A girl with many talents Lisa Kelly.
Recently, more and more people are trying Vegan food. Curiosity, care for the environment, or dietary restriction, for whatever reason, a new consumer market has wide opened up for businesses and foodies exploring. As many stores open in big and small cities to meet the rising demand. The recent hit of Covid19 forced many vendors to close their shop temporarily or permanently. In the middle of what experts say and an economically challenging time, A new vendor opens her vegan business in Cincinnati.
On the road through Jefferson avenue at the edge of Burnett woods stands a food truck with a catchy name, 'Vegan Treats Eats and Meats', every Thursday to Sunday. Often attracting confused customers with a tongue-twisting name. Many loyal customers flock back to indulge in their favorite soul food stop. Opened only on February 5th, Vegan Treats Eats and Meats is owned by Lisa Kelly (35), a proud black woman, and her husband Jamal (39). Three months since the enterprise opened, the response for their recipes is overwhelming. Grinding in the tiny kitchen of the food truck, which can barely scoot three people for practical reasons, currently hire only two employees: the head chef Lisa and her sous chef Jamal. Outside, the truck is managed by Lisa's mom, Zena. At the age of 50, she meticulously engages with her customers and keeps their orders in a regular check. They cook, pack and deliver delicious vegan soul food while maintaining all the covid19 restrictions.
Owner of several fashion businesses, Lisa extends services for hair, nail, and boutique for a range of customers. All the startups are running since 2019, the pandemic has been economically blooming for the fresh entrepreneur. Every Mon & Tuesday taking care of her hair appointments, the growing food truck business helped the hair business grow alongside. Booked for the whole month, she is grateful for her family's support. She recently turned into an ardent follower of Christianity. She, apart from her family, equally had a few words in praise of God for help.
Since 2011 and married in 2017 four years ago, Jamal had a severe health condition and was admitted to hospital. After a long haul of treatment, Jamal was back home, but Lisa was not ready to go back to their old ways of eating, at the risk of hurting his health. The meats were thrown out, and the fridge was emptied, leftovers were shared with family and neighbors. Along with her husband, Lisa went on an Alkaline diet for some time. After thorough research, the contents of the fridge were replaced by vegan goods. Eventually, Vegan, Lisa, and Jamal kept looking for good Vegan places to eat themselves for three years. After finding minimal options, Lisa started creating her own recipes.
Working through all the challenges, they initially wanted to open a restaurant but kept covid19 restrictions in mind. They knew maintaining a restaurant would be difficult.
Moving from Norwood to College Hill, Clifton, and finally Jefferson. The food truck, since opening, faced several hurdles with finding a spot for their shop. Struggling to license their vehicle and a place to park, the hunt for an economic inventory continues. Initially located in College Hill, one evening after a college party, a flock of students stopped to try their food. Since that day, the response was overwhelming, struggling to take and prepare orders. Zena walked in to get some food and roped in to manage customers, selling loyalty cards and arranging receipts.
Lisa adds, "Everybody is here working hard, everything was a challenge initially from procuring inventory, to setting up the truck with equipment, and getting licenses to run the place. From moving one location to another, finally we are in Ludlow (Jefferson). If we can stay here for at-least 40 days without a need to shift locations. That will be amazing."
After switching their diet, soon extra pounds were dropped, and the couple realized they not only become slimmer but fit too. Their newfound lifestyle was met with protests from mom Zena. Every visit insisted on feeding her newly skinny daughter a whole Christmas dinner. But now, roped in the business, Lisa was able to change her mind, and now she has something else to say, "I love their food soo much, I'm ready to switch my whole diet."
Financially careful, Lisa doesn't indulge in expensive habits. Growing up in New Orleans, she didn't have the best financial or family life. So now, as an adult, Kelly knows how to make her ends meet without breaking a sweat, but a few years ago, things were not the same. After finishing high school, she decided to study cosmetology. Due to financial circumstances, college was not an option. Still passionate about hair, nails, and fashion, she started doing hair for another black woman at the early age of 12. It only felt right to pursue it as a career. Grinding through cosmetology school, a sense of mediocrity loomed over her. "My peers were just better than me at work." and a feeling of being ordinary halted her. She met Jamal and years went by smoothly, helping her husband at his family construction business. Something was still missing. Years of insecurity, and a never-ending sense of unfulfillment, she finally decided it was time for her to pursue her dreams in fashion.
Lisa is a music creator and has received the Female rap artist award at DSMI awards in 2016. In the end, after she opened her businesses and started sharing her brand and music, an idea came across of sharing her vegan recipe. A culinary graduate Jamal had a long old dream of opening a restaurant, and mixing their motivation, the food truck came into existence.
Rushing for a meeting, a customer needed some fast food. No time to stand and eat, she ran to her car and was about to proceed for her meeting when the smell of her freshly packed food churned her stomach with hunger. Thinking she will just take a bite and rush out of parking, she ended up finishing her whole meal in a matter of few mins and came back to get some more for the road. Many customers who are not in a rush to be anywhere often hang around the gardens of Burnett woods, soaking the calm wind of bright spring. Spotted talking to the manager after placing their order, Courtney says, "We really like the chocolate cake, its very rich. The juices are really good. We are trying several things today, but probably it's the best vegan meal we have had." Joining her, Josh Shultz says, "It's our second time here, we have been here only once before, and we came back only in a week."
Their business extended into Jamal's family, where his mom Joyce an ex-employee at IRS, takes care of their paperwork. Just three months since opening and years of dreaming, Jamal says, "I'm living my dream." The food truck, 'Vegan Eats Treats and Meats,' is on its way to settle down, plan to hire more employees, and open franchises around Cincinnati once the pandemic ends. Until then, she admits the space is small, and staff is few, but working with family is a dream come true for all three. The story of the vegan food entrepreneur Lisa is a borrowed dream, pieced together with a lot of hard work, but it was ultimately possible with love and support. As Zena says, "everybody needs a little push, and little support, I'm always there for them for that."
Something to be understood out of Lisa’s enterprise is that, success has no set in stone path. Understanding one’s inner nuance, and following it through love, passion, and hard work can certainly lead to something fruitful. Thriving between the rosy customer service and logistical challenges, life with little faith can be worth enduring. Despite all the challenges Lisa and Jamal listed, emotional resilience for each other is trait they exuberant in life and business.
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