We were lucky to catch up with Beau Weaver and Stephanie Cardarelli recently and have shared our conversation below.
Beau and Stephanie, appreciate you joining us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea
It was nearing the end of 2022 and we had just experienced a heart wrenching loss, the loss of what was supposed to be our second child and our sweet baby boy, Luca James. We only had four months to go before we welcomed him into our arms and into our world. But devastatingly, we never made it that far. A loss like this does something to the insides. It stirs up a fire of sorts that pushes you to go out on a limb and do something that feels wild and risky and yes, through the eyes of some, hella crazy. It pushes you to be bold and do something you might never have done otherwise because the fragility of life has hit you head on like a bag of bricks. You realize quickly that comfort zones are actually quite dangerous, and that there’s actually nothing comfortable about them. They provide us with the false notion that we have “plenty of time” to make things happen, to chase that dream or to start that business. They also keep us trapped in a state of fear and lack, like perhaps, we won’t be provided for or even worse, we might fail. And guess what? They’re wrong.
For myself, Stephanie, the idea of starting a business has always been embedded deep within, it has always just been a matter of what, how, where and when that held me back. I already knew the ‘why’. For Beau, starting a food truck had been on his mind for a little over a year before talks of actually bringing it into physical existence happened. It wasn’t until after our greatest loss when we realized we really had nothing to lose. We figured the worst-case scenario – we execute on our idea, we do everything in our might, grit and power to make it work, and still, we fail. Okay then, so what? We would still be alive, and as long as we have our lives, we realized, we can always start again. Failure doesn’t have to be the end of the road. So, at that point, we decided to couple our ideas of business ownership and food truck life into one and then give it everything we had and then some to make it all come to life. And we did just that.
The moments that followed our saying “yes” to the idea happened very quickly. The idea was accepted in December of 2022, and by early January, we had already purchased what would then become our Thai It Up Food Truck. The former FedEx step-van immediately went into complete overhaul mode so as to get it to its healthiest and most functional state as possible before it underwent its revamp and transition. Next up was to have our kitchen-on-wheels designed and constructed. We went on multiple road trips during this process – we purchased the step-van the next state over in Indiana and we had the inside setup built two hours south from us in Columbus. The ironic part? Our wheels have been turning ever since! Both figuratively and literally.
While fabrication of our mobile unit was underway, we got to work on figuring out our logo and outside truck design. With the help of other small business owners, we were able to agree on each very quickly. By May, we were up, running and ready to launch. From the moment we decided to go all in, to launching day at our first public event, it was a six-month whirlwind.
Sometimes you just have to get out of your head and into the “doing”, because that’s where true life, and business, happen. It has in no way been a smooth or easy ride for us. It’s actually been quite the opposite. But we wouldn’t change a thing about any of this journey so far. Because we love what we do, we love what we’ve created, and most of all, we love all the beautiful souls we’ve encountered along the way and in trust, graciously get to serve through our edible handiwork. And though life outside of business can sometimes get in the way causing lulls to happen, the driver’s seat is always right there waiting for you to get back inside, sit down, turn on the ignition of hope and inspiration, rev up that engine of creativity and new ideas, check the rearview mirror only to reflect and see where to ‘grow’, head back to the burners and ignite a few more sparks of gumption and courage before taking off, press that pedal of determination and start driving.
Forward. Only driving forward.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Beau has always, from a young age, had a gift for concocting food creations. Stephanie has a degree in business and a business mindset. A good friend of Beau’s introduced him to the food truck concept. All three of these ingredients mixed together initiated our entrance into the food truck industry. There is and always will be a need to fill bellies with tasty and quality-focused foods, and that is what we aim to do for our customers every single time we show up to serve them.
We are so grateful to those who helped us design our logo and our truck wrap, and we are also grateful for the entire development process that has made it what it currently is. We know and believe that without these essential pieces, Thai It Up would not be the same. It all came together perfectly, and we are so proud of that.
As for our product, we serve fresh and authentic Thai food with a couple Chinese options. And though we keep our menu focused on select dishes, Beau can really make just about anything. We only have so much space we can utilize on the truck, so we try to keep things simple, but suggestions for other food dishes are always welcome! We appreciate all tastes and want to accommodate where and when we can. Our meats and vegetables are locally sourced, and we serve only what’s fresh. Each entree comes prescribed a certain way, but outside of the sauce, if you wish to, you can pick and choose what you’d like in your meal. Last but not least, vegetarian and gluten-free options are available!
Where and when we serve – we are local to Akron, Ohio but will serve generally within an hour radius from there. We go up to Cleveland, down to Canton (even as far as Fresno), over to Wadsworth/Medina/Lakewood on one side, to Ravenna/Painesville on the other and all the way back around again. Not limited only to these locations, but just to give a general idea. We are open from April to November, with the end of the season being weather dependent.
You can book us for both public and private events by calling or emailing us! We also have a limited catering menu available for call ahead, bulk orders.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Last season, our second year in business, our truck went through a two-month testing and trial period of maintenance issues. It was one thing after another, and we discovered just about every auto shop in Northeast Ohio. Or so it felt. As a result, we had to cancel functions along the way, and this couldn’t have been more painful to do because all we could feel inside is how this makes us look so unreliable. If our truck can’t keep it together, how will people trust us to show up for them if they book us ahead of time? Will this affect bookings going forward? During this time, we realized all we could do was keep showing up when we could and get back on the road as fast as possible after an issue had been settled. Each issue caught us by surprise, so the sting of another cancellation cut very deep each time. But we knew we couldn’t quit. Though we questioned multiple times if maybeee… we just should? We had to feel what we were feeling and press on anyway, in spite of the obstacles before us. We knew quitting was never an option. We eventually found the light at the end of the tunnel, finished our season off strong and tried our best to look on the bright side – that maybe all these fixes were merely just improvements so that we could come out full throttle during our third year? At least, that is our hope! And we will we do our very best to keep that as so!
How do you keep your team’s morale high?
Keep in constant communication with your team, and that doesn’t mean do all the talking. Listen as much as you talk, in fact, listen more. Have your set protocol for how you want things done but still allow people some freedom and space to do things their way so long as it is ethical and doesn’t steer from the end goal. Your team looks to you to set the tone for the environment, and the tone of the environment plays a big part in determining morale. Keep a positive and uplifting environment. Provide incentives when and where you can. Encourage and provide opportunities for growth.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thaiitup.foodtruck/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thaiitupfoodtruck/
Image Credits
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