Ely Key
Up Mountain Switchel
New York, NY USA
"Show up. Show up, and do the work, and make yourself valuable."
Career Roadmap
Ely's work combines: Entrepreneurship, Food, and Upholding a Cause and Belief
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
Key originally heard about switchel from his father, who used to drink it when he worked the family farm in Vermont.
2.
He made a batch and introduced the beverage to his friend (and now co-founder) Garrett Riffle.
3.
The two were business and design-minded, so they decided they could team up and sell the beverage.
4.
They made their first batch and took it to the farmer's market, where they made a $200 dollar profit.
5.
In the early days of Up Mountain's history, the two spent a lot of time tweaking the recipe, and bottling and packaging by hand.
6.
Says if they cared only about making profits, there are ways they could compromise their product.
7.
However, they've chosen to put their core values-reusable bottles, for example-ahead of their need for money.
8.
Says the best thing a young person can do is to show up ready for the job and bring something new to the table.
