Latino Vegano
Latino Vegano
LYV184: How I Turned a Closed 🍨Ice Cream Shop into a 🚚Business Opportunity | @chilled.coco @latino.vegano
From IT analyst to vegan ice cream entrepreneur—my twenty-year journey as a vegan has culminated in the creation of Houston's most unique frozen treat experience. When my favorite vegan ice cream shop in Austin closed its doors, I didn't just lament the loss of great desserts; I recognized an opportunity to fill a void in the market while staying true to my values.
Drawing on analytical skills honed through years in information technology, I approached building my business with methodical precision. Rather than becoming overwhelmed by the enormity of entrepreneurship, I broke the process down into small, achievable goals—a technique borrowed from agile project management. This step-by-step approach allowed me to transform a vision board dream into a tangible business serving thousands of customers.
What makes our venture special is both the product and the philosophy behind it. We've created what may be the first ice cream truck that actually makes the ice cream on-site, offering fresh, 100% vegan frozen treats that never compromise on taste or ethics. Operating as a solo entrepreneur has its challenges, but it's allowed me to maintain complete control over quality and values. The business represents a perfect alignment of personal passion with professional ambition—proof that ethical entrepreneurship can thrive when approached with patience, planning, and purpose. Join me on this journey as I document the growth of this vegan ice cream concept from local favorite to what I hope will become a worldwide brand.
Have you visited us in Katy yet? If not, stop by or tell a friend about Houston's freshest vegan ice cream experience. Your support helps spread plant-based goodness one scoop at a time!
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What's up guys? Hey guys, so I wanted to share with you guys that in the past, what past year and a half, I've been working on my business and I actually decided to share a little bit with you guys, to kind of go over and share with you guys of what has Rodgers been doing the past year and a half that we don't really hear much from here on this blog and for the Latino Vegano. So I'm going to use Latino Vegano now to kind of share with you guys some of the inside of the business what I do. So actually I'm literally inside the business. So I wanted to use that space so I can share with you guys a little bit of what has been going on. I wanted to use that space so I can share with you guys a little bit of what is this I've been going on how's the business going, everything how I started it. I think it would be great if I start from the beginning, how the project started, because I'm getting a lot of questions based on that and then from there I can set way into, like, show you guys how the business is. But let me go ahead and do that first. Let me go ahead and share with you guys some of the inside of the business, and then we can go ahead and talk about more of like, some of the aspects, and you guys can ask me questions as I go forward with it. So I'm going to start sharing that with you guys. Let me know what you guys think. If you have any specific questions for me, let's go ahead and do that. Okay, all right? All right, guys. So that was our intro, right. And then, next thing, I want to talk to you guys about the last couple of years, how it's been.
Speaker 1:So, basically, about a year and a half, I embarked on this idea and this project of opening my own business right, and I always knew that it was going to be something related to vegan. As you guys know, I've been vegan for more than 20 plus years. I actually trained vegan in 2002. And I moved to the Us in 2005 and um, so I started being vegan when I was living in panama and then when I came to the us, you know, veganism kind of took off for me, because I was able to see a variety of products and food and whatnot and see the lifestyle from a different perspective. Not only that, but I was also able to meet a lot more vegans and whatnot. But anyway, so that's a little bit of what that story you guys know. There's a lot of information about my journey from a vegan perspective in previous episodes of my podcast that I highly suggest you guys to check. That I highly suggest you guys to check. But what I want to talk about is basically this whole journey.
Speaker 1:The past year and a half I embarked in this business and, for so many of you know, I have a background in IT. So that's my background. So I have my background in IT allows me to work in different sections of what we call IT. But I'm sure you're asking what IT has to do with. We're basically a business and not only that. But what I had to do is that when I work in IT, it allows me to work in different types of roles. So I work from basic roles to management roles, senior roles and a role specifically called analyst, right? So when you become an analyst, well, basically what you do is you look at processes and then you see how can you improve them. So now having management process and data and system allows you to kind of utilize those skill set to anything that you do in life, including your personal life to some extent, including your personal life to some extent.
