Tag Archives: startup

Asulia at Whole Foods Charles River Plaza

I love living in The Bean. One of the things that I love about Boston is how accessible everything is, including grocery shopping. Off the red line at MGH, Whole Foods Charles River Plaza is one of the best locations to get everything you need.

I’m ecstatic that Asulia’s taro root, kale and chick pea dumplings are now available in the freezer aisle at Charles River Plaza Whole Foods!

When I used to work in the financial district, I would walk to Whole Foods Charles River Plaza at lunch time to pick up lunch and or groceries for my newest kitchen adventure. It was a treat to get out and escape from work and the gym, where I was indoors in a basement doing yoga. A lovely, well-lit studio, but I preferred shopping and lunching at Whole Foods instead!

In the past, when I didn’t know what to do with my vegetable obsession (#vod), I’d go to my happy place — the produce section — for inspiration and dream of a day I could make a career in food. Well, I’m happy and humbled to see it come full circle.

Thank you for your continued support. We have added lots of new stores to the list and we have some fun event coming up. Come say hi!

Crowdfunding Update: Week 2

Our crowdfunding campaign at Indiegogo is at almost at 15% of our goal! Please keep spreading the word by forwarding our newsletter, posting, reposting or liking our posts on FaceBook, and tweeting info out to your followers on Twitter. Here are some things you can copy and paste for use. We have until 10/17. Let’s launch Asulia together!

I’m thankful for your support. I read every email, text, and tweet you send along!

In other news, I’m pitching our healthy vegetarian dumplings to stores around Boston. I can’t wait to finalize details and look forward to announcing when you can get your own Asulia dumplings at a store near you! In the interim, you can get dumplings shipped directly to you by supporting our Indiegogo fundraising campaign.

T-minus 2 days until Asulia’s first crowdsource funding campaign

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Asulia Dumpling Packaging

T-minus 2 days until I hit the green button on Asulia’s first crowdsource funding campaign! I’m feeling nervous and excited at the same time.

It’s been non-stop getting everything lined up to go live on Indiegogo as well as responding to amazing opportunities that have come up. After two attempts at filming, I feel a lot better about the video that will be used. Sourcing rewards was challenging, but I’m happy with where we landed. I can’t wait to share more very soon!

A successful funding campaign will allow Asulia to take some important steps, including making dumplings and giving back right away.

Keep an eye out for more info regarding Asulia’s Indiegogo campaign next week on 9/17! We have some awesome rewards lined up for supporters.

2 Recent Projects Completed at Asulia

asuliablog-2 recent projects completed at asulia

Asulia Dumpling Packaging

We launched Asulia’s new website! The design process, including packaging design, has been months in the making, and I’m so excited that the design portion is all set now. Two major projects have been completed. Only a million more to go.

This journey so far has been more rewarding than I ever thought it would be, and I know it’s only just the beginning. As an entrepreneur, you really hit the highest of the highs and lows I’m thankful to be able to come through. My days are often challenging on all fronts, from bootstrapping everything to learning new things quickly. Time seems to fly by because of all the work that I need to do. I can’t tell you how often I find it’s suddenly the afternoon and I’m still in my pajamas and haven’t eaten anything. My new goal is to create a standing desk so I can get a work out in no matter what. As I write this post, I’m at a makeshift standing ‘desk’, a stack of storage boxes! On the plus side, I did manage to eat brunch today :)

asuliablog-2 recent projects completed at asulia

Next on the list is getting things lined up for Asulia’s Kickstarter fundraising campaign to go live. Dumpling packaging is finalized, Asulia’s video is back in the editing room, and I’m working on rewards. Sourcing custom-made things for rewards without knowing exact quantities has proven to be more difficult than I anticipated. I feel fortunate to have the help and support of my advisors and friends as issues like this come up.

Stay tuned for more on our Kickstarter campaign!

Dumpling Preparations

Dumpling test run - Taro Root Dumpling Filling

Dumpling test run – Taro Root Dumpling Filling

I ran a large-scale test batch run of dumplings earlier in this week. That’s the filling for the Taro Root Dumplings pictured above.

I’ve never cooked a few hundred pounds of dumpling filling before! I found that I needed to adjust my recipes a bit. The dumpling recipes are final now, so next up is working on new nutrition labels.

 

I’m also planning a crowdfunding campaign. I’m self-funded so far, but I will need to raise money.

I had a meeting with Jill Rosenwald about the possibility of co-creating a special line pottery for Asulia’s kickstarter supporters, that you can serve dumplings on. So fun! I love Jill’s work.