Full name: Ben Mason
Role: Founder
DOB: 26th December 1980
Birthplace: Southampton
Twitter: @properbeans
Website: www.properbeans.com
Fun Fact: “As a 7 year old, I sang for the Queen in a choir every Sunday. I got paid 10p a time.”
J: When did you get the original idea from and how long did you take to act upon it?
B: The inspiration came from a discussion with my dad about how he made his own baked beans. I had always thought of baked beans as a food that came out of a can rather than a dish you could make. When I began thinking about it I realised how old fashioned baked beans are and how they haven’t changed since the war. After coming up with the idea in the summer I acted pretty quickly and resigned from my job a few months later in November.
Were you dissatisfied with your career in advertising? Why did you decide to quit and go at this full time? Had you been developing the idea whilst you worked?
I wouldn’t say I was dissatisfied as advertising is fun but I wanted to do my own thing, and the idea of creating a product rather than a consultancy business was more appealing. I wanted to put some of my own advice to the test. I resigned in November but as my boss persuaded me to stay on part time for another year before finally leaving May of this year to focus on Proper Beans full time which was launched officially this last September.
How would you describe the experience so far?
Exhilarating! It’s crazy and full of ups and downs but constantly new and interesting.
What is ‘a brighter future for baked beans’?
It’s actually looking back to what they were before a tinned product: they were home made, with lots of recipes and different ingredients. British people have become so used to the cheap baked beans we have on offer today, which actually stems from second World War rationing when the government took ingredients such as salt pork out of baked beans, to make it as cheap as possible.
Why do you use fava or haricot beans, as oppose to the many other varieties?
I want to take people on a journey from the current monotony of tinned haricot to a future where baked beans is a broad and interesting category with lots of variety. So most of my products use the haricot beans that people are used to and I’ve added one product with the British-grown fava bean, which is a bean we’ve grown here since the Iron age but mostly export to the middle east currently. In the future I’d like to have lots of different beans in different recipes.
Who’s the person who’s most inspired you in your work – food industry or otherwise. Is there anyone that you draw inspiration or strength from? Do you have any specific culinary influences?
I take inspiration from a few people. Two entrepreneurs who especially inspire me are Dan Germain from Innocent and David Hieatt from Hiut Demin as they remind me that you don’t have to wear suits and talk about market capitalisation to run a great business. They have managed this while being themselves. Also David Franks who has been an adviser to me since the beginning of the year has really helped me to navigate the food industry and create my product.
What are your most and least favourite foods?
I really enjoy any foods that you can slow cook and nurture like soups, beans, stock etc. I also have my own allotment so fresh tomatoes and parsley are also a big hit with me. I probably love parsley more than I should!
I’m not a big fan of the whole superfood fad. Obesity is a big issue and it can’t be solved by picking a vegetable and calling it a superfood. We need a balanced diet full of different foods, all in moderation. I also rarely like fake replacement foods like fake cheese and meat. If something doesn’t agree with me, I avoid it rather than try and replicate it.
What do you enjoy most and least about what you do?
The thing I enjoy the most is the thrill of making something, putting it out there and then thinking, yeah I made that! As for what I enjoy the least. It’s frustrating when people don’t want to try Proper Beans when I’m offering them a taste. I find it strange because I always want to try everything new.
I would imagine you find yourself fighting a lot of preconceptions laid down by a century of discount beans? What’s that like?
Some people literally recoil, especially in Fortnum and Mason or at trade shows. Then they smell the product, have a taste and end up purchasing. People are holding on dear to a really processed and cheap product which causes them to feel defensive towards what is actually a more traditional dish like Proper Beans. Cost can be an issue too.
Many people in the UK have warped preconceptions about the cost of making food. People tell me I should sell them at £1 rather than £4. But I’m not making a big profit at all. It’s just an accurate representation of what it costs to chop ingredients, cook them, pot them up and deliver them to a shop. You can only make beans for £1 if you use the cheapest ingredients and have a huge factory making millions of cans per day.
You have some unexpected flavour combos! How did you come up with them and how much tweaking did it take to come up with the current recipes?
For me they are not unexpected. I researched the origin of baked beans in a lot of detail. The Smoked Bacon & English Mustard recipe is my version of what tinned baked beans would be if rewound to a home cooked recipe. Then for the vegetarian option I removed smoked bacon and replaced with sundried tomatoes to give the same level of umami. Then I became a little more creative by using a different bean in one and choosing an option that didn’t use tomato sauce for another.