Speaker 1:So I'll tell you all this, guys, because I've been wanting to open a food truck for many years. I don't know if I ever shared with you guys an experience that I had where somebody reached out to me. It was in the vegan community and then this specific person wanted to open a food truck and they reached out to me. So we can partner up and we can combine efforts so we can go ahead and promote and open up this business. And to me it was a very fascinating idea because at that specific point in my life I really wanted to focus on what was my next business venture. I already incursionated in e-commerce and I was also doing real estate and I wanted to also do something else besides that and I wanted to have some kind of physical, tangible product and I knew it was have to be something related to vegan and specifically with the food, because my recipes in my culinary expertise were kind of becoming even greater and greater and greater with time. So, with that said, this idea to me was like great. It was like amazing. I get to work on the business side, which I have, all the skillset that I already mentioned from the IT perspective, and then now I can combine those with somebody that has experience by cooking and being a chef previously and all that. So I said this is going to be an amazing partnership. So long story, short guys. The deal never completed. So we all now being able to finalize that. I was a bit disappointed because I was really looking forward to that next thing.
Speaker 1:So I put myself a goal that I, at some point, I'm going to open my own business. I'm going to open my own food truck if, if I share with you guys my vision board back in 2021 uh, around the pandemic, I put up a vision board and in the vision board I have a picture of a food truck and I included it in the picture that is going to be my own business. Is that in last year in 2024, I decided to. I was going to open my own business right, my own food truck. And the decision came from a long journey, experience working to different avenues to try to open this, the business that I have in in mind and which I already explained in several episodes of my podcast. And then um. But at the end of the day, um, the decision came, I decided to open an ice cream truck right, which is gonna probably be the first time that you're gonna to actually have an ice cream truck which is actually making the ice cream in the same truck. So, as you guys see, I'm actually inside the trailer or inside the truck. It's actually a food trailer, not a truck. He's going to be very political about it, but anyway, I know the term food truck is more popular, more familiar with than food trailer, but anyway. So the decision came that way.
Speaker 1:So my inspiration was I already had this vision from previous years. So this whole venture happened, this whole idea of concert initially happened. I want to say that was 2015,. 2014,. That I was going back and forth with this person about opening this business. So it took us about I don't know 6-7 years for me to kind of like finalize the detail and anyway the whole concert started. Seven years for me to kind of like finalize the detail and anyway the whole concert started.
Speaker 1:I wanted to open an ice cream store. It was initially going to be me selling popsicles and I started it because I was actually prepping for a show because most of you know that I'm a professional bodybuilder and I was prepping for a show and I wanted to get some kind of treat, plus my partner at the time, which now is my wife, she is lactal intolerance. So I was trying to find a way that I can manage to have treats, that we can have healthier treats, for example, specifically in that same line of ice cream and popsicles and stuff like that that I can have to be able to manage any between my dietary choices or my specific diet for the competition at that time choices or my diet or my or my specific diet for the competition at that time. So that's kind of like how the main concert started it. And the second thing that triggered that was my February ice cream.
Speaker 1:Um, ice cream place in Austin which is called Sweet Rital, close. So I did a trip to Austin and I noticed that the place closed. So I was so disappointed because it brought me so many memories, especially a memory where I went with Robert Sheik. I mentioned Robert in this because he was the one that first introduced me to this place in Austin. So that's how the first time I met this place was through Robert. And with that said, I realized that the place closed. So I reached out to the owners and they say, well, we close the business Now we are doing consulting and all these different things, right, great, so the consulting part.
