The story of the formerly unemployed single mother has inspired a number of young entrepreneurs. She had no money when she started out, but she had a vision. “I wanted to help people become healthy the natural way,” said Wasa.

When she started selling her drink at farmers’ markets, she realized that there is a huge demand for her product. Her company faced too much red tape in Slovenia, so she moved to Austria. “In Austria, you can produce up to 12,000 bottles at home in your kitchen,” said Wasa.

She was discovered by an investor at a farmers’ market in Klagenfurt, Austria. “He said that he’s never drunk anything like this before. It was so fresh and invigorating even without alcohol,” said Wasa. He invested a total of 250,000 euros and issued her a challenge: She had to peel two tons of ginger. She then contacted the local parish and hired 300 Caritas volunteers. “They all came and we spent the next 2 days peeling ginger,” recounted Wasa.

She recently founded a social enterprise in Dravograd, where 30 people will peel ginger once a month. Her goal is for them to peel ginger every day, as demand for her product has skyrocketed. “We’re about to ship our first batch of bottles to Denmark. Our product is selling like hot cakes in Switzerland, Germany, Slovenia, and Austria,” said Wasa.

The Koroška Business Incubator hopes to inspire young entrepreneurs with Maja’s story. The Incubator plans to organize a number of entrepreneurship workshops in the near future, as well as a competition for the best business idea.

Lea Vornšek, TV Slovenija; translated by D. V.