The Australian Businesswomen’s Network’s Suzi Dafnis interviewed Ulli Spranz, Hall of Fame inductee and co-founder of B.-d.Farm Paris Creek. They discuss innovation, systems, supporting others in your community and the role of mentors.
Suzi Dafnis: I’m going to step back to 1988 when you and your husband purchased the farm and soon after, converted it to biodynamic-organics. How accepting were people at the time of such an innovation?
Ulli Spranz: People were extremely accepting. The farmers were quite thrilled that we brought a new way of farming that made them successful; and the consumers were extremely appreciative of the products that we supplied because they were the first products that they had which were totally natural and sugar-free; and they were waiting for such products on the market.
Suzi Dafnis: Throughout your history, you’ve innovated a number of times, including—like you said—the more natural, thicker, sugar-free yogurt; starting a cheese factory to balance over-production of milk in the spring; and even developing an energy-efficient manufacturing plant. That’s a lot of innovation. How do you approach innovation within your organisation?
Ulli Spranz: Well, it revolves around innovation. Business cannot stand still no matter how successful you are. You cannot afford to take anything for granted. So, we always have to be aware of what is happening around us and in our industry. We have to look at market trends, and we need to acknowledge them, and then we need to find our own healthy way to fit into what the trends are.
However, today’s food market trends suggest healthy eating. We have found our own ideas and own methods and our own production ways. And we have also found that we have been copied a lot in the last years, and that always shows us that we are on the right way.
Suzi Dafnis: That’s right.
Ulli Spranz: In fact, we are not really following the trends, but we like to think that we are trendsetters.
Suzi Dafnis: I think you are. I think you are.
Ulli, you have a big commitment to keeping others in your industry up to date and you provide workshops on a regular basis, encouraging farmers to have more sustainable businesses. Why do you care so much about the others in your industry?
Ulli Spranz: Working together is what makes things happen and it’s been beneficial for the communities, especially in the rural areas where we are. If farmers continue to leave the land, I’m of the firm belief—maybe not my generation but the next generation, certainly, will not have the luxury of fresh milk or fresh produce from rural areas.
We seem to take this so much for granted, but we need to continue developing what we have and we need to support each other. To keep farmers on the land is one of the most important things in Australia currently. So, that’s why we care about the farmers and their families. As they have their families, we have our family that we have to care for, so we totally understand that we need to support that.
Suzi Dafnis: I want to talk a little bit about some business practices and one of those is caring for our customers. You say that you still take care of your biggest customers personally. Are there areas of business you feel business owners should never let go of?
Ulli Spranz: If a business owner has set up their business from the beginning, they should know what it is all about. They should always keep control of the most important aspects and that’s what I’m doing. And customers are one of the most important aspects for us, so are our suppliers. And these are the areas that I will always be involved with. It is also good to keep the connection and the personal approach with them; and it keeps me grounded and I don’t lose touch of the cause of our business.
Suzi Dafnis: That’s a really good point. I want to talk about leadership, because you say that being a strong leader means that there are people around you to support you. Being a straight thinker means that the right decisions are made at the right time. What do you mean by a “straight thinker”?
Ulli Spranz: It’s important to me that I can say what I feel is right, that I can be honest. This is what we sell—it’s our honesty and healthy products. In food business, I think we should always stick to these values.
When I’m managing my company, I’m always honest and straightforward; but I never lose sight of the fact to be respectful. This is, for me, the only way to manage the company and to continue to achieve the goals we have set—to be a successful dairy manufacturing business. Then the people who respect you and want to follow you, they will come and they will stay, and they will also enjoy contributing to the success. They will identify themselves with us, and they will support me with what I’m doing.
Suzi Dafnis: One of the other things that seems to have led to your success is a great dependency on really great systems. When you’re developing systems, what is your biggest outcome?
Ulli Spranz: Our biggest outcome is that we have a successful company and that we are producing these amazing, healthy products that support consumers’ health; and they are selling in Australia and internationally. Systems are there to achieve goals and it, therefore, grows. The systems are also there to streamline the processes. That means we are all on the same page. We are all working towards the same goals. And a successful outcome can be achieved by everybody involved.
