We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rosie Coca a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Rosie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

Back in 2020, I purchased an ice cream truck business from someone who was moving out of state. I was a stay at home mom of 2 and had no idea on how to run an ice cream truck business or even drive a big box truck. After weeks of weighing the pros and cons of running an ice cream truck business, I decided to take the risk. I took over the business the in March, the week right before The Covid shut down. Not knowing that the country was going to be shut down and there wouldn’t be any gatherings, I was concerned that I had made a mistake. I decided to stick the truck in storage and had to cancel all of the events that were already on the calendar for 2020 (booked by previous owner.) My new business was on hold, the ice cream truck was in storage and the world was just trying to stay safe. Then 2 months later, we were able to have small outdoor gatherings. So the truck came out of storage and I started doing small drive by events such as birthdays and neighborhood get togethers. People were home and could be outside, so the Hot Pink Truck was able to bring some joy in a safe environment during a bleak time. This is how my business stayed afloat for the rest of 2020. Then 2021, people were slowing able to come into the office. We did lots of corp events for employee appreciation. 2021 was mostly corporate events. Then 2022 was when my business started to really take off. We had a lot of new clients and repeat clients. The risk I took in 2020 is now a thriving business and not to mention, I’m pretty good at driving a big box truck now.

Rosie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

We are a family run business in South Orange County. The original owners of Just Chill’n Ice Cream Truck ran it as a mother/daughter business for 12 years. I met the owner when I hired her for my daughter’s 6th birthday party. We continued to work with her for a year with school and community events. When she moved out of state, her youngest daughter wanted my daughter to have the truck, and so here we are. Just Chill’n Ice Cream Truck continues to be ran as a mother/daughter business today. We are in our 4th year in business. We are not your everyday ice cream truck that drives around the neighborhood. We set ourselves apart by providing more than just ice cream. We are an experience, a photo op, and the talk of the party. Just Chill’n Ice Cream Truck caters to each client to ensure their events are memorable. Let our old school box truck give your next event that special wow factor. We cater corp events, birthday parties, weddings, school events, church events, and many more. We have a wide variety of childhood favorites and new flavors for your guests to choose. We also have gluten and dairy free options avail. We have different packages to fit all budgets. Let the HOT pink ice cream truck cater your next event and make it extra special.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I know that I’m not the only ice cream truck in Orange County. In fact, I make an effort to get to know many ice cream truck owners. I actually refer business over to them, when I’m booked. When I’m not available, my main concern is that people can still have the joy of an ice cream truck at their event. When you book with Just Chill’n Ice Cream Truck, not only will you be provided with the best customer service, you can count on us. You won’t believe how many times I’ve had people call saying that the truck they reserved didn’t show up or called them day of and said they wouldn’t make it. We know some trucks will cancel on a booking if a bigger and better event comes along. With Just Chill’n, if you are booked with us, we will always show up. If we encounter mechanical issues where our truck can’t make it, we have always been able to call on other ice cream trucks that we trust to help us out. Not only do we have a good reputation with our clients, we also have a good reputation with colleagues of the same trade.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been word of mouth. I have been blessed to get new clients that have been referred to me by previous clients. It’s also very important to maintain repeat clients. I always reach out to previous clients yearly and following up to reserve their dates for them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://justchillnicecreamtruck.com
• Instagram: @justchillnicecreamtruck
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/justchillnicecreamtruck
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/just-chilln-ice-cream-truck-laguna-hills?uid=Mn3dillSsWIjHz7AviS7Ig&utm_campaign=www_business_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct)