Published by Leonardo Calcagno
Who are you and what is your background?
My Name is Kara Sam- I went to school to become a red seal chef. Once I realized the chef lifestyle wasn’t for me I Studied to become a personal trainer. I never actually knew what I wanted to be when I grew up so I thought getting life skills along the way was a good route.
Your current job:
Mom-I have 2 boys – 2.5 and 6 months. Founded Bucha Brew in 2015. I run all operations within the business.
In which city:
Vancouver, BC
How did you discover kombucha?
In Maui. They had walls of kombucha in every grocery store there. I had just had my first son and was tired of just drinking water all the time. I was very excited to try this healthy alternative beverage and was hooked from the first sip.
What prompted you to start your company?
When I arrived home from Maui I looked everywhere for local kombucha, all I could find was GT’s and Rise so I started making it for friends and family…
What makes your product unique?
We don’t carbonate our Kombucha, we let the natural fermentation process create the bubbles. I find that the bubbles are smaller and finer, like champagne rather than pop.
What do you want to convey through your brand image?
I want to help people be the best that they can be. Kombucha is good for so many things, people should be drinking it every day!
What are the main challenges in your company?
finding good people to work.
What tools are essential for your work(app, software)?
Quickbooks is a huge help.
A word to define what type of worker you are:
efficient
What does your office space look like?
My Bedroom (the babes limit the amount of time I can spend out working, when I am out I’m doing sales, talking to people or helping in the facility)
Do you have a way to organize your days to optimize your work?
I have to do most work on Tuesday Thursday and Friday when I have my nanny. It’s amazing how much you can pack into a day. I schedule all meetings on these days and start as early as possible.
What tips would you give to improve productivity?
Keep a clear mind, exercise is huge. We go on staff hikes. Also giving the incentive of when the work is finished you can go on with your day. If it takes 4 hours or 10 hours, the faster you work the faster you are outta there.
What is the best advice you have been given?
Look after myself first, if I am run down, tired or not on the ball everything ends up suffering.
What are your end-of-day and early-day routine?
Up at 6- breakfast for the kids- either go to the facility or get to my first meeting… after that it’s really anybody guesses, I couldn’t say 2 days are the same.
Apart from your computer and your phone, what gadget cannot you do without?
Diffuser
upcoming products or projects?
We are just trying to stay on top of production right now! We are going to launch a 1L format in stores soon and hopefully hit more provinces next year. We always have rotating seasonal flavors to keep things interesting.
buchabrew.ca | facebook.com/Buchabrew | instagram.com/buchabrew
