Riko’s Kickin’ Chickin’ | Tiffany Wiley

The Medical District circa 2015 was a vastly different place than it is today. Our still-growing and visibly thriving community felt very different. Community events were scarce, few restaurants were open, and MMDC was a year from launching.

To say it was uncertain whether a small, locally-owned business would survive here eight years ago is an understatement. But that’s just what Tiffany and Riko Wiley did.

Beginning as a food truck in 2014, the husband and wife duo got the idea to open up a brick-and-mortar location after serving Youth Villages on Super Sunday. A local landlord at the event suggested they look into the Madison Heights neighborhood of the Medical District. Soon after, they decided to make the leap and open up shop at 1329 Madison Ave. 

With limited working capital, Tiffany and Riko dedicated themselves to their business, quickly garnering acclaim for their wings. After our organization's founding in 2016, we worked with them to get grant approval and spread the word. 

Tiffany and Riko defeated all doubters with their passion for food and their kitchen skills. Riko’s Kickin’ Chickin’ is a pillar of the neighborhood. Their success encourages other entrepreneurs to plant roots here and further transform our district from the inside out. 

Earlier this month, we sat down with Tiffany to chronicle her story and learn from her insights and perspective.

There are a lot of wing places in Memphis. What makes Riko’s Kickin’ Chickin’ different?

Because we don’t only have wings. We're like a one-stop shop here. You don’t have to go somewhere else to get a full meal. We try to make everything affordable for families so they can enjoy themselves together. So that’s also why we offer a lot of vegetables, such as our salad combos. We also have tacos, which have become a top menu item recently.

When did you start your business?

We started our food truck in 2014 and our location here in 2015/16.

What led you to the Medical District?

We were asked to cater Super Sunday for Youth Villages. A local landlord there said, “your food is great. You know, you should have a restaurant,” which got us thinking. Then, he showed us this place on Madison. There were not many businesses around, but we stopped by. The area didn't look anything like this! But we felt we could make it work, and now we’re here. 

What’s your favorite part of being located here?

I love the people. I love how everyone uses different transportation, whether walking to work, catching a bus, or Uber. I just love it. I love being surrounded by so many other entrepreneurs in the Midtown area. It's amazing. And I love being a resource for different hospitals around us, especially during the COVID. It was so big for people to be able to walk over and grab food from us or for us to be able to deliver without a convenience fee.

What are some struggles you faced as a business owner?

Having access to working capital. I think it's hard being a minority woman in business. We don't have adequate resources most of the time. We're in our business working. We're not able to just step out and do things. So, and that's one reason I love the Medical District is that you guys have a platform for us to go in and see resources like available grants. But outside of that, it’s a struggle. You guys can only offer so much. I want to do stuff like change my door, repaint our walls, and just spruce it up a little bit. Having little time for that is very challenging.

What vision do you have for the future of the Medical District?

Not only for myself but for the whole community. More outdoor eating areas, better lighting, and more security. I would love our exterior wall to be painted to be eye-catching when people come this way. I’d also like to see our sign and other restaurants like Los Comales on the interstate exit sign so they know we’re here. Thank god we've got an excellent social media presence. But it is still hard for customers to get here.

What is your favorite menu item?

That's a tough one. Of course, I love our wings. Wings have always had a special place in my heart. I love turkey burgers. I love the tacos. But you know what, we have delicious salads too. I also love our deep-fried Turkeys. People come all over for those. You name it, from St. Louis, Alabama, Georgia, or Texas, to pick up their turkeys from us. And we start having pick-ups as early as 5:30 am. So turkeys are a big thing.

What is it that you believe your business brings to Memphis?

Lift. This is an awesome city. There’s so much growth and opportunity here. If you're a young entrepreneur, there is a place for you. I'm excited about what we’re currently doing, and we’re looking forward to doing more. We have another restaurant in an Amazon center. So, we get a lot of Amazon workers that come on here to say, man, I've never even been on this side of Madison! So that's exciting to let them know that a lot is happening in this neighborhood.

Cozy Corner BBQ | Sean Robinson

Tell me a little bit about yourself and the history of your business.

My name is Sean Robinson. I’m the grandson of the original owners. My grandmother and grandfather started it August 1977. Four generations have grown up in the business and we’ve owned it for 44 years. It’s been a blessing for it to last this long, especially through times like this one during the pandemic. Business has stayed constant or increased. Although it’s been a crazy past year and a half, business has still been good.

I’m assuming you all have repeat customers and people that are always here.

Absolutely, we definitely have our loyal customers. I have some come in every week. I know their name and order by hard. A lot of customers are from out of town. There are a lot of Memphians who, I feel like, don’t know about us. There are a lot of people who live here but have never been here before. We’re a word of mouth type of restaurant. We don’t do a lot of advertising. When you’re that good, word of mouth goes a long way!

What attracted Cozy Corner to this location? Tell me more about the building. Why here?

