Vital Stats
- Website:www.hihoneyinfusions.com
- Email:info@hihoney.co.za
- Facebook:Click here
- Orders:+27 23 614 2801
When Patrick O’Shea first started theHi Honeyrange of honey infusion products from his Montagu home kitchen in 2015, nothing could have prepared him for the success that would follow.
Now just over a year later, Hi Honey Infusions has become a thriving, well-loved brand in the homes of many South Africans on their quest to live a healthy lifestyle.
We recently chatted to him about Hi Honey’s humble beginnings and his vision for the future.
It all started with a love affair with honey…
Patrick has loved honey since he could remember and his earliest memory was of the little light blue honey containers called Champagne Honey.
“My dad was a musician/entertainer on the Holiday Inn circuit during the mid-70’s in South Africa and we used to stay in the hotels he played at. I couldn’t wait for breakfast time so I could claim a few of them,” reminisces Patrick.
The concept of combining honey and organics was still relatively new around the time Patrick began experimenting with it: “In early 2015 I read an article about the amazing health benefits of combining honey with cinnamon. Besides sounding delicious it also piqued my interest and I began researching the availability here in South Africa for such a product. I didn’t find any flavoured honey products and so began to create a range of honey infusions in my kitchen at home.”
After developing the recipes and manufacturing process, Patrick approached local Montagu business, Roscherr’s/Church Street. Managing Director Kallie Fourie and Production Head Martin Roscherr saw the brand potential and agreed to make the range.
The rest is history.
“They have been absolutely amazing since the first batch of Hi Honey Infusions were made last year,” says Patrick. “In June last year I was only supplying a few shops in the Montagu area. By November the range became available in Montagu Dried Fruit and Nuts stores nationwide through Roscherr’s/Church Street.”
Honey and a healthy lifestyle
Only honey produced by South African bee keepers is used, primarily from the Western Cape area, to manufacture Hi Honey products. The honey is infused with certified organics which are sourced from around the world, except the Rooibos and soon to be released Baobab honey, which come from South Africa.
Since ancient times, the health benefits of honey haves been recognised and celebrated:
“Honey has so many amazing properties and health benefits. It is a really good, healthy food choice and pure honey is known to help build your immunity against sickness,” Patrick explains. “Honey contains simple sugars, which are not the same as white sugar or artificial sweeteners. Its exact combination of fructose and glucose actually helps the body regulate blood sugar levels. Some honeys have a low hypoglycaemic index, so they don’t jolt your blood sugar.”
Natural, raw honey combined with the health benefits of organics like cinnamon, Rooibos, ginger and others offer people the best of both. “It also makes the honey experience more interesting and yummy!” says Patrick.
Hi Honey and Montagu: A proud partnership
Patrick says that the Montagu Dried Fruit and Nuts brand has been so supportive of this locally produced product from the start.
“Montagu CEO Hannes Jansen, Sales Director De Wet van Rooyen and Marketing Manager Liesl Carstens have and continue to give valuable advice and recommendations. Without their interest in the Hi Honey brand and products, I don’t think the business would be where it is today in such a short space of time,” explains Patrick.
“A small business that has great support from a big company forms the makings of something really special.”
New products and plans for the future
The Montagu franchise company recently turned five years old and Patrick was honoured to have been asked to launch the new alcohol- and preservative-free Hi 5 energy booster honey sachets to all the franchisees at the celebratory event in August 2016.
Patrick is constantly thinking of potential new combinations for the brand: “I think Hi Honey Infusions are a fresh new way to enjoy honey and I like the way they taste and look. The new addition to the range is Baobab and I think people are really going to enjoy the creamy fruity flavour,” he says.
Serving suggestions?
Hi Honey can be enjoyed over oats, on toast or a pancake, or in these other useful ways:
- A teaspoon of Hi Honey chocolate, cinnamon or cayenne in coffee
- Hi Honey Rooibos or ginger in tea
- Hi Honey chocolate with almond milk for a lactose-free hot chocolate
- Hi Honey cayenne or turmeric in a curry
When he’s not running a thriving business, Patrick enjoys writing music and performing, reading, travel, making aromatherapy products, spending time with his two children and family and, when time allows (of which there is so little these days), playing golf.
Hi Honey Infusions is a preferred supplier to Montagu Dried Fruit and Nuts stores nationwide.