15: I’m the “J”, with Joel Sakakihara of R&J Toffees

Author: Christine Doerr, Tammy Tan
Published: Sat 13 Jul 2019
Episode Link: https://www.lettucewrappod.com/15

This episode is dedicated to James Yamaoka.

Joel Sakakihara and his brother updated their grandfather’s 60 year old toffee recipe, and built a business that’s grown from farmer’s markets to Costco and Whole Foods. Joel joins us to chat about the complexities of running a rapidly-growing food business, advice for starting a food business of your own, and how he launched the company with... Arnold Schwarzenegger? Plus, the return of our favorite segment, Wrap-id Fire!

Links and Show Notes

Focus group testing—“a moderated discussion that typically involves 5 to 10 participants. Through a focus group, you can learn about users’ attitudes, beliefs, desires, and reactions to concepts.”

Carob chips—“Carob chips are made from the pod of the carob tree, a small Mediterranean shrub. The pods are dried, roasted, and ground into carob powder before being made into chips or used in other applications. Carob is less bitter than chocolate and has a natural sweetness. The chips require little or no added sugar to make them palatable. To me, carob chips have a roasted flavor that makes them similar to chocolate, but lack chocolate’s richness and melty texture.”

Competitive analysis—“a critical part of your company marketing plan. With this evaluation, you can establish what makes your product or service unique—and therefore what attributes you play up in order to attract your target market.”

Mission statement—“ a short statement of why an organization exists, what its overall goal is, identifying the goal of its operations: what kind of product or service it provides, its primary customers or market, and its geographical region of operation.”

Net-30—“The notation ‘net 30’ indicates that full payment is expected within 30 days. If a $1000 invoice has the terms ‘net 30’, the buyer must pay the full $1000 within 30 days.” “Net 30 […] terms are often coupled with a credit for early payment.”

What is Net 30 & why is it (probably) bad for my business?

Cash vs. Accrual—“The main difference between accrual and cash basis accounting lies in the timing of when revenue and expenses are recognized. The cash method is a more immediate recognition of revenue and expenses while the accrual method focuses on anticipated revenue and expenses.”

Fiscal year vs. calendar year

De Anza College

ISO - International Organization for Standardization—“an independent, non-governmental international organization with a membership of 164 national standards bodies”

HACCP plans: Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point—“a management system in which food safety is addressed through the analysis and control of biological, chemical, and physical hazards from raw material production, procurement and handling, to manufacturing, distribution and consumption of the finished product.“

Difference Between HACCP and ISO 22000

Bayside Food Group

Guittard Chocolates

Almonds from Modesto and Fresno, CA

C&H Sugar

Challenge Dairy butter

California Dairies

Arnold Schwarzenegger

R&J Toffees on Woot

Annual Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest

Professor Xavier, X-Men

McDonald’s Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese and Fries

In-N-Out Burgers

Pirates vs. Ninjas

Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack on iTunes

This episode is dedicated to James Yamaoka

In this episode, we mention Joel’s cousin James, and the beautiful work he did designing the packaging for R&J Toffees as the company's Creative Director. Shortly after we recorded, James passed away unexpectedly at the age of 44. R&J Toffees is a family affair, and our hearts go out to the entire Yamaoka, Sakakihara, and R&J Toffees family.