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

Alright, Kamilah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

In 2015 my son, godson, nephews, and I took a trip to San Diego for a weekend getaway. I packed ingredients to make waffles for the weekend. My godson was nine at the time, He tasted my waffles for the first time that weekend. Almost immediately he said, “You should sell these”. A seed had been planted. But at that time, I could not envision selling a waffle. I could not fathom marketing a waffle, let alone, starting a waffle business. In 2018, all of that changed. I embarked on a transformational journey with Compass. I graduated from the Compass Leadership program in March 2018. Having gone through the leadership program, I realized I was not living my purpose. I knew I possessed many gifts, but I realized I was not giving them away as they were intended to be given away. I am most fulfilled when I am at the service of others. I have a gift to impact others and a gift of being naturally creative. Fast forward to July 2018. I just returned from New Orleans and Texas. Days before I was set to fly back home to California, a friend called and requested I host a brunch. She shared she had been craving my waffles and requested waffles be on the menu. I decided to host the brunch to appease the waffle craving, but to also celebrate a friend who was turning 40. With a moment’s notice, I sent a text for everyone to show up at my house on Sunday, July 15, 2018. Ironically when I landed at LAX on July 14, 2018, I ran into my cousin, from Chicago. He was there to surprise his now wife, but then girlfriend. I invited them to the brunch also. Because of my transformation, my awareness appeared heightened. The feedback I received on the day of the brunch seemed different than any other time I had received feedback for the waffles. And not to toot my horn, but honk honk, I received a lot of positive feedback when it comes to my waffles. The feedback I received on July 15th though, was different. The feedback was eye opening and confirmation. One of the gifts involved my waffle batter and feeding and servicing others. I began thinking about different ways to structure the business. Three weeks after the brunch, a co-worker turned angel and good friend, who attended the brunch, could not stop raving about the waffles from the brunch. I shared with her that I was finally thinking of starting a mobile waffle business. She was so impressed with the waffles and me, she invested $150 in my new business idea. I took the money and purchased new waffle irons. In the coming days, I knew I needed to come up with a business name. I just so happened to be inside of my genius tank, the shower. When thinking of a business model, I considered making various flavors. I thought, in order to do that, I’d have to put things in the batter. Then my thoughts were, it’s not the waffles per say, because you can go anywhere and get waffles. It’s the batter that makes people crave and rave about my waffles. And within seconds, as the water hit my face, I shouted out, Hey Batter Batter. Just like that, Hey Batter Batter was born. I sat on the idea for months because I didn’t know where to start. I felt myself giving into my old way of thinking. On January 2, 2019, I sent an Evite to over 80 people to show up on January 5, 2019, at my house for the introduction of my new business venture. Over 60 people showed up at a moment’s notice in the cold and rain. I created five new flavors and the original flavor and allowed everyone to try samples and give their two cents on an index card. The only complaint I had was I should have had chicken. Believe it or not, I never understood the chicken and waffle craze. It wasn’t until my good friend, almost a brother, whose opinion I value, told me, I had to have chicken and waffles. I did my first pop up event and it was a success. From there on out, the menu grew and my business concept changed.

