Meet Amy, the girl who uprooted her life just before Covid began

This year has been many things to many people, but one of the stories that has particularly played on my mind has been that of the people who moved just as the pandemic hit. Especially those who did it alone.

Due to my connection to the world of travel blogging, I’ve seen many online peers trapped in this situation. New country/city = great but not being able to do much to sink your toes into the foundation of your new home = not so great.

I knew Amy had had her sights set on moving for a while. I met her during my time in Sevilla, where we worked together in the marketing department of a startup that helped people holiday in nature.

Without sounding too much like a cheesy novel, if we were in one, and I were the narrator telling you about Amy, I would tell you she is the character of the woman who has a twinkle in her eye.

Sometimes when it was quiet in the evening we’d swivel around on our office chairs, in the heavily air-conditioned space, and talk about life, and most importantly what we really wanted out of it.

Without sounding too much like a cheesy novel, if we were in one, and I were the narrator telling you about Amy, I would tell you she is the character of the woman who has a twinkle in her eye. She’s bright, full of life with lazer-sharp wit and knowing eyes, but at the same time wide-smiled and breezy, with a natural ability to go with the flow. The latter of which I think you really need to live in Sevilla, and she was indeed happy there (unlike me I can hear you saying, you are right haha).

New city, alone, in Covid: why not start a business?

But the story of today takes place in February, a mere two weeks before the pandemic began, when after living in Sevilla for seven years, Amy uprooted her life, (and her cat) to Barcelona. It may not seem like a big leap, but I knew she had her dream flat there, community, and I had seen first-hand how Sevilla could pull you into its heavy tempo, making it hard to leave.

A couple of months after moving alone to Barcelona, in the middle of a pandemic, Amy had gone from being an office bound PR executive to building her very own business, in the business of bees: Honey House Barcelona. But how did it come to—excuse the pun here—be? How did she find the inspiration, resources, or energy to launch a venture in a new city during these wild, wild times?

As soon as we first begin chatting I am launched into the magic of Amy’s story. She tells me how her love for bees predated her time in Barcelona: “It started in Sevilla, I was obsessed with bees and wanted to take classes in learning about it. So when I arrived in Barcelona I signed up for a taller de abejas/beekeeping course but it got cancelled due to Covid.”

“One day I was walking along about 1km from my house, in the middle of Barcelona, and I see a guy getting home from work, in full bee suit”.

“I was in this new city, looking for a job. Meanwhile people were losing theirs due to the pandemic and there was all this uncertainty. So I just asked the universe to guide me to what I was supposed to do”.

Simply because what else could she do? She had come to this new city without a plan, just a feeling that it was time for things to change. Instead of pulling her hair out about it, she chose to submit and let that change take place, whatever life had in store.

“One day I was walking along about 1km from my house, in the middle of Barcelona, and I see a guy getting home from work, in full bee suit”. His name was Armando. Amy tells me how she struck up a conversation with him, asking about what he did and where he works, and by the end of their encounter, he had invited her to come and work with him that Friday.

She did show up that Friday, and that one Friday turned into five days a week, spanning 10-12 hours a day, and just like that Amy found herself with a new job and purpose. In the tough (I learned) but rewarding labour that is beekeeping.

Making friends and finding your tribe

Amy is with a friend on one of the days I’m talking to her, at the beach, and she also lives with a like-minded girl named Zooli I learn later in the call. As I know how hard it is to make friends abroad, especially in a pandemic, I ask how she formed these bonds, with people who were like-minded to her.

I also found my roommate on an app named Badi, which is like a Tinder for open rooms, you get to connect with people you are going to live with and talk to them.

Firstly she organised this paella night “I gathered everyoneI knew, and they brought friends, one of them which I really connected with, on the topic of bees—of course, and we ended up forming a friendship of our own.”

“Also, due to this new interest of mine, I kept meeting people with common interests. The beekeeping lends itself to the slow food niche, and I also met people and the gym and yoga. It’s definitely less social than Sevilla but I’m kind over the partying at the moment.”

“I also found my roommate on an app named Badi, which is like a Tinder for open rooms, you get to connect with people you are going to live with and talk to them. In my case, I never saw the apartment in person, I got on a Facetime call where I connected with Zooli, 30 and it was perfect, she’s amazing we get on so well”

On business learnings and imposter syndrome: who are you to just wake up one day and be a beekeeper or entrepreneur?

“This experience has really taught me that when you focus your energy on something it just grows, and I really feel each person has opportunity for them already, they just need to clear the shit, stop listening to other people and insecurities, then you see what is meant for you. It’s a little easier than you think.”

