- Motherhood Melbourne
Organic food delivered to your door in Melbourne's West
Care about what goes into your body? What you're kids are eating and where it's come from? Sure, you'd love to eat organic food but it's so darn hard to find it all in the one place. Not anymore! One Melbourne Mama has got you covered. When Brooke Findley discovered that her daughter had allergies to eggs, peanut, chicken and beef, she took it upon herself to look into what was really going on with their food. The findings were frightening and Brooke knew she had to do something in the name of her family's health. This experience inspired her to create The Organic Place – certified organic groceries (fruit, veg, milk, bread, meat & more) delivered right to your door in Melbourne's West. Exactly what a busy Mama needs. Discover more about how Brooke and The Organic Place can help your family eat organically.
HOOD MAMA SPECIAL – 10% off your first order at The Organic Place. Use the code 'Motherhood'. Valid until 14th December 2018.
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Interview with Brooke Findley – owner of The Organic Place.
The idea
I created our business a little over 4 years ago after our youngest daughter Harlow was diagnosed with allergies to egg, peanuts, chicken and beef. I understood eggs and peanuts as being common allergies however the latter two had me questioning the food system. With a background as a Registered Nurse, we always ate healthy, as I saw first hand the relationship between food and disease.
I began my own research visiting and calling farm supply stores looking at the chemicals, antibiotics, growth hormones and other nasties that were being applied to our food. The findings shocked me. “Keep out of reach of children; Avoid contact with eyes, skin and clothing; During mixing, loading, application, and cleanup and repair activities, wear long-sleeved shirt and long pants, shoes plus socks and chemical resistant gloves; Apply only when the potential for drift to areas of human habitation or areas of human activity such as houses, cottages, schools and recreational areas is minimal; For sweet corn, do not enter, or allow worker entry, into treated areas within 7 days after application to carry out detasseling or hand harvesting activities." And the list went on and on.
That’s when we decided for the health of our family we would choose to eat organic where we could afford to. The trouble was sourcing organics was difficult and that’s when I had that light bulb moment of let's create our on organic fruit and veg store!
Biz beginnings
Our business began when I started looking for organic produce in Melbourne’s West that could be delivered to our door and realising it was very difficult to find. I knew that after all of my research it was something I wanted to do for the health of our family. At the time I was on maternity leave and Harlow wasn’t a good sleeper. Every night I would sit there feeding her watching You Tube videos on how to build an online website. 8 months later I had built our online store and was ready to make it live!
We started delivering on a weekly basis from the back of our family car, three kids in tow often stopping to quickly feed Harlow on the side of the road. Over the years we have grown enabling us to have refrigerated transport, staff and occupy a warehouse and in turn have been able to add other items to our store such as meat and dairy.
Making mothers lives better n' brighter
Our lives are busy. Between work, home and family commitments it feels like there is never enough hours in the day to get everything done. One of our main priorities at The Organic Place is to make our customers lives as easy as possible. We want to give our customers the most important gift of all; time. Time that could be much better spent doing other things than shopping!
Picture this; I’m the mother of the three young children, one of which has severe food allergies. So, trying to not only keep my children alive (which can be a daily battle in itself, believe me) but also give them the best start in life, we choose to eat organic. But the nearest organic fruit and veg shop was 30 minutes away, more in traffic. Going food shopping each day became a day long excursion which involved getting myself and my three kids up, fed, dressed and in the car (whilst managing the countless fights and tantrums along the way). Then I’d drive through traffic, find a car park, rally all the kids back out of the car and in to the store (no doubt with a few toilet stops on the way) and walk up and down the aisles finding what I needed whilst yelling at the kids to stop licking the pineapples and put down those oranges!
Literally hours of my life wasted. And I would come home exhausted.
That’s why when we started The Organic Place I just knew it had to be an online store with everything delivered direct to our customers doors. No need to leave the house, in fact, there’s no need to even get out of bed! You simply click a few buttons on your phone, iPad or computer and you’re done. Hours of time saved.
Customer love
I get so excited when people get as excited about their delivery as I do. I love hearing “it’s so fresh,” “I’ve converted my husband” and “it tastes and smells like to food we use to eat as children.”
Most popular product
The subscription based products we have created (milk, bread, eggs, fruit and veg bags and some meat products) have been most popular. It saves our customers having to remember to login and order each week. The bulk of their shop is delivered without them having to lift a finger. Order once and never have to do it again. Your bag of certified organic goodies will simply arrive on your doorstep each and every Thursday and payment will automatically be taken from your nominated bank account. Zero time wasted.
For those who like to meal plan, have dietary requirements or allergies, the pick you own produce is just as popular.
Frequently-asked-question
Is your produce really organic? Yes, it sure is! All of our produce is Certified organic having been Certified by one of the seven governing bodies within Australia. Each Thursday we inform our customers of the farm in which their fruit and veg came from along with the certification. Our dairy, bread and meat products are sourced directly from local organic farmers and are made to order.
Behind the scenes
I find customers who choose to click and collect their order are often surprised at our warehouse because it’s empty! We store no produce. All of our items are delivered to our customer’s homes hours after being handpicked from the wholesale fruit and veg market. Our produce really is as fresh as can be!
Biz love
Having access to healthy organic food and watching how excited it makes the kids to cook, try new things and learn about seasonal produce and of course the lifestyle freedom that it brings. I’m very lucky to be able to attend all the school and kinder events and work from home during the school holiday periods.
Down time
I’m always in business mode! I do enjoy cooking, the outdoors and gardening with our family.
Future mode
2018 was a very exciting time for us as we added organic dairy and milk to our online store. We have now become that one stop shop making life easier and more convenient for our customers.
ABOUT THE ORGANIC PLACE
Online organic fruit, veg and grocery store offering a weekly delivery service to homes and business across Melbourne’s west.
Business owner: Brooke Findley
Fav café: Eynesbury Homestead
Coffee order: Cappuccino with honey
1/11 Glenville Drive Melton 3337
#Business #food #organic #westmelbourne #mealdelivery #health