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

I am Straight Outta Compton, born and raised. There are many facets and complexities to me. For the most part, I’m grounded. I am a libra, so occasionally, my scales tip. But usually, I’m pretty chill. I love watching reruns of Golden Girls, I love Judge Judy, and watching episodes of The First 48 and Dateline. I love to laugh and I love good food. I’m a proud mother of a 23 year old son. He is my precious pride and joy. Above all, he is my legacy and my why. He has been one of my greatest gifts. I do have a career working with justice involved youth. I’ve worked with at-risk youth for over thirty years. I started as a teen. I had a family member who shared stories of how she helped at-risk youth and had an impact on their transformation. I remember at the age of six saying to her after hearing one of her stories, “Ooh I want to do that”. I wanted to be at the service of others at a young age. I have always been fulfilled by hosting gatherings and cooking for my family and friends. I now know, it was having the privilege of serving and feeding them that I enjoyed the most. I’ve always enjoyed cooking too. I truly cook with love. If you think about the power of food, it is truly powerful. Food brings people together. Food nourishes people. Food brings people comfort and joy. People have many memories created behind food. I have met so many beautiful strangers because of Hey Batter Batter. Considering my son was my only child, I would often have his sister and cousins spend the night on the weekends. When it came to breakfast ideas, waffles always came to mind. Not only were they economical and filling, I loved waffles. But I noticed, every time after consuming syrup, I became extremely sleepy. Having a house full of children, and being extremely sleepy, was a recipe for disaster. I thought, what if I can make a batter so good, syrup isn’t needed. And so I did. It took me time to realize how much people loved my batter. I merely thought, they’re waffle lovers like me. Although I tried different business ventures, they were more multi-marketing businesses. I did braid hair for some time, another gift, but I never promoted myself. I had never started anything like a food business. I like to do things the way things are supposed to be done, because that’s what you’re supposed to do right?  I have this moral compass that helps me, but also hinders me at times. When I came up with the name Hey Batter Batter and the concept of doing a waffle bar, I did a lot of research on what it takes to start a food business. The information is limitless and it was very discouraging learning all of the things I needed to do to get started. That is the reason I came up with the name and concept in August 2018, but I didn’t mention anything to anyone until January 2019. The turnout and feedback gave me a boost, but I still stalled. My biggest struggle was needing to charge the same people I once served for free, I finally convinced myself to separate the personal from the business. I hosted a brunch in March 2019 and the theme was a March Madness theme. Another successful event. I had about sixty plus people in attendance. I finally signed up to do my first public event in May 2019. I did my first event afraid. I was now selling to perfect strangers. After that event, I realized I was right where I loved to be, feeding and serving others, but now, I’m serving and meeting beautiful strangers. Each event thereafter, I learned from mistakes and figured out how to do it bigger and better. I’m somewhat of a perfectionist. I even started traveling up North. A friend from high school would DJ on the weekends at a bar in Vallejo. One of my best friends and her husband lives in Sacramento. I would fly into Sac and would drive to Vallejo to do the event. My friend and her husband allow me to store my equipment at their home. The menu started out with chicken and waffles. The creative side of me began creating and introducing different waffle creations. My friends would introduce me to new equipment and challenge me to try new menu items. As a treat and a way to say thank you, they would get to try the item before anybody else. Most of them became my testing market. I’ve created over fifteen different waffle flavors, over seven different waffle creations, a signature drink, fries, and fried vegetables. What separates Hey Batter Batter from most other waffle places, is the love, flavor, pride, and quality I put into the food and brand. Our niche and hashtag, No Syrup Needed, puts us in a league of our own. Hey Batter Batter offers a flavor and taste you can’t get anywhere else. Our slogan, “We are more than just waffles, we are an experience”. I’ve taken branding to the next level. I have created a clothing line where you can purchase Hey Batter Batter apparel and merchandise.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Our first public event and pop up was at a Farmer’s Market in Compton on May 4, 2019. We gained a lot of traction and momentum. I’ve met so many perfect strangers that have become some of my MVPs, my Most Valuable Purchasers. The pandemic hit in 2020. This changed everything for our set up. I used to rent a U-haul and load up. Then I started taking pre-orders from home, but due to being an “essential worker” and my work schedule, I could not create a consistent schedule. But the one thing I noticed about the pandemic was that a lot of people came outside for food. I thought, if I could just get the food to the people, I’d be good. I learned I could rent a food truck. In September 2020, I rented the truck after being invited by the City of Gardena for a movie night. It was a success! It was so successful, I committed to doing another event on November 29, 2020. I committed to the event with the expectation of renting the truck again. I quickly learned after committing to that event, the truck was already booked for November 29th. I wanted to keep my commitment and participate in the event, but after getting a taste of the food truck life, I could not see myself going back to renting a U-haul and dreaded the sweat equity required. The loading, unloading, setting up, then breaking down, loading up and unloading of all of our equipment is a pain. Owner of Wut-a-Pickle suggested during the movie night I look on Offer Up for a food truck. Two days before Thanksgiving, I searched and found a food truck on Offer Up. The day before Thanksgiving 2020, the daughter of the owner of the food truck responded. That Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, I met with the owner of the food truck and looked at three different trucks. I selected the second truck. On Saturday, I returned to make a deposit and requested the truck be ready for the next day. On Sunday, November 29, 2020, I arrived at the commissary, picked up my food truck, and did the event. I was most proud that I was able to keep my commitment. I leased the truck from November 29, 2020, until May 17, 2022. As much success as Hey Batter Batter had with the food truck, it had many defeats. Initially, I was able to do a minimum of two events a week and made a profit, paid staff, and covered expenses. Due to my career, lack of staffing, and wanting to preserve the brand, I ended my lease and returned the food truck. It became challenging to run the food truck, work a full-time career, and maintain staffing for events. Over time, the events stopped yielding a profit. Instead they resulted in a deficit. I had to start paying for expenses and my overhead out of my personal account. In order to turn a consistent profit, I needed to have the food truck out everyday. Wanting to protect my brand, I did not trust hiring outside of the family to run the truck, nor did I have the time to train anyone. I was not ready to quit my career, and hit it out of the park full-time with Hey Batter Batter. When I turned in the truck, I intended to transition from the food truck to a ghost kitchen. However, life and timing has not afforded me the opportunity to commit to another commitment just yet. But I’m ready to get back in the field!

