Video Description

Kajabi is offering a free 30-day trial to start your business if you go to https://kajabi.com/upflip James Frey always wanted the freedom of being his own boss, and oyster farming under his business, Crystal Coast Oyster, is one way for him to do just that. All it took was $7500 for oyster cages, seed, and working out of his own kayak instead of a boat. And after only a couple of years, James is projected to have up to $4M in sales. James wasn’t always in the oyster business. He worked in landscaping, dock construction, and moved refrigerators prior to it all. The really crazy part though? He also has no formal education in oyster farming. Instead, it was his passion that helped him to learn and channel his energy positively for the business. In this episode, James shares that his success comes from highly competitive pricing, door-knocking with local restaurants, utilizing social media, and participating in local events to build long-standing partnerships. He’s also always built his boats and equipment and fixed it all himself, which helped him to create a cost-effective foundation. That’s not to say there weren't a few accidental challenges along the way. It can take up to a year before any oysters are the right size for market and can be sold. James also picked the business name Big Rock Oysters before he realized it was used by another company. Even if difficult times were to come up in the business or small bumps along the way, James explains that he lives with the mindset of always having fun and to never quit. Resources: 🎓 Start or scale your business with the UpFlip Academy - https://links.upflip.com/academy-yt 📕 FREE access to ‘137 most profitable businesses’ - https://links.upflip.com/137-business-ideas-yt 🎙️ Follow the UpFlip Podcast - https://links.upflip.com/podcast-yt 📩 Join the UpFlip Newsletter - https://links.upflip.com/newsletter-yt 👉 Check out Kyle’s business - https://www.crystalcoastoysters.co/ Timestamps: 00:00 - Start 00:51 - Where it all started 01:34 - Why oyster farming? 02:03 - Oysters sold 02:31 - Oyster bank 02:56 - Sharing knowledge & secrets 03:48 - Oysters' role in ecology 04:25 - Leasing 06:17 - Harvesting a cage 06:46 - First sale 07:32 - Harvesting frequency 08:35 - Starting out 09:13 - Going full time 11:22 - Fan blitz 12:21 - Floating vs. bottom cages 13:11 - Costly mistakes 13:35 - Oyster tumbler 15:00 - A neat trick 16:28 - Revenue 17:59 - Moments of doubt 19:22 - Spotting the perfect lease 20:08 - Machinery needed 21:46 - Oyster washer setup 23:00 - Monthly overhead 23:31 - Starting without machines 24:04 - Oyster species 25:00 - Delivery logistics 25:53 - Opening oysters (the proper way!) 26:53 - Three lucky things 28:07 - The secret sauce 29:18 - Biggest challenges 29:58 - Employees 30:55 - Marketing 33:04 - Instagram strategy 33:53 - Nature’s philosophy 34:23 - The best advisor 35:12 - “Collaborators” 36:16 - Motivating the team 37:02 - Getting started 37:49 - The “real” fear 38:22 - A useful advice 38:55 - Outro #oysters #oyster #oysterfarming