Founder Spotlight: John Rushton (Vegums)
Meet John Rushton
Company:
Vegums is unique among vitamins and supplements in that it is not merely suitable for vegans but adopts the full vegan spirit. Created by two UK pharmacists and certified by The Vegan Society, all Vegums ingredients are sustainably-sourced, specifically optimized for the vegan diet, and completely sustainable (ingredients and plastic-free biodegradable packaging).
Startup Stage:
Seed stage - we had a successful crowdfunding campaign in Feb 21 of $400,000 and are planning the next one in Feb 2022 (interest is already building). Vegums sales have tripled in the last 12-months.
Location:
Cheshire, England
When did you launch the business?
2018
What led you to where you are today?
Both pharmacists in the UK, myself and Abdul met while working in a hospital and, after a lot of persistence, I finally agreed to be Abdul’s friend. Nine years later with medical school and pharmacy business experience behind us, we launched Vegums. In the three years since then, we have launched new products, expanded Vegums internationally, raised money through crowdfunding, and grown our team as well as our loyal subscribers.
What do you wish you knew before embarking on your entrepreneurial journey?
That ‘dotting the I’s’ and ‘crossing the T’s’ almost always leads to unnecessary delays in launching initiatives, which has cost us time and money in the past. The best learning you can get is from releasing something and monitoring the customer feedback closely - the customers want you to succeed and generally don’t care about everything being polished (like website, packaging, etc). The product itself however mustn’t be compromised on.
What is the most difficult decision you've had to make regarding your business so far?
Whether to launch version 1 of our fish-free omega-3 gummy. We tried for over a year to perfect the formula for our omega-3 gummy, but due to the marine algae (the source of the DHA omega-3) the final product (like other omega-3 products on the market) had a slightly unpleasant smell/taste. We had invested heavily in R&D and our customers were crying out for a vegan omega-3. But for us, the product had to be absolutely perfect and so we scrapped everything and went back to the drawing board. Five months later we had perfected a purified version 2 which smelled and tasted delicious, standing head-and-shoulders above the competition and proving to be a huge success. It was a stark reminder that you cannot compromise on quality of the product.
What can you help the VEGPRENEUR community with?
Experience of the highs and lows of the exhilarating world of a vegan start-up. We’ve made plenty of mistakes and feel we’ve learned a lot in the process. We are very happy to help other entrepreneurs.
How can the VEGPRENEUR community help you?
Spread the word, not just about Vegums but about the movement of vegan and eco-friendly start-ups. There’s a great feeling of camaraderie amongst plant-based start-ups and this can only be a good thing!
Fun fact about you:
Ice lolly sticks freak me out.
Anything else you would like to share?
We’re just thrilled to bring Vegums to America and are looking forward to meeting new, like-minded business owners and consumers. It’s never too late to start a project you’re passionate about. Come down to see us in our office in New Jersey! We only just moved in but apparently, there’s free ‘all you can drink craft beer’! Whayyy!!!!!
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