“We always think we need to be full experts at things but sometimes there’s nothing wrong with meeting people where you are, and it’s much less daunting.”

Like I even doubted myself at one point. I said to myself who am I to think I can just be a beekeeper, rather than someone who’s taken a more scientific route, and who am I to think I can just open a IG page and sell honey?

Then I realised, I’m doing it to share my journey; I just want to learn, I am not a teacher. I’m just sharing things I think are interesting. We always think we need to be full experts at things but sometimes there’s nothing wrong with meeting people where you are, and it’s much less daunting.” (Reader whoever you are, bookmark this and remember it forever)

“As an entrepreneur friend of mine said to me about Honey House Barcelona: if you are not embarrassed of your first launch, then you’ve waited too long. So I said to myself “what do you have right now? Honey. Okay. Get it out, put a label on it and go.”

Amy launched her first product, which wild thyme honey (because that’s what the bees were eating at the time) and it was not cultivated. Does it taste like thyme? I asked fascinated “yes it, has an essence of thyme.” She smiles.

How Amy got her business buzzing

How are things going with the business? I ask. “We’re selling like 8 jars per week, people are just reaching out from the IG page” Amy tells me excitedly, her works laced with a smidge of surprise.

“In regards to the business model: I just wanted to see if we could sell, if we can do this, we can do something bigger.”

What skills do you think helped you grow Honey House Barcelona? I continue.

“I think it was three things: focusing on trying to build a like-minded community and genuine content, approaching the business as a platform to share what I have learned vs. an expert, putting out thoughtful content with a focus.”

Did you have a strategy?

“Everything I did I really considered first. For example I really wanted to hone in on what felt the most authentic. Before I saw beekeeping as really magical, elegant, clean and whimsical–but guess what: beekeeping is so dirty and it’s physically intense! It’s still really beautiful, even more beautiful than I thought it was. But it’s hard work and brutal, bees are really badass”

“Upon learning that I wanted our marketing to reflect that and be a retro, edgy brand. I am very much a hippy at heart and am influenced more by the 70s versus the 60s for example. Like how the 60s was all about free love, but 70s had more of a structure.”

“In regards to the business model: I just wanted to see if we could sell, if we can do this, we can do something bigger.”

On physically making and sourcing the product

“I originally tried to get labels printed, but they looked really amatuer, and the stickers themselves were wildly expensive.” Amy tells me.

“But one day I was browsing on Amazon and spotted these ‘hello my name it is’ stickers that you see on the product today. I wanted that less-than-perfect look and it matched it perfectly! I carved the brand you see and stamped it on the bottles. And we went live with it!”

What is currently sold at Honey House Barcelona

“So we have ginger-infused honey; and then we have fermented honey wine, which is made of three simple ingredients: yeast, water, honey. It’s one of the oldest drinks as it comes from the Vikings—it’s some Game of Thrones shit” she chuckles “and it gets you a really nice drunk.”

“I’m really proud of the mix.” Amy continues, telling me how she came up with the idea: “I had a golden latte, a trendy turmeric latte, I wondered if I could make our own one.

It’s clear where the product development for Honey House Barcelona comes from: Amy’s natural curiosity for the fascinating world of beekeeping. As I listen to her describe her offerings, I can’t help but absorb her excitement, and notice I am smiling through the descriptions.

“We also have 100% beeswax candles with wooden wicks, we also did an eco-collaboration with Caroline Chessia, where she made ceramic dishes, and we filled it with our beeswax candles.”

“Lastly we offer this golden honey latte mix, which is a blend of spices, turmeric, black pepper, cinamon, ginger cardamom, honey, and a scoop of bee pollen. I call it the lion mix, it makes me feel like a wild animal. I made it for some friends who showed up at my house, and the next day they were like, we need that!”

“I’m really proud of the mix.” Amy continues, telling me how she came up with the idea: “I had a golden latte, a trendy turmeric latte, I wondered if I could make our own one. We had coffee, so we just nailed this concoction which is like an anti-inflammatory, health bomb. Calorically, honey is no different from sugar, why would you not opt for additional health benefits?”

What’s next for Amy and Honey House Barcelona?

“We’ll have a couple ideas but I want to patent them”. I also see us getting into hydro miel, which is honey wine; shampoos and conditioner bars; Tapacha, which is naturally fermented soda that has no alcohol in it; and Propolis, an antibacterial immunity boosting product of bees.

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