Drink Up! —Caitlin James
toral degree. Ten, she did an about-face. “I was working in New York City as a tutor for kids with
I
special needs,” says James, who earned a Special Education and Cognitive Impairment degree from Eastern. “Trough my teaching and tutoring experiences, I developed an in- terest in veganism, gluten-free diets and raw juice. It was a lifestyle I adopted for myself. I didn’t abandon the idea of teaching, but I put my plans for a PhD in education on hold and decided to launch a part-time business making and selling organic juice.” James enlisted her four sisters as business partners.
Teir plan was to make and sell organic, cold-pressed juice at a local farmers’ market. Te enterprising sisters raised funds through
Kickstarter.com, a crowd funding website that has fueled thousands of creative projects. “We raised more than $13,000 in one month,” says
James, 29. “Ten the local health department said we couldn’t make juice on-site. We didn’t budget for a kitchen, so we decided to stop everything and develop a proper business plan.” Realizing they could stretch their dollars farther in the
Midwest, James came back to Michigan, raised additional funds, and located a kitchen and storefront space in Plym- outh. In April 2012, Drought, a juice company with drinks made from 100 percent organic fruits and vegetables, opened for business. Drought offers 15 juices in 16-ounce recyclable glass
botles with a three-day shelf life and a $10 price tag. James initially sold directly to consumers at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market and Eastern Market in Detroit. Ten the enterprise became a full-time endeavor. Now, the product
OPPOSITE PAGE: Drought, the brainchild of Caitlin James, was named one of “American’s Best Juice Bars” by Food & Wine Magazine.
n early 2011, Caitlin James (BA07) was fresh out of the Peace Corps, on the threshold of entering Colum- bia University, scholarship in hand, to pursue a doc-
is also available at the main Drought storefront, at Plum Market—a specialty retailer with three local stores—and through phone orders with overnight shipping. In June, the company opened a second storefront in Midtown Detroit. “We’ve grown super fast, and all by word of mouth,”
says James, who has yet to spend one dollar on marketing or advertising. “Our sales were under $90,000 in 2012. We’re expecting more than $1 million this year.” Drought has received favorable press in numerous mag-
azine, newspaper and business publications as well as TV news coverage. In May, James was invited to speak on an entrepreneurship panel at the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference, an annual meeting of some of the state’s biggest movers and shakers. “At first, our rapid success was surprising,” says James,
who manages Drought’s daily operations. “We always start our weekly team meetings by talking about what we’re grateful for. We’re mindful of every litle achievement.” James says her biggest challenge is harnessing Drought’s rapid growth while maintaining the product’s integrity.
“W Photo by Randall Mascharka
e have an opportunity to make Drought a national and international brand,” she says. “If we play our cards right, we can
get involved in several different markets and industries. At the same time, our juice is a craſt product. We’re going to stick with what we do well.” With no formal business training, James has relied on
her instincts. She’s also ignored the naysayers. “Anyone who starts a business runs into static and
negativity,” she says. “People say, ‘Why aren’t you using your degree? Why don’t you get a real job?’ You don’t have to answer those questions. Tere are many different paths to success—you don’t have to be conventional or typical. Drought is proof of that.” Visit
droughtjuice.com to learn more about the prod- uct—then give them a call to place an order.p
Eastern | SUMMER 2013 19
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