Starting a business can be sweet and tart, and sometimes involves an assortment of local fresh fruit.
Leah Bergman, co-founder of Local Yogurt—a regional, independently owned frozen yogurt shop—spoke to a crowd of students Monday about her experience with turning passions into a business.
The event—sponsored by The Duke Entrepreneur, a student group focused on developing entrepreneurial skills—encouraged students to pursue business ideas that they are enthusiastic about. The talk took place in Schiciano Auditorium in the Fitzpatrick Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences.
Bergman noted that it was difficult to leave behind her previous job in asset management at J.P. Morgan, but she ultimately wanted to pursue a profession that she was passionate about.
“Of course I missed the bonuses, but I was done taking orders from other people, and I wanted to be happy,” Bergman said.
Bergman worked at J.P. Morgan after finishing her studies at the New York University Stern School of Business. Using her profits, she began buying North Carolina real estate at the advice of her father, who was in the real estate business. Bergman founded Local Yogurt in fall 2008 with the proceeds she received from selling a building.
“I was and still am a horrible sweet tooth, but I didn’t want to get obese,” Bergman said. “I wanted a treat that was healthy, and you just couldn’t find that around here.”
Bergman emphasized, however, that not all passions can be expanded into a profitable business.
“There are some things that should be left as hobbies,” she said. “Only when you have enough information to creatively exploit this passion should you go in. You have to be passionate but smart.”
Senior Vidhan Agrawal, president of TDE, noted that Bergman differed from most of the speakers hosted by TDE in that she succeeded in a business which was not part of the corporate world. Her experience enabled her to impart a unique set of skills in students interested in entrepreneurship.
“[Bergman] has an inspiring story that shows [students] that a successful business does not mean that you have experience in the Silicon Valley,” Agrawal said. “LoYo is an example of something created at the grassroots level.”
Local Yogurt has expanded to include two locations in Durham, one near Elon University, one in Greenville and a mobile unit. Bergman said that many of these venues were chosen based on the company’s largest target demographic: college students.
Durham is a unique center in terms of its restaurants and food diversity, Bergman said.
“Local businesses thrive in Durham, and not every city in America is like that, especially in this day and age,” she said.
Local Yogurt’s business strategy does not rely on advertising because Bergman prefers not to wait for long-term advertising benefits that may not actually appear, she said. A few past advertising attempts led to no foreseeable increase in business.
Even with advertising, businesses that either begin with a bad idea or do not have good luck will fail, Bergman said.
Several students sought advice for those who, unlike Bergman, did not have the initial capital to launch their business.
“It’s important to find investors who are from a similar field and understand what both of you are getting into,” Bergman said. “It’s also good to know that it’s easier to sell a great story as opposed to a great idea [to these investors].”
Several students noted that Bergman’s focus on local business strategies prompted them to attend.
“I am interested in local businesses and the challenges they face and what it is like to start a business in the local Durham area,” junior Jonathan Marks said. “I was glad she talked about these challenges—which include dealing with the local competition and strategies for pricing.”
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