I quit my job to start a Spice Company and am giving out free samples for you to try AMA

Are your spices new?

Im not sure what you mean by that but yes this is a brand new company with brand new spice blends

Good, I hate old spice

But what about terry?! It's impossible to hate terry

Greatest. Set-up. Ever...

I'm impressed beyond belief.

It deserves to be on top. Much respect to u/intellegentidiot much respect indeed

Is it true that the spice must flow?

The spice will always flow.

Is being GMO-free purely a marketing decision, or are you against GMO? No bias, just curious of your opinion.

Im not against them at all. Its a personal choice for many people and a necessary one for others. It just so happens that we cater to them as well.

[PSA] Inputting personal information such as your name, telephone number, and address on non HTTPS webform is not reccomended. Do you really want to say that, in clear plain text, to the entire internet?

I am not asking for telephone numbers, just name, address, and email which will only be used for shipping. I understand your concern though.

hmm, do i want to link my user name to my real name?

yes, do it

What inspired you to start a spice company?

Initially it was one of my best friends idea. He told me about it then we started to really look in to it and saw it was something that can be done. Over the last couple years I lost about 100lbs and one of the biggest ways I got there was by cooking my own meals. Its always so annoying for me to grab spices individually and I wasnt a big fan of any spice blends that are currently available so I thought it would be awesome to make one.

What is your favorite blend you have made so far?

My favorite blend is the original flavor. Its amazing

Oh wow, that's so cool. I'm actually trying to lose about that much weight myself (just got back on the wagon today, actually) and when I saw your AMA, my first thought was how bad ass spices could potentially be a great tool for weightloss! I put in for the free samples, but considering you've probably gotten hundreds of requests by now, I'm not really expecting anything haha. Looking back at your own weight loss journey, can you point me towards a couple of your spice blends that you wish you had around when you were losing? Thanks!

I found a store near me called Savory Spice. they have really great spices and spice blends. Im not sure if they do online orders or how many locations they have but its worth checking out

Please invent something low salt to add kick to undressed salads. I would hella buy that.

I only plan on introducing about 4 new flavors and a "salad dressing" is on the board as a possibility.

Are you going to be selling only blends, or are you considering selling other spices? The reason I ask is that I teach a cooking class and the town I am in is very challenged when it comes to getting any spices that aren't sold at Walmart. It would be awesome to have a source for a wider variety, especially considering my usual spice store isn't convenient at all anymore since I moved.

Yea i will only be selling blends. There are plenty of companies that sell spices by themselves but i know they are a little costly.

How profitable of a venture is this? How do you plan on selling such high volumes of spice without any anti-caking agent? Have you experimented storing your blends at different temperatures and humidity levels as to know when they begin to clump, or the flavor is compromised? (I'm sure potential customers live in many different climates). As I am sure you know homemade spice blends do not have an indefinite shelf-life. When I was in Culinary School blends can begin to clump in days. Breaking up severely clumped spices isn't as simple as "shake it." What is the shelf life of your product?

According to my supplier the shelf life is up to 12 months. Not having a caking agent isnt as problematic as youd think but because of that there are certain spices i simply cant use like tomato powder because it clumps immediately

Are you familiar with Penzey's? What makes your blends unique, compared to Penzey's or other spice companies?

I am when i was just in the beginning stages i was looking at them. They focus more on selling spices individually. I will only be selling original spice blends. Right now i have four flavors but I dont plan on ever going over 8 in the next few years. The thing about spices and flavor in general is that every blend is different. Even if you have the same ingredients if you change the amounts it changes the flavor. This may sound silly but when i was making my spice blends I had them critiqued by a table of grandmas and I wasn't satisfied until each and everyone of them were happy with using my blends instead of their own. Afterwards i started sending out samples and the feedback has been phenomenal. No other spice company ive tried gives the feeling of, holy hell this is amazing, but im also a little biased haha

What spices are in the sample? Can you confirm if you got mine? What's your view on Donald Trump?

Samples spices include our four current flavors - Lemon Ginger - Spicy - Taco (for mexican dishes) - Original

I did receive yours. you werent one of the first 50 but ill ry to get it out to you regardless.

His daughter is really hot.

Submitted my request for a free sample but I am not sure it went through, hope you can confirm it did. I am looking forward to trying your spices on some of my ribs and roasts in the smoker. What is your best spice for pork ribs?

Hey sealfon, I got it. Youll get them soon. As for pork ribs id have to go with the Original Flavor. Its really phenomenal

I too asked for samples. I am 54, got fired from a career of 25 years, getting a divorce and couldn't be happier. I am going to retool for a new career. Congratulation on what I hope will be a successful launch! What gave you the "push" to get off the fence?

You know you never know where you end up in life but you have to focus and push for what makes you happy. IM glad you have a positive attitude and wish you all the best in your new career. As far as what gave me the push to go for it. It was my friends. I told my friends what i would have to sacrifice to do this and they supported me wholeheartedly. If i didn't have them id still be at my old job

Are you hiring spice tasters? I have zero experience and not really driven or motivated, but if it's an easy job, I can give you a consistent 88% effort rate. I'm also easy to work with, but I can't work sunday nights because that's guy's night.

