Idaho Mom Turns Middle East Discovery Into Date Syrup Business Projected To Nearly $10 Million

A product she tasted while living abroad has become a full-time company that started as a weekend project.

Colleen Sundlie, a 50-year-old mother of five from Moscow, Idaho, built Date Lady after spotting pure date syrup in a United Arab Emirates market and finding no comparable options back home. What began as a side endeavor has grown over 15 years into a branded line of organic date syrups, spreads and sauces manufactured in Springfield, Missouri, and is on pace to bring in roughly $10 million this year after topping more than $2 million in revenue in 2021 and reaching about $6.8 million a few years later.

Sundlie says the idea came while her family was posted to Al Ain for her husband’s work. She was struck by how commonly dates appeared at gatherings and how they were used in everyday cooking. Curious, she bought a jar of syrup, tested it at home and discovered a flavor and nutritional profile that she felt American shoppers were missing. “I believed there was a demand here,” she said in a recent interview, describing the product as a straightforward alternative to refined sugars.

Getting Date Lady off the ground required research and travel. Sundlie and her husband scouted suppliers at international food fairs in Germany and Dubai, spending roughly $5,000 on travel and about $60,000 to import an initial shipment and outfit a small bottling area. Early financing came from friends, family and a local bank rather than venture capital, she said, a choice that let the founders keep control while growing gradually.

The company has focused on wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels and on keeping ingredient lists simple. Its offerings, made in the Midwest, are aimed at shoppers seeking less-processed sweeteners and pantry items labeled organic. Sundlie says the business deliberately avoided aggressive exit planning and instead prioritized steady expansion, hiring as demand rose and moving from a hobbyist setup to a larger production footprint.

Outside experts say the timing helped. A nutrition consultant noted that interest in whole-food sweeteners and clean-label products has risen, with roughly one out of three consumers saying they actively look for alternatives to refined sugar. A small-business analyst added that starting with modest investments and family backing is a common path for food entrepreneurs who later scale through both retail partnerships and e-commerce.

Sundlie credits community support and persistence for the company’s gains. She still describes parts of the work as hands-on and plans additional product introductions and wider retail placement. For many shoppers, the brand represents a taste that traveled across continents and took root in the American grocery aisle.