Speaker 1:And then also I realized that, okay, well, there might be an opportunity here, because I had this many messages or many scenarios that are saying hey messages or many scenarios that are saying, hey, if you, you need to, you need to focus on this, there's something here. Right, there's an opportunity here. So that's what I decided to do. So I said you know what? I'm going to open my own business. I'm going to open an ice cream truck and I'm going to set it up here in the Houston area, houston surrounding area and we're going to expand and grow this thing to be a worldwide thing. Right, and this is our goal to be a worldwide thing. And that's pretty much how I started it. So I started putting the business plan, I put everything together, but the difference this time is I was taking action. I will generate the concept, the idea I was designing. So the way I do it and we can talk about this in another episode is that I will probably explain to you guys all the step-by-step things that I did for people out there that are more interested in opening their own business, because you can apply for anything some of the things that I did.
Speaker 1:But just to give you a high-level idea, I started working. I set up small, small, achievable goals. So that's something that I got from the IT perspective right, I was working more of an agile. What does it mean? Agile is that, instead of taking the entire project and try to complete it at once, you make small pieces, small pieces of the project, and then everything that you complete in a period of time keeps you closer to your end goal. So that's my approach.
Speaker 1:So, let's say, I'm going to give you a preferred example. Let's say you want to open an e-commerce store right, you want to open a store online. And then what you need to do come up with a name. You want to create a logo. You want to create. Come up with a name. You want to create a logo. You want to create a website. Then you got to get the product. You got to reach out to distributor.
Speaker 1:So, even if you don't have enough money to begin with, start making the things that you can do. Even if you don't have the resources or the financial resources to, let's say, buy the domain or buy the products, you can start doing small things. Like, for example, if you put yourself a goal to okay, I'm going to read or talk to 10 people that owns online stores, that's a goal you can go ahead and do that and you don't require any financial monetary, for example to be able to accomplish that. You go ahead and call those same folks, you conversate with them, talk to them and get some ideas, take some notes, for example, to be able to accomplish that. You go ahead and call those same folks, you conversate with them, talk to them and get some ideas, take some notes and then, once you complete that, then you move to the next step. Okay, now I'm going to think about how to brainstorm ideas for names and then you start creating small achievable.
Speaker 1:Achievable is the key goals that can put you closest to your end goal and by the time you realize you that can put you closest to your angle, and by the time you realize you have that project completed because you start making those small steps little by little. So now I took the same approach. Okay, well, now let me come up with a name. Let's go ahead and think about names. Let's go online. Let's go online, maybe use chat, gpt, so you can come up with some names. Now, let me come up with a logo. Okay, now I'm going to create a logo. Okay, what logo I use with this, so on and so forth. Decide All these different things that you start doing.
Speaker 1:So that was my main thing Just try to create small, achievable goals to get me closer. Once all that was completed and I have enough to get the project going, then you go ahead and get the project going. I mean, it is launching your website, even opening the store, even getting the funds, all those different things, and those things are going to happen for you. So that's what I did I put myself in the model of achievable goals and then I started doing it one by one and then to reach to a point that, okay, I was ready, I found a supplier, so I can start, so I can start building the vehicle, the trailer, customize it and they go from there. The rest is history.
Speaker 1:So that's how, in a high level, everything started for me, guys, and it was one of those experiences, right, that I literally want to tell you guys that it was a fun process and it was an amazing process, and there's things that I can improve or do better, which definitely I know that I can't and it was not a perfect path, right, but it was a great path and it's a supporting path. But it was a great path and it's an important path. Being able to know and define and go through that process allows you to be successful in every way. So I was able to see the things that I can improve now thinking, okay, well, I can do this better, I would have done this better, and I can talk about that too in other episodes. But I wanted to use this time, or this episode, just to talk to you guys about that, specifically how, how I started it, how everything was built for us to be able to have that business, how was the process, the concept, the way it came about, and then from there. So, once I decided I was going to open the business, I find a location and we start operation. So that's a completely different episode, right, because now we need to talk about how that happened, how that came out with the recipes. That's also another aspect. But what I wanted to share with you guys initially was that idea was happening. I already planned it from years ago to have this concept happening. I put it to work, the time was down and I decided to open.