I can also do shady jobs for you if you don't want to get your hands dirty. I'm also afraid of heights and got all my teeth.

I wasnt always around all the best people so unfortunatley i have all the "shady" jobs covered

What did you do before making spices?

I was a clinical lab scientist. It was great but it allowed me no time to focus on creating a new business. I am also a personal trainer but I create my own schedule with that so its much more manageable

Did you check if spice.ninja is available now that .ninja is a domain? That would be awesome.

.Ninja is a domain? spiceninja.com is a musicians page for myspace and I couldnt get it :(.

Do you sell ascorbic acid (vitamin C)? We buy it by the pound at my bakery, from myspicesage.com right now. Would love to buy from you if you stock it. Let me know!

I do not and dont plan to. I will only be selling spice blends

Well I submitted, might be too late, but some of the spices sound mouthwatering, I'd probably use it on chicken because well, Zebras love chicken.

1)How much research do you put into the spice mixes? Did you constantly make small samples then cook/taste the food?

2)How many failed attempts would you say you go through before you find on that you like?

Also. Ninjas rock :p

I didnt know zebras like chicken. Im going to take that as a fact now.

1) I went to a high end spice store that would have the same quality spices that my supplier would use and i bought up everything i thought would be good. I didnt really research spice blends as much as I just went with my gut instinct, what smelled good and what seemed like it would mix mell. after i created my blends i actually made some really popular spice blends online and they came out horrible so im really glad I went with my own palate

2) Theyre weren't too many failed. Absolutely some blends were bad. some i hated but it was very few. I focused on one blend at a time and once I got the base down it was just a matter of perfecting it. So each batch wasn't a failed attempt it just needed a little more tweaking.

Are you hiring IT guys? I'm pretty chill and like spices

I will be soon. DM me

White girl here - do you have PUMPKIN spice?

Haha you know i sy i wont but im sure i will. It wont be an official falvor but just for the holidays because white girls need spice love too

Why is it called Spice Ninja? It doesn't seem to be related in any way. I would consider re-branding unless you actually have a reason for calling it that.

It was a big brainstorming mission to come up with a name. I wanted something catchy and fun and not old fashioned. This is a strange answer but Spice Ninja just feels right and with it i was able to make a kick ass logo that im really proud of. You can see the logo on spiceninjaseasonings.com

Fair enough, I do like the logo! Maybe you could add a tag line of sorts: Sneaky good! or something like that to tie it in a little.

I dont believe its on the website yet but the tag line is "The Art of Flavor"

What is your favorite dinosaur?

Reptar

Did you design your website yourself?

Just an FYI - on your web site, if you don't have your browser full screen, the text and sign up box are being pushed off the screen... see screenshot: http://i.imgur.com/VZNzxof.png[1]

Yea I designed it. It is just a temporary site while the real one is being created. Ive tested it with as many different computers/browsers and platforms as I could but there would always be a few that would be off. I didnt want to invest the money to hire someone to make make a temp website but I did with the new one so hopefully it wont have that problem. Thanks though. you using Chrome? right? Some people have it load perfectly and others dont. I have no idea why.

how long can spices stay fresh given the right container?

Up to a year, however i dont use any anti-caking agents so if you let them sit they will clumb togther, but all you have to do is give them a little shake and theyre good as new

Will you start a loot crate style subscription plan? I'd love to pay a fee and get a few sets of different spices to try every month.

At this point I am not planning on it. I wont have enough different flavors to constitute a subscription. after the third payment you would probably have everything lol

What do you recommend for steak? Fish? and taters? Hope I got in the 50! New grill at home and want to test it out with some good flavors. Salt and Pepper isn't cutting it.

I will never make a steak seasonings. Nothing is better on steak that some good old sea salt and coarse pepper

The original flavor and lemon ginger is really good on fish

All of them will taste amazing with potatoes

Did you receive any external funding to kick off the company? Are there any regulations concerning the sale of spices, ie, is it as regulated as the food industry?

I am funding everyting myself but im running out of funds so i am looking at funding ootions. I had plenty of investor offers but they want to much for what i need. sales are regulated by the FDA

Will you sell my information?

nope..unless...will you buy it?

Yeti! I follow you on Instagram and I want to say your story is inspiring to me.

What's your favorite spice amongst yours goes best with chicken?

Ah shit thanks so much. Its always awesome running in to people over reddit. DM your username so i can follow you. Regarding the spices though while i really really want to say taco. The original flavor is ridiculous. So so good

Also are you bringing out any unusual spices apart from the usual ones?

Unusual not so much. Harder to come by absolutely. One of the biggest aspects i wanted to focus on was making great spice blends that you couldn't just recreate them by picking up basic spices from you local store. Here are some of the harder ones to come by that I use:

• Aji Chilli Pepper
  • Hungarian Paprika
  • Ancho Chili
  • Peruvian Ginger
  • Ground Lemon Peel

My wife is celiac (wheat gluten intolerant). It can sometimes be hard to find spices that don't use wheat.

