We were lucky to catch up with Anthony Bushee recently and have shared our conversation below.

Anthony, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Alright, so one thing we think people don’t talk about nearly enough is investments – either time or money. What’s one of the best or worst investments you’ve made and what did you learned from the experience?

Carolina Jax, then operating under a different name, started off as the smallest food truck in Jacksonville. Built on a single axle 6×12 enclosed trailer, it was half the size of a traditional truck and a third the size of some large trailers. When we started doing bigger events I had the challenge of being able to stand out and not get dwarfed by some of these larger rigs. My solution was simple. I couldn’t build a longer trailer because of the cost involved. I would have essentially had to start over. After careful consideration there was only one logical option, I had to go up! I got in contact with a local welder and we fashioned a ridiculously oversized 4’x12’ metal sign over the service side of my trailer that read, “Award-winning Angus Burgers.” This has sense become our motto. Not only did it make the appearance of our trailer larger, I could now see the giant red and white sign from all the way across a field at events. Sales went up an immediate 30-40% and we were able to get into more high profile events. Sure we caught some flack from other food truck owners but with our wins at several food truck rallies and burger competitions, the sign was not only validated but a testament to the level of quality and care that went in to making Carolina Jax the best burgers in Northeast Florida and beyond! As Carolina Jax has grown from the food truck into a brick and mortar that motto still hangs on our windows today.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Anthony Bushee and I have worked in kitchens nearly my entire life. A bulk of my experience has came from high stress restaurants specifically Waffle House so when the idea came up to open a food truck it was a no brainer. I am originally from Greensboro, NC but used to visit Jacksonville often. I began to notice the developing food truck scene which fascinated me as we didn’t have any of these back home. After meeting my wife here and having our first son, we decided to make the move to Jacksonville to start our new family. With a little money, a dream and a false sense of reality I opened up my first food truck. The original goal was to bring Carolina BBQ down south but that failed horribly. I didn’t do my market research and there were too many similar concepts out that were already established. Through my, “do or die,” stages I began to notice something. There was a void in the market for really good burgers and that was the only thing selling on my menu. Naturally, I quickly changed gears and made it my mission to create the best burgers in Northeast Florida. To this day our goal has been to constantly improve and push the bar for great burgers even higher. We are consistently named best burgers in town by the local media outlets and influencers, winning several awards. Our brand has made it to South Beach Wine and Food Festival with exposure to hundreds of thousands of people. Carolina Jax was filmed for an episode of Cooking Channel’s Food Paradise and I myself was a contestant on the season 30 opener of Guy’s Grocery Games. Having gained so much popularity in the community has allowed me to give back in ways I never thought possible. I’ve been invited as a celebrity chef at several fundraisers including Clara White Mission’s Miracle on Ashley Street, have been a guest judge at local food competitions and even got to cook alongside one of my idols George Motz at a Burger Benefit in Atlanta, GA. Burgers may not be able to change the world but they can change the way you feel and that’s a good start.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I would consider marketing/advertising to be one of my strongest attributes. Some people get in this business and focus on one thing, food. In order to be successful you have to look beyond that and find out how to get that incredible food into people’s faces. Social media has been a long road of persistence and perseverance for me. I started my Instagram and Facebook accounts early on and watched others to learn what kind of posts were most effective. Over the years I have found that timing plays a big role. Learning what days and times get the most exposure by reading your analytics and understanding them. Understanding what your target audience is and the best ways to connect with them. Quality consistent posting and content is also very important. You need to come up with clever eye-catching content to stop your viewers from scrolling and double tapping that like button. Through Instagram specifically is where I met some of my most valuable connections like my good friend Burger Beast in Miami and that’s where the television scouting agents found me. My biggest advice for anyone looking to build and grow your social media is to use patience. Nothing happens overnight but if you keep working at it and putting the effort into the right places it will grow.

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

I believe the thing that started to build our reputation was just to put out the best product possible. Take criticism and listen to your customers because they will tell you what you’re doing wrong. In the early stages I was all ears and so eager to perfect my craft. Trying new things on the menu and honing in on the ones that received the best feedback was a great tactic. One of the most popular burgers on our menu and the one that won us our first food truck rally went through three iterations before landing on what it is today. Being able to take that criticism and humble yourself is also very important with customer retention. We are far from perfect and when a customer shares a negative experience I immediately jump to what I need to do to make it right and salvage that relationship. I’ve learned over the years that people are looking at how you react to any given situation. All complaints are handled with professionalism and the desire to learn and grow. The thing that continues to build and grow our reputation are these simple fundamentals and business philosophies that I have had since day one. Never settle. Never stop improving.

Contact Info:

• Website: carolinajax.com
• Instagram: @carolinajax904
• Facebook: fb.com/carolinajax904
• Yelp: https://m.yelp.com/biz/carolina-jax-jacksonville
• Other: Google Carolina Jax

Image Credits
Cover picture – World Red Eye