Speaker 1:I launched this business solo, with no business partner. I'm not saying that that's always the right way. There's no wrong or right way. You might have an idea that you might want to launch with a friend or with a business partner. The one thing that I say there's a lot of benefits. There's pros and cons, both ways right. So there's benefit of launching a business with a partner because you guys put ideas together, put resources together. Maybe you guys complement each other. I think it's a great relationship that you can build and then you can build a business that way and then you share the wealth. It's excellent.
Speaker 1:Now, when you go solo, when you're a solo entrepreneur by yourself and there's no business partner, you're pretty much doing everything right. You're more controlled. You have more control of the business. You make the decisions. Everything relies on you. You succeed or you fail, it's all on you. But at the end of the day, a person that works solo knows that he or she requires a team to be able to grow that business 10 times to another level. So you have to be able to know that as well. So you have to become more of a leader at that point.
Speaker 1:So that's one of the things that I will share with you guys when it comes down to it. So I'll be making small, I'm making videos, that I'll be talking about different aspects of the business and how everything's play out. I'll try to make a continuation and try to share different things, but what I want to be able to reach out to you guys is that I'm going to start using this to be able to document, talk to you guys everything that is going on as far as the business, all the inside, uh, all the other context, some of many stuff that I've been noticing. So these are things you can learn. This is the stage of a life that I am now, and it's a great way to share that experience, share a lot of things with you guys and use a platform that I always use guys to share my personal stories my personal life from a vegan perspective Now. My personal life from a vegan perspective Now, flipping now from a vegan but now from an entrepreneur's perspective now, which is seeing this from a different perspective now for a different level. The great thing is that I never compromise my moral. So, even though we're doing business, my business is 100% vegan. Vegan is from the owner all the way to every single product, which is even greater Because now I get the opportunity to not only take my lifestyle from my personal standpoint but also into the business world, right when you are out there representing the movement, representing the lifestyle, representing everything that you all believe for right and do it in the right way. So for me, that's always been the main thing, and I'm very grateful for the community. I'm very grateful for everybody that supported the business. We have served thousands of people to this day and we've served millions more people and we're grateful for it.
Speaker 1:With this video and this message, if you're local and you know me, I'm not necessarily trying to just create content so I can have you guys come to the business. What I want to do is, if you know anyone that will definitely benefit from our products, let them know. Let them know that we have a business out there. That's probably the best way that we can, um, that we can get out there also wear them out, which is great. Let's go viral. And then they know people that, hey, there's a business right there in Katy, right now in Houston, that is, uh, having amazing products, uh, and not only that, but it comes from a great place too as well. So, all right guys, all right, I'll keep you guys posted. I'll do another video. We'll talk a little bit more about some of the aspects of the business. I'll probably give you guys a show around later and explain to you guys some of the stuff that we got going on how the business got situated.
Speaker 1:I think now you have now know, or have an idea, where the business concept came from, which is going to be my main topic here, where the business concept came from and why I decided to open this specific type of business. The business concept, like I mentioned, came from a long time day that I knew I was going to be a food truck, but the part of making the ice cream that I knew I was going to be a food truck, but the food, the part of making the ice cream truck, was because I was my favorite place closed and then I decided to say you know what? I'm going to open my own ice cream shop. I'm really passionate about making ice cream and making products, being creative and come up with all these different recipes and I, knowing the food, I could do it. And and I, knowing the food, I could do it. And I knew in the dessert side I could do it.
Speaker 1:There was a need, there is a need for the kind of product that we offer, and then I decided to say you know what, I'm going to be the one that's going to help provide that supply, that need, to the demand that we have currently. So we just need everybody's support to be able to reach out to more people. And that's what happened. The idea is there and now we just try to make the business even greater, to create better quality product, better quality items and reach out to more people, longer and longer. So that was part of the first episode and I'll go ahead and document more information for you guys in previous episodes. So stay tuned and see you guys in the next episode. All right, bye-bye.