Are your spices gluten free? If they are, is it hard to keep wheat out of the process?

Yes we are absolutely gluten free. I forgot to put that in the introduction

Mm Spice.

Have you thought about going into sugar/sweetner blends as well?

I have. I am actually working on creating something for sweet stuff right now that Im really really excited about. Of the few people ive told they lost their shit at the idea and cant believe no one else is doing it. Just working on the right combination but im hoping to announce it at the beginning of next year.

Do you offer any recipes with your spices? I love to experiment with spice but find I don't expand beyond a few varieties. Also, where do you get your bulk spices, are they imported from overseas?

We will be offering recipes e-books for everyone. We wont have them initially but it will be created soon after the launch :). I get my bulk spices from a great company here in the US

I filled out my information into your website, how do I know if I'm within the first 50? I would be ecstatic to get some samples!

I really didnt expect this to blow up like it did. I dont think you were one of the first 50 but i will do my best to get them out to as many people as possible. As of now almost 1600 people signed up. If i can afford to send them out i will

Do you intend to market a salt free version? I understand it makes a bottle more expensive but I don't care. I have only bought salt free for years.

Initially i was going to make a salt-free seasonings company, after tasting the blends i took a shotgun to that idea lol. Most salt-free seasonings substitute the salt with potassium chloride and its just not the same at all. Is there a reason why you dont take in any salt from seasonings at all? Most blends are super high in salt but mine willl be very small ammount just for flavor

Spice blends are wonderful, especially for Cajun recipes! Do you have anything in Greek or Russian styles?

Greek and Italian spice blends are very difficult to "make unique" they both have very staple herbs than must go in. I havent considered russian spice blends though. Ill educate myself on them and see what happend. Thanks for the idea :)

Hey cool idea, I like your product! Forgive me if you have mentioned it somewhere in the comments but I can't find it, where are you based out of?

Hey no worries, I am based out of los angles county. One day I hope to relocate the home office to san francisco

This is a great idea! Where do you get the ingredients used in your spices from? Do you have a farm, or buy from a supplier?

I get them from a suppllier that meets all the guidelines i need to be able to sell them. Its a family owned company. They are really great people and I have i can give them plenty of business

What job did you quit to pursue this? Did you not like your job?

Also thanks for the free samples!

I was a clinical lab scientist. It was great but it allowed me no time to focus on creating a new business and it wasnt something I can see myself doing 5 years from now. I want to build something great and impact as many people as possible. Your welcome for the samples :)

what kind of packaging are you considering for your final product? Are you looking to make them available in both jars and bags? Have you considered a bulk size jar for a retailer like costco?

For the sample sizes i have oz sized bags that i put my sticker on. For the actual product I will be selling 4oz of seasonings which is almost double the size of standard seasonings in plastic bottles. Jars are too expensive to use. I am set to go in food4less but i want to try and get in to higher end stores like traders joes first and I have alot of local business that want to have my spices in my store so i will be accommodating t them as well

Some kids say "rock star" "athlete" "teacher" "vet" but you said "spices". How did you become a "wannabe" (see what I did there) spice maker?

Can i be all of them?

You said you lost a lot of weight primarily by cooking your own meals.

What did you learn about cooking throughout that weight loss process and what did you learn about spices?

I'm sure you're over 50 by now, but I'll keep my fingers crossed on the free samples!

I didnt lose weight primarily thorugh cooking. I did alot of training as well but cooking my own meals definitely helped. By coking my own meal i know exactly whats going in it. The main hassle was that i was too lazy to cook great meal all the time by combining a pantry full of seasonings. Now i use my spice blends and it makes it so easy and the food tastes great.

On a more personal level, what are your favorite films?

All my friends give me a hard time because im not a very big movie guy. I never get any of their references. But some of my favorites that i alwasy watch if they're on 3 i would have to say - Never ending Story - Oceans 11 - Inglorious Bastards

also roger rabbit. I know i broke the only 3 rule but i felt bad leaving him out. Forgive me

I hope you were hoping to hear Dune was one of the OP's favourite movies.

TBH, I hope the OP has said the words, "THE SPICE MUST FLOW!" at some point.

Now that I think about it, is there a spice call "Melange" in the catalogue?

there is now

Hi there! Do you also grow your own spices or do you just pack them? If not,which parts of the world do you bring your spices from?

No, unfortunately I am not able to grow my own spices. There are alot of FDA guidlelines that I would have to get over to be in a position to grow them myself. Also i use so many different spices that it wouldnt be plausible for me to grow them all anyway. I have a third party company that meets all of the FDA guidelines and has all of the organic and GMO certs and labels that grow them for me.

How are you confirming pesticide free production of ingredients?

The people making my spices has the USDA organic certificate as well and a pesticide residue free certificate. SO im trusting them and those certificates

That doesn't mean no pesticides were used, just that residual pesticides can't be detected. I would assume the test is only as good as what they look for.

http://www.scsglobalservices.com/certified-pesticide-residue-free

currently to my knowledge there is no official "pesticide free cert". A combination of the organic and residue free is the best option to guarantee it. I will also be visitng the facility where its grown as well