Lourdes Gant 0:05
As a business owner of an aquaculture company, how can you take the first step to be profitable and sustainable at the same time? That’s what we’re going to be talking about in this episodes. Hello, and welcome to the business of agriculture podcast. This is the podcast for the Sustainable Business movement in the aqua farming and ocean ranching industries. This podcast aims to amplify the voices of entrepreneurs addressing the United Nation global goals, aka Sustainable Development Goals Number 14. To conserve and sustainably use the oceans and the seas, listening to fellow business aquaculturists in their journey in this new model of food production, of making their business sustainable, and help the oceans ecology, while also making a profit all at the same time. Get inspired to learn how even small to medium businesses can make an impact, save the seas, leave a legacy and have a better quality of life. One of our goals is to take away a nugget of wisdom that will help your business move from the industrial revolution to business 5.0. Our vision is that of collaboration in the aquaculture industry. I’m Lourdes Gant your host.
Lourdes Gant 1:25
As aquaculture business owner How do you tackle the balance in being profitable and sustainable at the same time? That’s what we’re going to be talking about in this episode. Welcome to Episode Four of the business of agriculture. This episode we have Mr. Jim Gibbons of Shadow Shellfish. Shadow shellfish was formed in 1997 to engage in the business of growing, harvesting and distributing specialty seafood. The company’s principal product is the guila clan grown in the tidelands of South Puget Sound in Washington State, one of the largest growing areas in the United States. They are members of the Pacific shellfish Growers Association, and work closely with other growers in the area to ensure that only high quality shellfish are have rested from the waters of South Puget Sound. So listen in and I hope you enjoy this episode. If you listen to our third episode, I interviewed Mr. Bill Collins, who is one of the experts in the seaweed aquaculture industry in Canada, you will gain insights on how they’re pivoting branding, from sustainability to being climate positive. But for today’s show, welcome, Jim. Thanks for being here.
Jim Gibbons 2:32
I’m happy to be here.
Lourdes Gant 2:33
Just for the background of our audience here. Mr. Jim Gibbons has been instrumental in the development of the gridded agriculture column industry in the United States. Maybe for my first question, you can give us a background on how did you get started in the business of agriculture and then maybe a bit about your journey in the industry.
Jim Gibbons 2:52
I’ve been involved in the industry since 1996. Put our first crop out in 1997. Gouda chemistry hadn’t really started then Taylor shellfish, which is the largest shellfish company in the United States pharmac organization had just finished a pilot project was about now much bigger than the desk here. And then I’m sitting at and they got some results that look compelling. And I decided I want to get in to the industry until I find out if the results were wrong. And the results proved to me fairly accurate. I mean, they they get larger animals, because they have the thinner densities. So I’ve been I’ve been planting for 25 years now. And now we have 45 employees 45 to 50. And I’ve been harvesting and planting every year since.
Lourdes Gant 3:46
Was it something that you planned or you just bump into it because I know you were also doing some other stuff like you were really big old.
Jim Gibbons 3:54
I was 45 when I got interested in it was not planned. I had financed a tender boat which is a boat that goes up and brings product in from fishermen. And that got me interested in gooey duck and I literally went to visit tailor shellfish hatchery and to see if there was more to it because one of the guys I find is this boat for said oh there’s so many growing gooey duck clams in Deva Bay. That was Taylor’s I just got lucky to find them and eventually was in I was either Campbell River or coordinate where I went to an aquaculture conference in the fall of 96. And learn a little bit more an employee of tailors, Dave Robertson, and legislator more about agriculture and kept moving one step forward. You know, I did not know anything about agriculture. I’m not from the industry. I’ve done a lot of different things in my life. I do have a business background a bit. I even have a corporate business background with any goes back farther. I like to do things and this is certainly new.
Lourdes Gant 4:57
I like that you have business background because I’ve been in the industry for 13 years now. And I know most of the people, especially here in Canada, where we are mostly from the fisherman background, and so did you find it a little bit challenging to be in the industry? Or maybe it’s a plus and an advantage because you have a corporate or business background?
Jim Gibbons 5:18
I would think it’s a plus. And I think it would be a plus for anybody to get business skills. I’ve had three children that are, they’re all in their 20s. Now, low 20s. I always encourage them to take some accounting courses, I think are pivotal courses to take. And I’m sure my business skills that I learned, both as an entrepreneur, and as corporations have helped me immensely start the business and survive this last year of COVID. That’s been challenging.
Lourdes Gant 5:47
Yeah, for sure. And would you be able to share with our listeners, some of the pros and cons in being in this aquaculture industry compared I guess, to other markets?
Jim Gibbons 5:57
Sure. I mean, I’m fairly open about things there is, as Warren Buffett would call it a moat around the industry, it’s a very hard industry to get into for like, I like 20 reasons to government regulation, there’s not a lot of beaches. It’s a hard industry to get into. So that’s kept prices up fairly high. There’s great demand from China, which is the primary market even now 20 years later. And that’s kept prices up there, which is really benefited us I’ve made it sound like I’m perfect. I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way, they’ve been covered by the fact a bit bit that prices are really high. And the margins are really good. And still are, even with prices are down since 2012. When they were I mean, they’re down by 40%. But they’re still very strong.
