloying, seaside smell that took me quite by surprise- perhaps more by the fact of it than anything else, as I couldn’t recall previously ever having had the experience of smell within a dream. I cast about the room and saw that one of the drawers in the tall pine larder was hanging open by a few inches. From this aperture, gallon after gallon of briny, brackish pond water was gushing, soaking into the carpet. I crept closer, a pervasive sense of ‘wrongness’ gripping me within the scene. I reached out and pulled the drawer fully open. A huge, wetly gelatinous mass resided therein, filling the drawer to it’s corners. As I watched, the jelly-like translucence palpated spasmodically, and another sluice of stinking water disgorged onto the carpet. Despite these surreal and uneasy goings-ons, I was filled with a dream-like calm. This was no panicked nightmare. I continued my exploration of the house, still searching for the much-desired shotguns, though now avoiding the dining room. In the last room I came to, the upstairs corner bedroom, I encountered the familiar figure of my little sister. My dream-self was unsurprised to see her- she spent so much time with the dollhouse during waking hours, it was logical that she should reside here in dream form, too. Sophie was in her nightgown standing by the large oval mirror in the corner, facing away from me. The reflection in the mirror was dark, and she didn’t respond when I called her. Instead, she reached up and swung the mirror on its axis to display the back, showing only unfinished wood, with an oddly swollen grain pattern. I watched her lift one shaking arm to the rough wood and drag a finger across its surface, driving splinters into flesh and producing a smear of dark blood on the surface. It was only at this point I noticed that the dream-Sophie was evidently in some distress. I started towards her, but found myself quite paralysed in the doorway. With one besmirched finger she continued to daub on the back of the mirror- it didn’t look like any English words I recognised- before flipping the mirror back over and slumping to the floor in a heap. In that instant my paralysis was lifted, but before I could rush to her side, I awoke from the dream. Sure, it was a disturbing episode, but I often had regular, powerful nightmares at that age (the consequence of a vivid imagination), and dismissed it as one of the same. It wasn’t until a couple of days later, my sister at dance class and I poking around with the dollhouse, that I noticed the oval mirror in the upstairs corner room. Made of real, highly polished glass, reflecting my iris and pupil back at me as I peered at the diorama. On a whim I carefully reached inside the room and, with one finger, flipped the little mirror on its swing stand to display the rear side. My breath caught in my throat when I saw, in a dried brown patina, a tiny diagram extant. It was truly miniature, as if daubed by an insect-sized artist. But the pattern was no artwork, it was- unhealthy, was the only word I could think of. Not ugly to look at, conversely, the lines and angles were largely symmetrical and executed with a fanatic’s neatness of touch. However, the sensations that pervaded my senses when I beheld it were ugly indeed. Impressions of rank decay and chalkboard nails, of sewer-scent and graveyard-chill, sucking at me irresistibly from the daubed diagram, until I tore my gaze away. Nonetheless, I copied down the weird diagram in a notepad as best I could and flipped the mirror over as soon as I was done, silencing the weird buzzings and unpalatable miasmas that impinged upon me whilst it was exposed. Later that evening, I told Sophie about my dream, and showed her the drawing in my notepad. Her uninterested ambivalence to the whole affair convinced me that she had nothing to do with Swimmy’s grisly fate, the hypnotic diagram, or the accompanying unexplained experiences. If so, she was quite unaware of her role. Upon my return from school the next day, Mother’s hairdo was awry. She explained that she had been engaged in a lengthy struggle with a bat which had gotten tangled in the curtains in Sophie’s bedroom. Living near lots of large trees, bats were a common sight at dusk, but Sophie was less keen to have one for a roommate. “But I’m sure I’ve flushed it out now,” she assured us, still slightly out of breath. “Either that, or it’s gone to ground.” I didn’t know what that meant at the time, and furthermore we were distracted by the introduction of breaded fish fingers, a repast of which both I and my sister were (and still are) greatly enamoured, and the bat was swiftly forgotten. Not so quickly, it seemed, by my subconscious. That night I was once again visited by the vision of Sophie’s