Episode 429: Mike and Renee Burkart of Big Mike's Jerky - St Charles, MO. From Backpacking to Branding. Cracking the Code on Healthy Jerky and Entrepreneurial Challenges. Sweet + Spicy + Sustainable.

In this episode of the JUSTIN AND THE [FOOD] ENTREPRENEURS Show, host Justin Bizzarro engages with Mike and Renee from Big Mike's Jerky based in St. Charles, Missouri. They explore the inception and growth of their beef jerky business from a simple idea during military days to creating a consumer favorite with a clean, sugar-free approach. Mike shares how his passion for dehydrating beef and the need for Paleo-friendly snacks led to the foundation of Big Mike's Jerky. Renee and Mike delve into the intricacies of entrepreneurship, discussing challenges such as ingredient sourcing, flavor development, and navigating co-packer relationships. They highlight the importance of maintaining high quality and transparency in their products while balancing the demands of growing a business alongside personal commitments. Listeners will gain insights into their marketing strategies, customer feedback loops, and aspirations to expand Big Mike's Jerky into retail chains. Mike and Renee emphasize their mission to provide natural, chemical-free beef jerky options and their dedication to educating consumers on healthy snacking choices.   IG: @bigmikesjerky   Entrepreneur interested in being on the show: https://calendly.com/justin-bizzarro/podcast   Hosted By: Justin Ryan Bizzarro (IG: @justinbizzarro and LinkedIn: FOLLOW ME )   Who is Justin Ryan Bizzarro? – Justin Bizzarro is a serial food, restaurant, technology, media and marketing entrepreneur, who helped build a 24-year-old group of food and restaurant related businesses, he created with his father and business partners out of his family’s basement, in 1998. He is a highly desired business management, personal and athlete growth, free market, food diversity, and entrepreneurial leadership speaker. Justin’s expertise are in human growth, motivation, leadership and management development, health foods and beverages, global lean manufacturing facilities, vertically integrating businesses, food marketing and advertising, supply chain creation and management, direct to consumer fulfillment, transportation and distribution, personal brand building, restaurant development and construction, and entrepreneur acceleration. Justin received his BA in International Business and Management from Dickinson College, in 2002, and his MBA from University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, in 2014. He is currently pursuing his Master of Divinity in Leadership from Denver Seminary. His leadership and entrepreneur podcasts have positively impacted millions of people across the globe.   Our [ELITE] Food, Farming, Hospitality, Nutrition, and Beverage Entrepreneurs Community: www.gorillabrave.love  Fellowship and Food: GorillaBrave Events & Summits Private [FREE and CONFIDENTIAL] Facebook Group: GorillaBrave Troop Group Facebook Business Page: The Gorilla Face Place On Instagram: GorillaBrave on Instagram The Apparel Store: GorillaBrave Drips Wanna Link Up: GorillaBrave on Linkedin GorillaBrave Group on Whoop: COMM-473D96   Free Podcast.  No Advertisements.  The stories of Food, Beverage, Farming, Hospitality, and Nutrition Entrepreneurs and how their failures led to the successes in their lives and in their business.  What does the future have in store for the food, beverage, and nutrition entrepreneur?   JUSTIN AND THE [FOOD] ENTREPRENEURS Email: [email protected] Instagram: @justinandthefoodentrepreneurs ( #foodentrepreneurs )   All music is scored by host or royalty free.