Lourdes Gant 6:47
I like that you mentioned that in even the background, you mentioned from 2012, with the prices going in and out because it’s to me in my head, actually, I equate this market like stocks, it has its ups and downs and very volatile, very market driven. And one of the things that I admire about your company is being able to actually attract people who work for you and establish that relationship, because I know some of the people that you work in joint ventures, so maybe share with them, how you are able to attract these quality people.
Jim Gibbons 7:22
You know, I should say we have 112 investors. So it took I had to raise quite a bit of money. And we now have, as I said, 45 employees, and I’m quite proud of the fact that we have, I think four or five father and son teams where the father came to work for us, up to 20 years ago, and now their sons are working for us as well. And we also have some great relationships on Taylor shellfish show, we’ve done a number of joint ventures with them, we’re still involved with one piece of property and meeting with Bill Taylor tomorrow. They’re our primary competitor, but they’re also great people to do business with. I had a long term relationship with someone that worked for your husband’s home for a while, Keith, where and I consider him one of my closest friends right now. He came down here for over a dozen years. So he’s he’s closer to retirement than I am. And we still communicate regularly, he wished me happy birthday yesterday.
Lourdes Gant 8:16
Happy birthday.
Jim Gibbons 8:17
Thank you. So I’m very much a believer, and always have been maintaining all of the relationships. And that entails our employees, our customers, our customers, customers, our suppliers and our community. So we very much believe that, again, I’d emphasize the margins are good enough that that allows us to do that, where some companies might feel obliged, with thinner margins and not as much profit to take on it, cut things that they shouldn’t necessarily cut.
Lourdes Gant 8:52
Right? Maybe you can give our listeners also saw a bit or two over your tip on how you were able to attract these investors. You mentioned you have 112 investors.
Jim Gibbons 9:03
Another relationship, one of my best friends from college was a woman who’s still very great friend. And her husband was involved in a project in the Philippines at the time, and he was making a trip out this is 1997. And he’s somebody I knew was their brother. And he agreed to stop by here to see what we’re doing. And he got excited enough that he helped me develop and grow a business and raise the money. So he raised about probably 70, 65% of the money from people he knew. And I raised the other 35% and 30, 35%. And I if I had known You, Lord, as I would have been asking you if you’d want to invest in I go into a company I asked everybody and I actually did get two or three people from Canada to invest in the company.
Lourdes Gant 9:49
It’s quite amazing because it’s such a new industry at that time and it’s still quite as even up to this time. Yeah.
Jim Gibbons 9:57
You know, I wouldn’t say that we’ve made a killing but we Just got done sending out a distribution, we’ve been wasting distribution every year. And so, like they got rich, but they did well, my friend Joan, whose brother helped me raise money. Well, I guess, if we count her and her husband, I probably raised a little bit more than money, I don’t count them. But she’s our largest investor, her husband’s since passed away. And then I have another friend from that area was on the board. And he’s the second largest investor. And then we’re the third, my wife and I are the third largest investor.
Lourdes Gant 10:30
That is very cool. I like that their relationships and just serve the purpose of what the business is about as well.
Jim Gibbons 10:37
It’s all about relationships.
Lourdes Gant 10:40
Well, my last question to you is, what do you think the industry is in store for the next 10 years, maybe even three years? What are the top three trends that you’re seeing?
Jim Gibbons 10:49
I wish I had a printed copy of my letter out here. It was I quoted, Noam Chomsky, of all people was considered a left of the political perspective. But I wanted to find some point about the future being bright. And he had a great quote. Fortunately, I don’t have it. But I think the future is very bright for the shellfish industry. And I went on to say, we have a piece of property that was not our best piece of property. And I was thinking of selling it last November, I can actually reach over here and grab the letter from my box, I wrote this letter up where I was gonna try and sell this piece of property in November. And I said, I was like, I finished the whole letter and said, I don’t think I should sell it. I think the futures too good. Even though it’s a poor piece of property, it’s it’s better than no property. So we still own that piece of property. And I think the future for good aquaculture and shellfish aquaculture is quite good. It’s going to be tougher, at least in this country for the oyster market right now. Because always just primarily, a lot of the oysters were for the F shell trade. And restaurants still haven’t fully opened. I’m not sure how long it’s gonna take. It’s a different story with a gooey duck market in China. Prices are soft, but they’re still very strong demand. So things are pretty good right now on that front.
Lourdes Gant 12:01
That’s good to hear, especially coming from you. My biggest takeaway from this episode is when you mentioned about the relationships that you build that really helped your business and thank you again, for being here.
Jim Gibbons 12:13
You’re welcome, should be your biggest takeaway. Really, internships are everything. Very good.
Lourdes Gant 12:19
Thank you. And for the next episode, we’ll have the host of the academia podcast who are members of the Global Aquaculture Alliance, and we’ll discuss more about seafood business and sustainability. Thanks again, Jim. You being here. Thank you for listening, and I hope you are inspired from this episode. Do take a moment and share this with your friends and colleagues and rate and review the podcast wherever you get your podcasts. I’d love to know what your biggest takeaway from this conversation has been? What are you going to do differently? Please share thoughts across social media and tag us for links and ahownotes for this episode, visit our website, www.sustainableaquaculture.ca/podcast. Thank you again. I hope you will join me on the next episode and together we can help create a better business in aquaculture.