Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ismael Wayne. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ismael, appreciate you joining us today. One deeply underappreciated facet of entrepreneurship is the kind of crazy stuff we have to deal with as business owners. Sometimes it’s crazy positive sometimes it’s crazy negative, but crazy experiences unite entrepreneurs regardless of industry. Can you share a crazy story with our readers?

This actually happened a couple of months ago. So I had to travel to Dallas for my job so I could attend a week long course to obtain a certification. Prior to me leaving, I provided my customers with enough product to last them for a time while I was gone. I was essentially treating this business trip like an unofficial vacation from my business. When I arrived in Dallas and got to my hotel, there was a bar/restaurant that’s a couple of floors below my room. It looked intriguing and wanted to visit it . I went to my room, unpacked my stuff and posted an IG story of the view of the city from my room. A friend of mine who also owns a business in St. Louis (shout out to Mia’s Treats Delights), hit me up and asked, “what was I in Dallas for”? I told her that I was there for business and she responded, “are you there for business or YOUR business”? After that question was asked, my unofficial vacation effectively ended and my business mind turned on.

I went to the restaurant that was a couple of floors down and spoke with a musician who was setting up for her set. She invited me to come down to the restaurant later on for an event where she was going to be performing. I came down a couple of hours later, watched the performance and she introduced me to a couple of people. One turned out to be the GM of the restaurant and the other was the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the restaurant. I informed them of my business and they wanted to try my products and scheduled a meeting for the following Friday.. So now I’m in a new city and have to figure out 1. where am I going to get ingredients to make banana pudding? 2. How am I going to fix a cheesecake for them? 3. How am i going to fix this in a hotel room? All while trying to study to get this certification for my job.

My classes started and as were doing introductions, I informed the class of my business and the products that I made and they wanted to try my products as well. So after class, I took an Uber to the nearest Walmart/Sams Club and bought my ingredients and a hand mixer. When I came back, I had to make a makeshift double boiler using a large pot and a small pot and since I didn’t have an oven, I had to make my cookie mix using a skillet. I was able to make a banana pudding for my class and they absolutely loved it. So much so that two of my classmates who were from the Dallas area offered their kitchen to me to make cheesecakes. I was in utter shock and was like, “what is going on? This is surreal”, So I took my classmate up on her offer. She took me to pick up more equipment, more ingredients and all I needed to do to repay her was to make her a cheesecake. I was able to make my cheesecakes in her kitchen and while the cheesecakes were baking, we took the certification exam. The cheesecakes came out perfect and her family tried it and absolutely loved it. I took an Uber back to the hotel and the next day, met with the GM of the restaurant and the Executive Chef and had them try my desserts. They loved it as well.

I’m honestly not sure what will come of that opportunity, but I honestly saw this as a test as to how much I wanted to succeed. Going to a new city, networking, being resourceful, capitalizing on an opportunity and seeing how once you start moving, how more opportunities open up was just the business experience happening in one week. It taught me that your business is never off. You should always be building, be resourceful, be bold, be confident be sure of yourself and your abilities to make the best products that you can be. Doesn’t matter the circumstances. History doesn’t care about what ifs; it only cares about what’s done.

Oh, and I passed my certification exam.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Ismael Wayne and I’m the owner of Puddin Puddin. We specialize in baking homemade, made-from-scratch banana pudding and various cheesecakes. We provide an “Old School dish” with a “New School twist”. I got into making desserts because I was unemployed and I needed something to bring in income as a newly married man. What sets us apart from other businesses is our consistency to our craft. We work tirelessly on our recipe to ensure that our products taste as amazing on the 99th time as it did on the 1st time. I’m most proud of the progress that we’ve been able to make as a very small brand. We aim for higher heights, of course, but when people say, “hey, aren’t you the puddin guy”, its a surreal feeling that I hope to build upon. Just know that when you try one of our products, you will know quality, flavor, and some of the best damn cheesecake that you’ve ever had. All facts, no cap.

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

The number one thing that has helped build my reputation is the quality of my products. A lot of my clientale I have received from Word of Mouth. From businesses that I work with, to customers telling other customers, to other business owners telling their customers, the quality of my products and my supporters have done a lot of the heavy lifting marketing-wise.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I want to use this to give a special thanks to Telie Woods, Tameka Stigers, Reginald Quarles, Michael Jones, and Jason Lamont. Many, many hands have helped with the making of my company, but these people have really pushed me and taught me many things that have immensely helped my growth as an entrepreneur. Showing me that the grind doesn’t stop and also showing me that the little things matter. Books that I can definitely recommend that also helped me through this journey are “How to have Confidence and Power in Dealing with People” by Les Giblin, “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie, “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu, “The Magic of Thinking Big” by David Schwartz, and “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg. All of these books, along with “Think and Grow Rich” and “Outwitting the Devil” by Napolean Hill, were instrumental in teaching me how to strategize, how to talk to customers and business owners alike, and how to improve myself daily. Your business will only sustainably grow as far as your mind does.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.puddinpuddin.com
• Instagram: pudnpudn
• Facebook: pudnpudn

Image Credits
Joseph Stegall, JHP Films