Title: Owner
Company: Miel
Location: Duluth, MN
Education: Coursework, Lake Superior College (2022-Present)
Career History: Owner, Miel (2022-Present)
Vanessa N. Roers, owner and Chief Financial Officer at Miel, has been recognized as a Marquis Emerging Leader for their contributions and achievements in the field of business.
Wielding a strong work ethic, innovative ideas, and a determination to carry on her mother’s legacy, Ms. Roers has excelled since 2022 as the owner, Chief Financial Officer, and wholesale and productions manager at Miel, LLC—a beloved company that has provided all-natural honey and beeswax-based products since 2010. Based in Duluth, Minnesota, Miel was started by her father, Mark, the company’s beekeeper known as “The Honey Guy,” and co-run by her mother, Sharilyn, “The Queen Bee,” who developed the recipes for their many available beeswax products, including lip balm, lotions, and soaps. Ms. Roers joined the business in 2020, focusing on the production side of things, and inherited the business and marketing operations after her mother’s passing in January 2022.
Since taking up new responsibilities at Miel, Ms. Roers has showcased expertise in bookkeeping, accounting, social media, and the beeswax products her mother handled. Among these products, she is most proud of the company’s lotion and lip balm, which utilizes all-natural ingredients and has a long-term goal of transitioning from fragrance to essential oils. The company’s products—from honey to lotion and lip balm to honeycomb and plastic squeeze bottles to honey sticks and bags, gift baskets, and more– are sold in stores throughout the state of Minnesota and across the globe since launching its online shop. She is also currently attending Lake Superior College as a full-time student in pursuit of a degree in accounting and bookkeeping as a way of supporting her administrative duties at the company. She has been featured in Voyage Minnesota Magazine.
Before joining the family business, Ms. Roers was a stay-at-home mother to her three children, Evelyn, Axel, and Odin—all of whom now enjoy “checking the bees” with their grandfather. Her husband, Keith, also lends a hand with honey production since retiring from the Navy in 2022. When she isn’t working at Miel, she enjoys running marathons, reading, and gardening.