dollhouse in full size. Once again, I clambered the stone steps and rushed inside to search for the lusted-after shotguns. I was immediately brought up short in the foyer by a strange apparition. A pale, tapered wooden spear protruded from the floorboards in front of the fireplace, with an large, oddly-coloured, gelatinous orb sliding down it queasily. I skirted the room in an effort to avoid it, feeling a chill of apprehension. This wasn’t like the last dream… not at all. As I searched through the rest of the house, I found the apparition of Sophie in her nightgown was everywhere I went, in every room, face hidden by her hair. She wouldn’t acknowledge me and I could never seem to get close enough to touch her. As I climbed the stairs to the first floor, I heard a sound like the beating of huge wings outside. Something scratched at the roof, dislodging a few tiles with a loud clatter. A palpable sense of dread started to drip through the substance of the dream and I started to search for the shotguns in earnest, thinking I might need them now for more than just fun and games. Finally, in the last bedroom on the corridor, leaning up against the oval swing mirror, I spied two gleaming double-barrelled shotguns. I started for them, but was checked by a sudden wave of loathsome nausea. From the depths of the polished glass, that baleful, sickening symbol glared back at me. I threw a hand in front of my face to block line-of-sight, and the adverse sensations subsided somewhat. The air about me seemed seemed to thicken to the consistency of jelly. I was forced to fight my way across the room, breath clogging in my throat. Straining, I stretched out my free hand, clawing at the polished stock of one of the guns. At that moment the choking tension released me and I lurched forward, almost knocking the guns to the floor, before gathering them up in my arms and staggering towards the bedroom window. I threw open the sash and wrenched up the shutter. There still seemed to be a screen in the way, blocking any view of who or what was besieging the house. In that moment, the blockage fluttered- revealing itself to be a mass of dark, leathery wing-material, pressing against the outside of the building. I fell back with a cry of alarm, then got to my knees, fetching up one of the shotguns against my shoulder and working the action in the manner I thought appropriate. The moment my finger tightened around the trigger, I was violently wrenched from the dream by a huge explosion and the crash of breaking glass from across the hall. Covered with cold sweat, ears ringing from the blast, I heard Mother and Father pounding down the hall and flinging open her door to my sister’s room. Seconds later Father burst in, grim faced, told me not to come out, and held the door shut against my batterings. Rushing to my window, I saw Mother rushing out to the car carrying a blanket-wrapped form and speeding off towards the hospital. As soon as the pressure on my bedroom door was released, I bounded out. I knew where to look. Whilst Mother and Sophie were in the emergency room, I led Father up to the dollhouse and wordlessly pointed to the spot in front of the tiny fireplace in the foyer. My parents aren’t superstitious folk, but to my youthful mind, something malevolent obviously had our family in its grip. Father took no chances. He methodically reduced that sturdily built dollhouse to splinters with a heavy iron pipe. He stuffed the pieces into a sack, then built a huge bonfire in the back garden and incinerated the lot, down to the last scrap of chintzy, miniaturised wallpaper. Any hint as to its origin, any manufacturers mark or other clue, was lost forever in that weirdly green-flickering, greasy, hissing blaze. Sophie’s glass eye is really very realistic, even if it doesn’t always move precisely tandem with it’s living opposite. The original, that deflated orb, I found in my dream, impaled on a toothpick in the foyer of that grisly dollhouse, amongst other pitiful scraps and refuse. If you ask her, my sister will tell you that she lost her eye when she was six years old in a freak bedroom gas heater explosion, and that she doesn’t even miss it. I hope Sophie was too young to remember properly. She screamed the house down on her return from hospital, when she learned of Dad’s bonfire. Just in case, we never raise the topic around her. I can’t help noticing how she has never bought a dollhouse for her daughter, or any miniature-size toys. And she makes any excuse to avoid going up to her old room at our parent’s, with the painted-over, but still faintly visible pellet marks around the window sill. And nothing, but nothing, will persuade any of us to ever again purchase anything from a car boot sale.