The biggest outcome is that, at the end of the day, we have achieved what we have set out to; and due to the systems in place, we can work on achieving higher goals.
Suzi Dafnis: You say that one piece of advice that you give others is to treat lessons—and we all have them in business—as valuable learning curves. Can you tell us a little bit about that?
Ulli Spranz: We all make mistakes in business and I have made a lot of mistakes all along the way; but the value of the learning curve is to learn from these mistakes and to avoid making the same mistakes again. I’m always willing to listen to what other people have to say, and I’m always happy to learn from what I hear to broaden my outlook as is it also important to see what other people are doing well and where they have learned from previous mistakes. And that really supports my thinking style.
Suzi Dafnis: When we asked you about the role that mastermind groups and business groups have had on your business, you said that they have actually played a role in your support structure as a business owner. Why do you feel that it’s important that we surround ourselves with groups like these? With peers?
Ulli Spranz: Working in the food industry that is constantly changing its regulations, food standards, packaging and labelling requirements and so on, it is very crucial to stay in touch with the most recent information and developments, and to network with like-minded business people is very important. That information and support is invaluable to us.
Working in the farming industry is extremely important: to work with these groups, to be connected to the rural farming communities, to support each other, and to share information, and to exchange new ideas. If we are connected to and supportive of the farming groups, it can also stimulate converting to organic or biodynamic farming methods, and to support interests of farmers in their efforts to convert, which then benefits us.
Suzi Dafnis: On a similar line, one of the things that we’ve found that supports women being successful is to be around those groups, because no matter how successful we’ve been, sometimes, we still doubt ourselves and lack confidence. Your achievements are obviously so plentiful that some would doubt that you have felt any self-doubt, but you tell me that you have. Can you tell us what you do when you feel self-doubt or unsureness?
Ulli Spranz: Yes. I will tell you I always do; but I see it as a positive thing. It’s helpful for me because I, fortunately, am able to talk to people about it and I have quite a few people around me that I can talk to. Sometimes, they reassure me. Sometimes, they give me good advice. Sometimes, they tell me I’m silly. Most of the time they are right.
I think self-doubt is a human thing that makes you a better person—to ask yourself all the time whether you are doing the right thing for yourself and for the business and for the family. Yeah, I do see it as positive.
Suzi Dafnis: My final question is about mentoring, because one of the things that we have also found when we talk to women in our Hall of Fame is that they have often had a mentor or been a mentor to others. I understand that one of your mentors helped you to understand business plans and marketing plans and the retail world. Tell us a little bit about your experience and what the benefits were that you received.
Ulli Spranz: The most benefit, at that moment, was it helped me to understand Australian retail business because I didn’t have that experience. I was coming from a European background and not from a retailing background. He helped me to understand the Australian consumer behaviour. As most people know, the retail world has their own world and culture. For me, it was very important to have some understanding, especially when we started supplying to the major retailers.
Marketing is a big part of dealing with the retailers and that understanding needs to be learned. My mentor had all of that knowledge, so he helped me along to find my way of dealing with marketing and that’s very important, I think. It’s not his way or somebody else’s; it’s our way that fits in our company. With that, he supported where he thought I needed support, but he left me doing things my way where he thought I was able to handle it. So step-by-step, I gained confidence in doing it myself.
In regards to the other things, such as business plans and the marketing plans, he helped me to understand the benefits of having realistic working plans on hand—not just something that’s on paper and stays on paper, but something that we could really work with. Just that approach was invaluable. And the knowledge that he passed onto us helped me to understand and has contributed to the success of my business.
Suzi Dafnis: Congratulations on all of the success that you have had in your business, and to much, much more. Thank you so much for joining us. Is there anything that you would like to leave us with, Ulli?
Ulli Spranz: I thank you for all of your support and for running this program, and thanks very much for having me.
Suzi Dafnis: Thank you again. Thank you.
Ulli Spranz: Thank you, Suzi.
Ulli Spranz was inducted in the Businesswomen’s Hall of Fame in 2015. You can read her profile and strategies for success, here.
