We recently connected with Maurice Hayes and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Maurice thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with 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

Where do I start? what would be a surprise to most people is that, I did not start my business out selling chicken wings. I use to cook at home a lot and have my family and friends come over and taste test for me. Of course there were some meals that were amazing and some I needed to chuck away and try again. As time progressed and my cooking experience expanded I catered most of my family/friends events for free just to get the food out there. During this time my anxiety was through the roof because I never wanted to receive bad feedback but of course that’s what comes with this territory. Surprisingly, most of the feedback I received was great, so I kept at it. I then started me a social media account with Instagram and began to post a lot of my content on there just to let the world know what I was up too. My posts brought a lot of attention to my page as far as followers/messages/likes/comments; most of them asking “When are you going to start selling this food”? “where’s the menu to purchase?” I was excited to see comments like that but also very nervous because my initial thought was ” what if they don’t like the food?” My nerves got the best of me and always kept me from reaching my full potential so I had to learn how to dim the light of my anxiety and believe in my craft and push it out to the public. I created my first menu through canva pro selling stuffed chicken breast, sweet potatoes, mac and cheese, and broccolini for $16.00. I sold 15 dinners and every dinner sold out. I had so many customers asking “what am I selling next?” or “did I have any extras?” I genuinely couldn’t believe how good the sale went. From that point I created more menus serving a variety of different meals, and gained a lot of new and returning customers. As the year progressed my business was doing exceptionally well; and before I knew it I became a full-time chef providing good home cooked meals in the city of Chicago.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Getting to know The Wing King! I carry a lot of personality which is displayed through the food that I make. I’ve been cooking for a few years now and everyday I learn something different that I can use in the kitchen whether its from another chef I am connected with on social media/ friend/ family just giving ideas or tips on bettering my dishes. One thing I would like to share with my supporters is always be open to feedback whether its positive or negative, there’s been times in the past I received feedback from customers and became upset because in my mind I thought “I am the chef, so I know what’s best” but I had to grow out of that in this industry. There has also been times where I am afraid to step outside of my comfort zone and try new things because I was afraid that I would fail but I am here to tell you it’s okay its natural and there’s going to always be times where you don’t execute something the first time around just give it another go until you know you mastered it. Something I am most proud of is I went from using bottled sauces to creating my very own flavorful sauces that everyone enjoy. I am also proud of my clientele as it is increasing day by day. Something that sets me apart from others is my personality I carry a uncanny of energy that attract most of my customers, love to have fun while I am in the kitchen, experience with different things and look at cooking as way to not only fulfill the public but being a form of art for me.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

The best source of new clients for me have always been word of mouth. Although my following on Instagram is pretty big most of my customers are referred to me from people who have placed orders with me. Word of mouth travel way faster than a post on social media. I’ve had customers from out of town reach out to me, telling me they have to fly to Chicago to try my wings because they hear the wings are great.

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

Oh Man I literally remember this day like it was yesterday, I consistently posted content back to back and my post not reaching their full potential. August 2021 I posted some pan seared wings with a homemade Buffalo/Hennessey sauce that I made. It was something quick and straight to the point that I decided to make at the last minute. I posted the video Monday Morning; That evening I was driving home I received a phone call from my relative screaming thru the phone trying to tell me that someone who is really big on the internet reposted that video and it went viral. I pulled over immediately to check the post and just several hours after it was posted it was already over 50K likes and practically 100K views and I gained so many followers from that. I am telling you guys I had to stop driving because I was extremely hyper it just made me feel good to know that my work was getting noticed and people actually loved it. If I can offer any advice to my Wingers and Wingettes who are starting to build a social media presence I would say post every creation you make good or bad, also do not get discouraged from negative commentary learn from it. Continue to do what you love and share it with the world especially if it’s something that makes you happy.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Bhenj_

Image Credits
Mink Dog Blends For believing in my craft and allowing me to be an ambassador for their products.