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<\/p>\nWhat started almost three decades ago as a way of improving her own health and well being grew into a successful business for Leah Franklin. It started as the ultimate case of word of mouth as people tasted her vegan food, often not knowing it was, indeed, vegan, and asking her to prepare meals.<\/p>\n
It has seen her business, Just Frank, evolve over the years \u2013 it was established in 2016 – and the next chapter in that evolution is being written as we speak with her latest project receiving a welcome boost last month when her vegan food operation was awarded the 2023 Business Growth and Resilience Award for a Micros Business.<\/p>\n
The Just Frank chapter being written now is Leah putting together some of her popular vegan recipes in kit form with her new products well into the test phase \u2013 checking how a cross section of people can recreate her dishes by following the packet directions.<\/p>\n
Having what she has already achieved honoured at the recent business awards, injecting confidence into the Just Frank founder as she branches out with her new line.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is always good to have that affirmation that you are on the right track,\u201d Leah said. \u201cBeing vegan is still such a fringe thing, I still feel that, even though it is better than it was. To be recognised on a bigger stage means that more and more it is becoming mainstream. Being a vegan business and winning this award is a big deal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just Frank was basically created out of necessity. When Leah made the decision to go vegan, a decision that has been life changing for her own health, there were not a lot of delicious options. It was even hard to find vegan recipes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to go to the city to even find a vegan recipe book and even then, there was about one vegan recipe to every 10 vegetarian one. It was like looking for a needle in a haystack.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cI know people think you\u2019re weird if you\u2019re vegan and that you only eat lettuce and tomatoes,\u201d Leah said. \u201cI wanted to break down those misconceptions by showing people what kind of food you really can eat.\u201d And Leah had a number of test audiences as she started creating what is now an extensive vegan menu. \u201cIt started with me providing morning tea for a couple of businesses,\u201d she said. \u201cI took it to them for free and didn\u2019t tell them it was vegan food straight away, I waited a couple of weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n
The positive response from that small market test combined with the feedback she was getting on her blog encouraged Leah she was doing exactly what she had set out to achieve \u2013 making delicious vegan food.<\/p>\n
It was never about morphing her personal diet choices into a viable business \u2013 that came the old fashioned away, through demand. \u201cI was putting menu ideas up on my blog and people just started emailing me orders,\u201d Leah said. \u201cBefore I knew it, I was delivering my meals to people\u2019s work or home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Demand only escalated and it became clear to Leah that she was embarking on a small business venture. Step one was an ordering system on her blog. Then came interest from local business owners, including She\u2019s Apple that approached her to stock her meals.<\/p>\n
Another critical chapter in the evolution of her business was catering for vegans at a wedding. \u201cToni (Vorenas), from Metro, needed to provide vegan sweets and rather than getting her chefs to come up with something she contacted me to make something,\u201d Leah said.<\/p>\n
The response was again amazing and so Metro became another local business to forge a relationship with Just Frank, Leah\u2019s vegan catering business. \u201cIt was not just about catering for vegans,\u201d Leah said. \u201cHaving those options is also great for people with dairy or egg allergies.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the bottom line was, for a kitchen and bakehouse like Metro, ensuring products are, particularly egg free, is too difficult \u2013 leaving that to someone with a guaranteed egg-free kitchen was the safest and best option. Leah\u2019s decision to become vegan was all about her health. \u201cI was quite unwell,\u201d she said. \u201cBut the more changes I made with my diet the better I felt.\u201d It was a gradual progression, starting as a vegetarian, before reading up on ethical veganism.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd now, it is a lifestyle choice for my health and because I do have strong beliefs in that area.\u201d Interestingly, her clientele are not really disciples. The biggest joy for me is that eighty percent of my clients aren\u2019t vegan \u2013 they just love the food.\u201d<\/p>\n
Given how word of mouth kickstarted Just Frank, it was also helped by her appearing at the library farmers market where again, it was as much about people enjoying her food and being interested in the health benefits of her products as it was about food allergies or wanting to be vegan.<\/p>\n
And given the dearth of existing recipes, most of Just Frank\u2019s cuisine were original Leah creations. \u201cI had to learn how to do it,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s been lots of experimenting. I had a huge collection of mum and grandma\u2019s recipes and I wanted to still be able to enjoy them. I\u2019ve had lots of failures along the way.\u201d She spent hours working out the best substitutes in some of those classic recipes.<\/p>\n
Her home kitchen was her cooking base and still is, although she now has a dedicated separate kitchen for Just Frank, completed in 2019.<\/p>\n
In the early days, Just Frank saw Leah pending up to 18 hour days, preparing the food and delivering it to her vast array of clients. \u201cThere wouldn\u2019t be a day when my stove or oven isn\u2019t on,\u201d she said. But she also has to admit that was the way she liked it. \u201cI just love feeding other people,\u201d Leah said. \u201cIt\u2019s like my clients are my children now that my girls aren\u2019t at home. I really missed cooking for other people and this has been great for me. I like that I\u2019ve found a place where I\u2019m needed.\u201d<\/p>\n
But while she has learnt plenty about running a successful business and creating delicious vegan food, she has also learnt about balancing the demands of her business and the need for down time and spending time with family and friends. That has seen the business move more towards supplying her stockists, mainly cafes and She\u2019s Apples, and reducing her private catering, leaving more time to be a daughter, mother, partner, grandmother and friend.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just knew I had to narrow my focus,\u201d Leah said. \u201cI had opportunities to expand away from Mount Gambier and some big things but I am passionate about my community and there is still so much to be done here. \u201cThe opportunities to expand my business would have required employing several staff, but I have continued to trust what my heart tells me, and I am incredibly proud to be still at the helm of this bustling \u2018one woman show.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
And it was those opportunities presenting themselves that gave Leah a chance to seriously reflect on where her business should head. \u201cWhilst exploring opportunities for future growth within my business, I have spent a lot of time considering how this growth would impact on my quest for a life of finding the best balance possible between my beloved \u2018just frank\u2019, and the multitude of other experiences that also make my soul sing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis list is endless but right at the top of it is how precious it is that I still can still spend time with my ageing parents, both in their 80s, with my children, my partner, and now my three grandchildren.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leah swears by her vegan lifestyle but never pushes her beliefs or eating habits on anyone else. \u201cI don\u2019t profess it is a treatment for anything \u2013 I\u2019m not a doctor \u2013 all I can tell people about is my 20-plus years of experience.\u201d That experience includes as many organic products as possible and she grows most of her own vegies at home. \u201cAll my life I have grown my own vegies,\u201d Leah said. \u201cMy parents developed a vegie garden so it has always been a part of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Keep up to date with Leah\u2019s latest projects by following her on Just Frank\u2019s social media platforms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Unexpected business award provides an injection of confidence for sole business owner What started almost three decades ago as a way of improving her own health and well being grew into a successful business for Leah Franklin. It started as the ultimate case of word of mouth as people tasted her vegan food, often not […]<\/p>\n