We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kareem Pinkston. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kareem below.

Kareem, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you tell us the backstory behind how you came up with the idea?

My origin story of how I came about creating EATINGOCEANSIDE LLC is one of service & sacrifice.

Back in 2020 when we were facing the pandemic, I was living in the city of Oceanside. As a behavioral specialist to kids with disabilities in the public school system, I was unemployed and spent many hours online. I also had a longtime hobby of taking photos of food.

While online, I came to find out that many local eateries were in dire need of online promotions & marketing on social media.
Many businesses were so accustomed to just having customers through foot-traffic and were feeling the negative impact of the public quarantine & isolation.

At the same time, many local residents were now spending more time online and this is when I decided I could act as a liaison between the businesses & residents.

I created a single concept profile that would serve to attract and connect the residents of Oceanside to the local businesses; and thus, EATINGOCEANSIDE was born.

At first, I was very discouraged because there was already another popular established food profile that had thousands of followers, so I figured that nobody would even pay attention to mine.
But, after self-teaching myself the ways of social media management and content creation, I decided to remain true to my passion and my purpose. I kept creating & engaging & growing.

I began posting all the photos I had taken over the years and also posted photos & videos highlighting the natural beauty of this city.
I soon became obsessed and continued to learn new methods of filmmaking and creating new styles of content; all self-taught.

Eventually, in 2021, my food community of followers outgrew the already established profile and I was even more encouraged to just keep growing my profile. I soon branded my business name, found my flow in the creation process, and built a loyal following of local residents who love food AND love to support small & local businesses.
All the while, I taught myself how social media works & how the algorithms function and this helped me grow even more online.

It’s now 2023 and I have amassed a genuine community of over 11,000 supporters of local businesses and fellow foodies.
I don’t call them “Followers” because we are all united with a common likeness and love for the city of Oceanside.

I love what I do. I feel good about myself knowing that I’m supporting someone’s personal dreams by helping their small business. At the same time, I’ve come to connect more with my local community and help them have more qualitative dining experiences and that makes me feel good.

I love this city of Oceanside and I feel that, in some small way, I’m giving back to it.
I love what I do and I am now focusing on turning this passionate hobby of mine into a full-time career.

Kareem, 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?

My name is Kareem Pinkston. Being raised in the island of St. Croix , US Virgin Islands, I am an ex-pat in California.

I moved to Oceanside , California back in 2015 with my fiancée.

I was formerly a Wastewater Plant Specialist in a refinery. But when I came to California, I decided to re-invent myself.
So I started off working at the San Diego Safari Park as a Photographer.
I love nature and I loved engaging & socializing with others and families.
I’ve also been a foodie and have a passion for photographing my meals.

I transitioned into education to work with kids with special-needs and it is a career I am still doing full-time today.

In 2020, I decided to turn my passion for food photography into a social media presence that would help the local eateries in my community during the pandemic.

I am versed in social media management and online content creation.
I use various equipment, techniques and skills to create captivating new ways to promote businesses.
I then use my knowledge of social media platforms, SEO and their algorithms to project my content to my audience.

What sets me aside from other creators is that I approach my process as art and as a genuine expression of my creative style.
Most creators stick to a traditional format of presenting content and it works.
But I like to push the boundaries of creativity & style to make my content captivating & even more interesting.

I’ve also never bought or purchased Followers. I don’t believe in false aesthetics.
All of my Followers are earned and many of them know me online or we even converse via DM’s. No bots. Just people and more importantly, LOCAL PEOPLE who are aligned with the commonality of supporting local small businesses and enjoying food.

One of my more outstanding qualities is that “I am not for sale”.
While a business can hire me for my skills in content creation & online promotion, my opinions are not for sale.
I remain honest in all my online expressions and my food community values this.
I have built a form of “trust” with my community and this is the backbone to any successful brand.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I created this brand of EATINGOCEANSIDE out of the pursuit of my personal passions: I love to photograph food, I love to help others and I love to be artistically creative.

My mother was an art teacher for 35+ years.
My father was a photographer & in sales.

I reflected on my life and realized that I happened to share some of these traits combined and decided to honor them.

My advice to anyone who has a desire to start building their presence online is simple:
Remember that social media is only a vehicle that connects people.
It is a means of you projecting WHO YOU ARE to the world.
This means that you should know who you are and most importantly, be true to it.

Your audience wants to connect with you.
Your audience WILL get to know you.
Will they like what they see?
It doesn’t really matter.
What DOES matter is that you’re being true to yourself and your own expression.
Learning to effectively communicate online is a must.
Knowing that everyone has an opinion and the freedom to express themselves.
More importantly, not everyone has to agree. It’s okay to have different opinions.
Not everyone will like you.
What matters is that you connect with those that do align with you & your vision.

What’s most important online is respect, honesty and trust.
Through Honesty, You Build Trust.
Through Trust, You Earn Respect.

If you’re trying to build an online brand or sell a product online, it’s very difficult to do so if people don’t believe you, trust you or respect you.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I just have a personal goal to be as original and as creatively unique as possible. So, I am constantly teaching myself new ways to express myself and my content online.
I am always an advocate of self-improvement; whether that’s personally, professionally or creatively.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.eatingoceanside.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eatingoceanside
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eatingoceanside
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kareempinkston
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/eatingoceanside?s=21&t=ZXKv6CqAwZ1XIwdKjhIH7g
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=586rlQBA2BKRuWvFNBS_Lg&utm_source=ishare
• Other: eatingoceanside@hotmail.com