Five hour baked? Made by hand? Could you give us a little outline as to how they’re made?
Apart from an onion chopper everything else is done by hand. We soak the dry beans in water and simmer for 15 minutes while frying off onions and garlic in olive oil before adding the bacon (if included) and other flavouring such as tomatoes and vinegar. Then everything goes in together including some bean water which gives a great taste and once hot, the recipe goes into the oven for five hours. Proper Beans’ recipes are available on the website and the inside of pot labels. I really want people to try the beans and then have a go at making them or similar recipes themselves.
What’s a ‘day in your life’ like? Could you give us an insight into the world of Ben?
I’ll give you an insight into 24 hours! So last night at 11pm I was cleaning out a new fridge to store beans. Then I went to bed for a bit before waking up at 4:30am for a chilled delivery with this week’s beans. After this I went back to bed until 8am where I woke up, checked Twitter, Facebook, and my emails and had a coffee, and some Smoked Bacon Proper Beans for breakfast.
Between this and 12:30 I did some admin and spent the morning emailing retailers. At 12:30 I’m doing this interview for Tasting Britain. This afternoon will then be spent writing more emails, progressing with my market stall approval which will be located at Lower Marsh Market near Waterloo.
Asides from yourself, how many others are working in the business? Is there an expansion plan?
I have no full time staff at the moment but various friends who help me out with trade shows and events. I have plans for expansion. I want to be the next Heinz but for now plans don’t exceed the next two years. It’s one step at a time right now.
What’s your greatest/most memorable professional moment been, so far?
The one point in business you always look forward to is seeing your product on the shelf. Having Proper Beans in the fridge at Fortnum and Mason was a huge moment for me and made everything feel real. We also won an award at the Virgin StartUp Foodpreneur Fest in September for Most Exciting New Brand which was chosen by Sir Richard Branson.
Where do you get your ideas?
Taking it back to basics, doing lots of research, having conversations with friends and customers, always writing down any thoughts, looking around for inspiration from London in general.
What advice would you give to aspiring food entrepreneurs who’d want the kind of results that you’ve had?
I’d say a brilliant product is not enough. It’s a pre-requisite but you have to have a good story too to make you rise above everyone else. Ours was that Henry Heinz launched his baked beans in Fortnum & Mason in 1886 and I’m launching Proper Beans in Fortnum & Mason in 2014. That helped get lots of press and social media coverage.
If you weren’t doing what you do now, what would you be doing instead?
Some other business idea. I’ve always had a lot going on. Proper Beans is just one of the ideas which made it past a URL and logo.
If you could cook anything for anyone, anywhere you chose – who would you pick, where would you do it and what would you cook for them?
I’d cook brunch for the Queen, just down the road at Buckingham Palace. I’d make her a bowl of Proper Beans with toast on top.
What’s your ultimate aim and goal for Proper Beans? If you could achieve anything with it, what would you pick? Money and reality are no obstacle, so shoot for the moon…
I would really like to be part of finding Britain’s food culture which was lost after the war. Contributing to that and creating a generation of thoughtful young cooks would be hugely rewarding. It’s crazy to think there is both obesity and people starving in the UK. Many healthier European nations have a traditional food culture so I think this is really important for Britain to find its version once again.
Where next for you and the business?
Main focus is to secure more distribution. We’ve had lots of good press coverage and recognition, and lots of enquiries from retailers, so getting Proper Beans into those shops and working on the market stall is a big focus for us. I’m also working on a launch party for the brand
And we always ask three customary ridiculous questions…
If you were forced to live on one kind of alcohol for the rest of your life (assume that your metabolism becomes specifically adapted to use this as your sole source of calories, so you had to drink this to survive) – which would you pick, and why?
I’m a massive fan of gin and wine but if I was using it to survive I’d want something with more breadth so I’d have to go with beer. The craft beer movement has brought such imagination to brewing so there’d never be a dull day.
If you had to employ any member of the Justice League of America to come and work with you guys, who would you pick, and why?
I don’t know what this is. [Ed: lolz]
If you were forced to fend off an alien invasion and singlehandedly save mankind using only the tools available at Proper Beans, how would you do it?
Serve them tins of the competition.