How did you build your audience on social media?

Truth be told, my MVPs, friends, and other small businesses help build my social media. I created an Instagram, Twitter (X), and Facebook page, because I know it’s the latest way to advertise and promote your business. Instagram was about posting photos. I had a friend tell me I needed to post better pictures. Pictures that made people want to eat with their eyes. I sought out to do just that. I would capture a lot of content of the menu with my friends and customers trying Hey Batter Batter. I naturally wake up early in the mornings. I also learned in Compass how to maximize my time. To make use of my time in the mornings, I would edit the content to make the pictures and videos as mouth watering and eye craving as possible. I would do this before I started my work day. It made people start sharing the videos and pictures. I would get DM’s about my location, because most people believed Hey Batter Batter was a restaurant or a food truck already. Then I had a friend who has a good following. I gave her some Hey Batter Batter chicken for the first time. She lived a few blocks from me.  The next morning, she posted Hey Batter Batter and told everyone to follow me. I woke up with over two hundred followers. I started averaging 100 new followers a month. I had the privilege of having a few celebrities try Hey Batter Batter. When I’d post those videos, I obviously would get some of the most views. I once paid for an ad on Instagram and managed to introduce Hey Batter Batter to people around the nation. There is a guy from Houston that follows Hey Batter Batter. He would DM consistently and inquire about employment. I finally asked him where he lived. He told me he lived in Houston. When I asked how he learned about Hey Batter Batter, he said it came on his IG feed and he has been following ever since. He has never tasted Hey Batter Batter, but is impressed with our brand, our presentation, and being different. Also, other small businesses that have become family, support and promote me also. Their followers would follow Hey Batter Batter. For the first several months with creating my Instagram page, I never revealed my identity. Hey Batter Batter was exclusively food. So our initial followers were organic. No one knew what I looked like or sounded like. Then I posted an interview that I did with my son. During that interview, people learned I was a female. And then I finally revealed my identity. I wanted people to focus on the food. I know people can be judgmental and get caught up with looks. I wanted Hey Batter Batter to stand on its own. Then a coworker turned friend said I should reveal myself. She knew I could feed people more than just food. She listened to the interview and was intrigued. So I started doing videos after events. I would record a video of myself giving a message. It was a way to thank my customers. I would also acknowledge and apologize for any technical issues we had that may have delayed service. I also spoke about the highlights of the day too. I wanted to share the behind the scenes of being a Black, female owned business. My Facebook and Twitter (X) page are connected to my Instagram page. When I post on Instagram, the pictures and the same post, automatically post to Facebook and Twitter(X). I’ve lost a few followers since we’ve been on hiatus. And that’s okay. I will tell you that followers are not indicative of your success or the quality of your brand. For me social media is a way to connect with people. A way to feed people in more ways than just food. It is a means to an end, but it is not the end all be all. I do know, to build your audience, you must be consistent. You almost need to post daily, Algorithms are a thing too. Knowing when to post matters. Timing is important. You must also be authentic. Let people see who you are. And what I mean by letting people see who you are is your energy, authenticity, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Share your success and struggles. Stand behind your brand. Be a representation of your product and brand. The quality of your pictures and what you post is significant. Interact with your audience as much as you can. Stories on Instagram and Facebook are important. People will often watch a story before seeing a post. Some posts don’t come in feeds. And not everyone looks at stories. Don’t compare your social media success to others. What I would suggest is getting inspiration and influence from others. Best advice I can give is the three P’s, Poise, Purpose, and Passion. Keep your Poise. Remember your Purpose. And always do it with Passion. You will never go wrong.

Contact Info:

• Website: heybatterbattereat.com
• Instagram: Heybatterbattereat
• Facebook: Hey Batter Batter
• Twitter: Heybattereat
• Youtube: Hey Batter Batter
• Yelp: Hey Batter Batter