Facts about Cacao 1: the native plant. Let’s find out the origin of cacao. The people believe that cacao is originated from the foothill of Andes. It is considered as a native plant in America. Today, you can find the wild cacao in the present day Venezuela and Colombia. Facts about Cacao 2: the sweet pulp. The cacao beans are covered inside the white sweet pulps. Actually the pulps were more popular in the past for they were used to produce the fermented beverage with the The botanical name of cacao tree is Theobroma cacao, which means ‘God Food.’ The tree generates yellow, red or purple pods constituting seeds which are popularly known as beans which are the main... Clearly, a Cacao tree could not grow in your back-yard. Well, unless you live in the Ivory Coast, Ghana or Indonesia as these are the biggest producers. A Cacao tree needs about 3 years before growing flowers and then only 1% of them will actually become cocoa pods. The seeds of the cacao tree have an intense bitter taste and must be fermented to develop the flavor. After fermentation, the beans are dried, cleaned, and roasted. The shell is removed to produce cacao nibs, which are then ground to cocoa mass, unadulterated chocolate in rough form. Once the cocoa mass is liquefied by heating, it is called chocolate liquor. The U.S. Food and Drug The cacao tree is a small tree originally grown in tropical South America. It only grows to 4 to 8 meters in height. Its seeds are called cocoa and are used to produce cocoa butter, chocolate drinks, and chocolate. Now the trees are grown in plantations in many tropical countries. Cacao's antioxidant power (ORAC) is one of the very highest. Considered a 'super food' thanks its many wholesome qualities, it can help protect against cell ageing, tumors, and even some diseases like Alzheimer’s. Pod. Every tree produces approximately 40 pods each year, each containing approximately 40 beans. The elongated pods, the size of a small melon, sprout directly from the trunk of the tree, and turn from yellowish–green to brown at maturity. 2. The cacao tree grows to be about 30 feet tall bearing white flowers and colorful fruit. 3. It takes a cacao tree about five years to produce its first fruit, otherwise known as a cacao pod. 4. The cacao pod has a hard shell, is shaped like a bloated cucumber, and is usually red, yellow, or orange. 5. It takes about 5 years for the tree to bear fruit, has a peak growing period of 10 years, but can extend for decades. One of the evergreen trees in the family Malvaceae is explained in facts about cacao trees. This evergreen tree is small. It has the height at 13 to 26 feet or 4 to 8 meters. It has the scientific name of Theobroma cacao. The cacao tree is native to South America and Central America. Let’s find out more interesting facts about cacao trees below: Facts about Cacao Trees 1:the cacao beans After four years the mature cacao tree produces fruit in the form of elongated pods; it may yield up to 70 such fruits annually. The pods, or cherelles, range in colour from bright yellow to deep purple. They ripen in less than six months to a length up to 35 cm (14 inches) and a width at the centre of 12 cm (4.7 inches). Each pod has numerous ridges running along its length and holds 20 to 60 seeds, or cocoa beans, arranged around the long axis of the pod. The oval seeds are about 2.5 cm (1 Cacao (pronounced ka-KOW) trees grow in the rainforest and the pods grow directly on the trunks of cacao tree. Nearly all cacao trees grow within 20 degrees of the equator and 75 percent of them grow within 8 degrees on either side of it. Cacao originated in Mesoamerica in the Aztec, Olmec and Mayan territories.
About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features Press Copyright Contact us Creators ... Presenting a video about Fun Facts. It also includes some general knowledge. Hope you all like it. Make sure you subscribe for more such videos.SUBSCRIBE HER... My name is Arbsilience and I am a big fan of Happy Tree Friends.Please enjoy my Top 10 facts about Sniffles.(Character review)Here is a link to the Still Ali... Subscribe? FACTS - https://bestlifeonline.com/crazy-random-facts/ Fun little book I made great for kids This is the third episode of five facts of the day.Please subscribe to my channel so that you can see whenever i upload a new video. thank you Another video of amazing facts that makes you open your mouth😲If the facts really awed you, put a like and subscribe my channel.Video by: Nivedita M
