Meet a small business owner whose business became a lifeline connecting her to her culture and traditions.

Sonya Braich worked as an accounting clerk for 25 years before being laid off and turning to entrepreneurship as a path forward. Small Business BC sat down with Sonya just after she launched Gheelicious to learn more about how she got started and where her passion for ghee will take her.

The Road to Starting A Business

When Sonya was laid off, it was quite difficult for her, and she was at a crossroads.

“But then I was like, what do I do now? Starting a business, obviously, is pretty scary. It’s quite risky.” She says she would not have started her business without the support she received from Employ To Empower. She saw a flyer for the organization and joined a workshop to learn more.

“From there, I took their 10-week business skills course, which completely changed my trajectory,” said Sonya. “Not only did it provide me with basic skills and an understanding of what it is to be an entrepreneur…but it gave me hope,” she said.

Connecting to Her Family and Culture

Gheelicious led Sonya on a personal journey of self-discovery and cultural reconnection. As a child of immigrant parents, she grew up in the Lower Mainland and faced discrimination and bullying.

“Now that times have changed and I’ve gotten older, there’s much more permission to be who you are…Ghee is really allowing me to embrace my background and who I am. It’s also become a way to bond with my aging parents; it’s become this beautiful family bonding I was also seeking.”

Sonya says her parents are proud of her growing ghee business because it honours their story and lineage. They came to Canada from India in the 1960s and faced many challenges, including racism. Now, Gheelicious is a way to honour her culture and lineage.

“Our mission with ghee is really to be a product that bridges those cultures and generational timelines together.”

All About Ghee

Ghee is clarified butter. It is lactose-free, shelf-stable, rich in health benefits, and it’s been an important ingredient in Ayurvedic medicine for thousands of years. When making ghee, you remove the milk solids and impurities, and the water and moisture evaporate. The result is a “golden goodness of healthy fat,” said Sonya.

“I would love to see people use ghee in their homes as their go-to healthy fat; the uses are quite versatile,” said Sonya. “You can use ghee to butter your toast or deep fry and everything in between.”

What sets Gheelicious apart is that Sonya also makes flavoured ghee. She has classic, savoury, and sweet flavours. The savoury flavour is made with lemon pepper, black salt, and garlic powdered by her cousin from their organic farm in Burnaby.

The sweet option is flavoured with a special family blend of chai masala mix and sweetened with pure, organic molasses.

“I aim to provide convenient, versatile, creative alternatives to what people are already using,” said Sonya. She’s also working on an upcoming spicy flavour. Considering ghee’s many benefits – it’s abundant in vitamin E and acts as a natural emollient, she may expand into a skincare line in the future.

Business Challenges and Opportunities

After participating in an Employ to Empower course, which gave her hope and confidence, Sonya was ready to launch.

“I don’t want to go through life without giving it a shot,” said Sonya. “The biggest challenge for me is confidence…Even though I feel that this will be big and I’m just starting to scratch the surface, there’s always that self-doubt,” she said.

“When you’re an entrepreneur, there’s a lot of instability and uncertainty. You don’t know what’s going to happen and you just have to go for it.”

Sonya says that Employ to Empower has provided support, care, and mentorship long after her 10-week business skills program ended. “They’ve provided me with so many opportunities.”

For example, someone at the Better Life Foundation saw a post on social media and reached out to Employ To Empower to inquire about bulk ordering ghee for an event.“So I got my first bulk order within two weeks of the launch,” said Sonya.

Optimism for the Future

“Who I was a year ago to who I am now…it’s like a complete turnaround,” said Sonya. Since launching Gheelicious, the business has been on the up and up.

“I have this intuitive sense it’s going to be big …I believe in Gheelicious, and I have this feeling that it’s going to take off.”

Sonya hopes that Gheelicious helps support people in the kitchen and in their overall wellness.

“I’m very passionate about the product. I grew up on it. I come from generations of ghee makers; that’s not uncommon; in most Indian households, ghee is a staple,” she said.

While you may catch Gheelicious at a local farmers market soon, Sonya just signed a deal with her first-ever retail store and will be on shelves soon.

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