Meet Janice & Cilla, Co-founders of The Canadian Barley Tea Company.
They make Canada’s original barley tea which is inspired from a popular Japanese drink called mugicha.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your family?
We're sisters Cilla & Janice, from Canada.
Cilla has been a dental hygienist for over 25 years, and wears many entrepreneurial hats including refinishing and selling furniture, making jewellery and all kinds of craft ornaments with laser wood carving, beading, etc. There's nothing Cilla can't do!
Janice studied copywriting and after working in advertising for a few years she moved to Japan. She's the author of two books and has been published in several short story anthologies. Her current plan for another side gig.
We came together to start our barley tea business in 2019.
Have you guys had any formal training or family business?
No nothing at all. But we both did sales and marketing in various jobs. And in our family making things is a hobby everyone does on their own. Our dad makes his own flour and canned vegetables, and our brother used to make the most exquisite hand-beaded jewellery and bags so I guess there is the love of making things in our family.
Tell us about your journey and what inspired you to get started?
After university, Janice was bored at her office job so she answered an ad in the Toronto Star: Teach English in Japan. She got the job, and in Japan she had the jitters from drinking caffeine to get through the 12-hour days. But she noticed all her Japanese co-workers were calm, cool, and drinking mugicha all day long...Janice soon turned into a major mugicha fan!
Fast-forward, she got married, started a family, and was surprised to see babies in the baby groups sipping on mugicha too! On trips home to Canada she was stuffing her suitcase with mugicha teabags because they couldn't live without it, even for a day! She was frustrated as the Air Canada economy baggage allowance wasn't enough for clothes AND big bags of tea. ****
"Where is this stuff from?" she wondered, looking at the packaging. She was shocked to see some of the barley was from...Canada! She had a flashback to her days as a student at Humber College, when a guest speaker, the CEO of Cooper Hockey Equipment, asked the class: "Why do we import products into Canada that we can make ourselves?" A wave of inspiration washed over Janice, and she envisioned a Canadian barley tea. She called her sister Cilla in the beautiful region of Shuswap, British Columbia. "Do you want to work together to make Canada's first barley tea?"
"Yes!" Cilla replied.
So, we launched mo'mugi and The Canadian Barley Tea Company in 2019, after winning 2 awards at Shuswap Launch-a-Preneur. "mo" means "more" because you'll want more, and "mugi" means "barley" in Japanese.
What has been your proudest moment?
Definitely this week being featured in Woman's World Magazine, the #1 women's magazine in North America!
What are some of the biggest challenges you faced or are facing as an entrepreneur?
Learning the ropes of how to run a business, learning to hang on to the rollercoaster rides of ups and downs, and learning how to handle really big decisions that can make or break your business. The best part of our business is bouncing ideas off each other. I can't imagine running a business like this on my own. It's a cliche, but it's true. Being an entrepreneur can be very lonely sometimes.
What advice would you give to someone thinking of starting out, especially being stationed in different countries?
- If you are passionate you can make it work. Don't let anyone tell you you can't. With the internet, mobile, and zoom you'd be surprised how many are all over the world doing their thing!
- Until your finances aren’t an issue, never pay someone for a service you can do yourself (Canva and a smartphone are all you need).
- Be very selective when choosing a mentor—make sure they have proven success in the field in which you need their help. They have to be more successful than you to mentor you. Otherwise, your time is better spent in a mastermind group.
Given a chance would you alter any of your life decisions?
Definitely, I would have done co-op in university to get an idea of career possibilities.
What’s coming up in the world of mo'mugi ?
For our Fourth Anniversary this year we are launching new packaging, a new website, and fingers crossed, a new flavour!
Most importantly, how has it been working with your sister?
We tell it like it is which can be painful sometimes but always saves us time!
I think we are quite different and so balance each other out. If we were too similar it wouldn't work.
All the places where you can find the amazing mo’mugi:
Our Website:
Amazon:
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Shop now on Amazon USA amzn.to/3JrFliu [
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Instagram:
[www.instagram.com/canadianbarleyteacompany/] -
Facebook:
[www.facebook.com/canadianbarleyteaco] -
YouTube:
[www.shorturl.at/hEQX1] -
TikTok:
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