FOXBUSINESS.COM PROFILES ENTREPRENEURS AGE 35 AND YOUNGER

From painting to photography, 31-year-old Shazi Visram has always been passionate about creating something real and tangible. And building a business, she says, gives her a similar surge of excitement.

So when she founded Happy Baby, a line of fresh, frozen organic baby meals, with Jessica Rolph in 2005, she put her heart and soul into the venture. "I wanted to change the way the world worked on some level," says Visram, and that meant giving parents a baby food choice beyond those tiny, and sometimes dusty jars on supermarket shelves.

"We pioneered baby food in this brand new category… [and] you can just tell by the colors that it's really fresh and tastes like real food." That innovation is one of the reasons the fledgling company landed distribution deals in over 4,000 stores in a 24-month period.

Visram tends to think of entrepreneurs as an optimistic, driven breed—"[We] always have a better way to do something, and when I stumbled on this idea, it just wouldn't leave me...I just felt so compelled to continue to look into it and find out why I shouldn't do this."

To learn more about Visram's story, check out “Baby, It's Fresh!” and scroll down for the Six Shooter Q&A…

THE SIX SHOOTER

1. Where were you the moment you decided your business plan?

I don't remember. I am sure it was with my partner Jessica, either at my apartment or in a Starbucks, both of which were our early office locations.

 

2. What was the one thing you didn't know that you had to bluff your way through? 

We have never yet had to bluff our way through anything. Admitting that you don't know is safer and more intelligent than bluffing.

 

3. What one life lesson did you learn that helped you build your business?

No matter where you are in the trajectory of your life [or your business]--you must put one foot in front of the other to make progress.

 

4. Who is your role model or inspiration?

Seth Goldman of Honest Tea

 

5. What do you wish you had more of: time or money?

Money, hands down. If time is money, and you have money, you can buy time.

 

6. What is the one word your employees your employees would use to describe you and why? 

Demanding---because I expect everyone to give their all to realize the fullest potential of our business.

 

Want to know who's next? Check back every other week for more Young Guns...And if know a young entrepreneur with an interesting story, e-mail us at youngguns@foxbusiness.com.

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