Ben Bebenroth, Chef and Owner of Spice Companies

"10ksb put me in the league of steering my company instead of just hanging on for dear life. It turned me into a business owner."

Ben Bebenroth started Spice of Life Catering as a side project while working in restaurants. He sold his business to another catering company after his son was born but stayed on full time to grow it from $90K to $500K in three years. He decided to buy back the catering company and opened Spice Kitchen + Bar in 2011. Three years later, he bought and established Spice Acres, a 13-acre sustainable vegetable farm.

In 2013, before purchasing Spice Acres, Bebenroth decided to apply to 10,000 Small Businesses. His biggest challenge was making his catering business and restaurant profitable, and he knew he had to get a better handle on the bookkeeping. 10KSB taught him how to be a successful business owner. 

Bebenroth now has a better handle on financial accountability, as well as holding his leadership accountable to action. Since graduating from the 10,000 Small Businesses program, his team has grown by about seven employees and the business has experienced a 26 percent growth rate.