03/08/2026
5 things I wish I knew before starting Zarcone Cocoa ☕️:
1.) Private Label: instead of making low quality hot cocoa from scratch, I would’ve looked into private label sooner which could’ve saved me a lot of money starting.
2.) UVP: I would’ve started with Faith and Mental Health as my UVP sooner to differentiate myself from competitors.
3.) Starter plan: Shopify keeps you in the dark about this, but I would’ve started without a website and tried to test my product with an audience which leads me to…
4.) Audience 👀: I would’ve used a hybrid approach of having an existing audience and finding my target market to validate demand sooner.
5.) I originally started this business in NY but moved so much. I’m happy in NC, but if I could’ve had a little more stability either way that would’ve put me ahead.
