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In our Take 5 series, sponsored by Verizon, we ask women in business about unexpected challenges, their inspirations, recent wins, and how the free Verizon Small Business Digital Ready Program has helped propel their business forward.
Daniela Jordan-Villaveces
In this segment, V'Esther Brown, owner of Boomer's Kitchen & Cateringin Philadelphia, shares her journey from struggling to put her son through college to building a successful food truck and catering business.
What inspired you to start your food truck and catering business?
V'Esther Brown: In 2016, I didn't have the funding to get my son through college. I had no credit and I couldn’t get anyone to cosign a loan for me. I remember being at the university and him saying to me, ‘Nevermind mom, you don't have it.’ And I'm like, that's not your decision to make. We're going to figure this out. I needed $1,700 a month to be able to send my son to school. All I knew how to do was cook. I started fundraising and I would sell breakfast platters from my house every weekend. I couldn't believe the numbers. My community showed up for me and literally put my son through college for a full year with no loans. I was like, if I can send a kid through college, the possibilities are endless for Boomer's Kitchen.
That's amazing. How did the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready Program propel your business forward from that point?
V'Esther: My husband called me one day and said, ‘I just bought you a truck.’ And I was like, what? He was like, ‘Yeah, I just bought you a truck. You figure it out.’ I took out all of my savings and started the food truck business.
Then Covid hit and Philadelphia shut down all the food trucks. That’s around the time Verizon came up with the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready Program. When I say everything was aligned for me, I truly believe that because Verizon helped me build my food truck business. First, they gave me a grant, and then I started taking the free courses, and I loved it. No business background, at that time, no college degree. Those courses really helped me.
The one-on-one social media course really stood out to me the most. The instructor just helped me elevate my Instagram, helped me understand algorithms and how to reach the audience I wanted to reach. I also learned how to improve my website, how to bring traffic to my website outside of Instagram, and how to promote my business on Google. I benefited from those two the most because they helped me elevate sales.
What's the most unexpected business challenge you've faced and how did you overcome it?
V'Esther: My sister passed away. She was part of the beginning stages of the business. It was 2022 and festivals were finally coming back to the city. It was rough getting back into the swing of things because I wanted her to always be a part of this process with me. But my sister always struggled with addiction, which is why I always tried to keep her close to me. At the same time, it also pushed me harder. There are kids, neighbors, people who look up to me, especially since I built the business, and I didn’t want to let them down.
What’s a recent small win for you and your business?
V'Esther: I just got the biggest contract of my career for production catering, which is three weeks away, a six-figure contract, all coming from the knowledge that I've gained from the Verizon program. It helped me understand what I needed to do to get these contracts, understanding contracts, and just seeing how I can continually progress since this program. I'm very happy with my progress.
What advice do you have for other small business owners on similar journeys?
V'Esther: Stick to your gut. Don't listen to friends and family who tell you no. It’s ok to think outside the box. Think of something in your business that, within 10 to 20 years, they will still need that product from you. Food is never going anywhere. Just being firm on your beliefs, and if it crashed and burned, it crashed and burned because of something you did and not what someone else told you you should do. Thinking outside that box is what took me to the higher level of where I am now. It all just aligned with my son needing money for college and someone seeing something in me on the other side that I didn't see in myself.
Learn more about the free Verizon Small Business Digital Ready Program and Boomer's Kitchen & Catering.
Illustration by Daniela Jordan-Villaveces
