PennWest Clarion SBDC Client Success Story
McKean County Couple Brings Innovative Distillery Exclusively to the PA Wilds
What do five states in Mexico and the PA Wilds Region of North Central Pennsylvania have in common? The answer: they both have exclusive rights to produce certain kinds of distilled spirit. For Mexico, five of its states represent the only region in which Tequila may be produced from the native agave plant. The PA Wilds Region, on the other hand, represents the only place where the recently trademarked “Sonshine,” an innovative spirit made completely from local sunflowers, may be produced.
“Aleshia and the SBDC have been a vital integration into our business’s growth. Their continued support and guidance have been a blessing!”
The official grand opening of Wilds Sonshine Factory represented the culmination of a dream becoming reality that is over five years in the making. Having been passionate agriculture stewards for many years, the majority shareholders and owners of the business, David and Tosha Conklin are no strangers to business ownership and innovation. Since 1995, the couple has owned and operated the highly successful Kane Lawn and Garden (KL&G). Over the years, the couple transformed KL&G from a nursery with three employees to a company that has retail operations and completes residential and commercial landscaping across four counties and employs up to 40 people in peak season. Additionally, since 2010 the couple has been the majority owner of Greendale Farms, LLC, successfully restoring and operating over 700 acres of farmland. Adding to the already striking uniqueness of Wilds Sonshine Factory’s facility, located just outside of Kane on Route 6, patrons will be able to enjoy tastings of Sonshine, specialty cocktails and mocktails at the “World’s Longest Table made from One Continuous Piece of Timber”.
After already securing the source of sunflowers at Greendale Farms, testing and fully developing the spirit, and subsequently obtaining the trademark for the Sonshine and its process, by far the largest hurdle that Wilds Sonshine Factory faced was the significant capital investment required to make their vision for the distillery a reality. Expanding beyond just a distillery and tasting bar, the owners at Wilds Sonshine Factory wanted to create an experience, where visitors (in addition to tasting Sonshine) will be able to learn about Pennsylvania and the importance of our region’s natural resources.
For assistance in developing a comprehensive business plan and three years of financial projections, as well as for assistance in developing a tangible and comprehensive sales and marketing plan, the owners of Wilds Sonshine Factory were pointed in the direction of the PennWest Clarion SBDC, after which they were promptly put into contact with business consultant Aleshia Marshall. Over the course of several months, Aleshia proved to be an invaluable resource to the business owners, holding meetings with them numerous times during the business planning process to assist in developing fully concrete plans for the business, financing options to pursue, potential marketing avenues, and to discuss the extensive industry and target market research that the SBDC provided during the process to fully ascertain the feasibility of the project. The completed business plan and financial projections proved to be a resounding success, helping Wilds Sonshine Factory to obtain the necessary financing to complete the construction of the distillery, which ultimately came from a variety of sources (see Additional Partners above), all of which were immensely impressed with the quality and content of the business plan. With the help of the SBDC, a truly one-of-a-kind experience has been created in the PA Wilds Region, both for locals and visiting individuals as well as the PA Wilds Center, whose nonprofit mission will be directly supported by Wilds Sonshine Factory, as a percentage of each bottle sold will benefit the center.