Before we had this building, my grandfather used to have parties almost every weekend at the house. His friends would tell him, “This food is good. You need to open up a restaurant!” After so many people kept telling him, he took it into consideration and he started looking for a restaurant. In 1977, he found this building, it was already named Cozy Corner and it already had a telephone number. It was also already a barbeque restaurant, but it didn’t get as big as it is now until we got it in 1977. My grandfather was cheap and when he bought the building he said, “We aren’t going to change the name or telephone number. We’re going to keep everything the same, but we’re going to use my recipes.” We’ve been using those recipes since 1977. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it!

That’s really cool. I love the legacy and tradition. Does Cozy Corner have any signature items? What’s the most popular?

Our top two sellers are the ribs and wings. Of course, everything we do is barbeque, so the wings are whole chicken wings and the ribs are pork spare ribs St. Louis cut. We sell out of ribs and wings almost every day. We close at 8pm and we probably run out of ribs and wings around 7:00 or 7:30pm. We try to cook enough to make it until we close. The third top seller is the Cornish game hen. It’s a small bird, barbeque whole. Cornish hen is definitely another thing we’re known for.

Do you have any recurring special events that happen here?

Not really, but we usually participate in Memphis in May. We usually cater for the Mayor’s tent. We do cater events, and we normally have people pick up the order.

What’s the future vision for Cozy Corner?

The future vision is to open up at least one more location in Memphis. Somewhere on the other side of town, not too close to this location. A lot of mornings, I pass by Cozy Corner around 7:00 AM and it’s the best smell.

How long does the process of BBQ take?

Yes, somebody’s cooking! BBQ in general is very time consuming. We have two cooks. One cook comes in around 3 or 4 o’clock in the morning and leaves around 11 o’clock in the morning. The second cook comes in and leaves around 7 o’clock in the evening. For how long it takes, it really depends on how hot the pits we use to barbeque take. We don’t use thermometers or gauges. We barbeque with charcoal, so no gas or wood. That’s how we cook.

Neat, there’s a whole science to it!

Yes, you have to pay attention and check the food often, because we don’t want to burn anything up. We train our cooks to know what they are doing. The time can vary and depends on how hot it is.

What’s the best way for customers to follow you all?

A lot of it is word of mouth. Cozy Corner also has an Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. You can follow Cozy Corner on all three social media platforms. I created it for us, being the youngest grandchild. You have you evolve with time.

The food will not change, but the technology will! If you weren’t cooking BBQ, what other things would you be doing or cooking in your free time?

I love the Green Bay Packers. My favorite basketball team is the Lakers. I enjoy watching and playing sports, going to the movies, bowling, and hanging out with friends. Other times, I enjoy doing nothing. I can be a homebody.

Is there anything you’d like the Medical District and Memphis community to know?

Yes, through thick and thin, we are so thankful for every customer that walks through the door – loyal ones, new ones, ones that have stuck with us throughout the years. Although business is good, there have been some rough years in the past, where we sometimes didn't know if we were going to make it. Lo and behold, someway, somehow we still did. Definitely thankful for all the customers because if it wasn’t for them, we would not be here. Thank you to every customer.

Fresh Start Facility Services | Johnny Fayne

MMDC sat down with Johnny Fayne, president and CEO of Fresh Start Facility Services, to learn more about his story and experience participating in our Buy Local program.

Can you tell me a little about yourself and your business?

I started Fresh Start Facility Services in 2006 and it is a 100% minority owned full-service janitorial business. We’ve been working with several large logistical centers and currently work with a manufacturing company with over 2 million square feet. We’ve worked in the medical field on extensive projects in the Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi markets. Locally we’ve had partnerships with Methodist Le Bonheur Hospital and Regional One Health. We have also worked in the Nashville market for five years supporting Vanderbilt and in Mississippi with ABB, where we service their national distribution center. Right now, we are working with Rosemark, known across the national and international market offering chemicals for disinfection and sanitation. 

How did you get started in the janitorial industry?

I have an extensive background in management through my tenure at FedEx managing flight and truck operations, hazardous materials, and more. I started their hazardous materials program 20 years ago that is still in operation today. I retired from there managing their international freight operations, the largest operation in the entire company and biggest revenue driver at the time and as manager of the year. 

I got into this field almost by accident. I introduced a friend to this field but later joined the field working with our first customer in 2006, Hino Motors in Marion, Arkansas, a subsidiary of Toyota. They have almost a two million square foot facility and we are proud to still maintain their business today.

Why did you choose to locate your business in Memphis?

Our business has always been in the medical district. Our first office was at 1331 Union. At the time when we started, we were looking for a downtown or close business that would make it easier for customers and employees to reach us. It has worked out very well. 

What part of your business are you most proud of?

In the janitorial space that we operate in now, there is a 200% employee turnover rate. However, we have been able to keep our retention rate very low- with little turnover. We try to make it comfortable for our employees and find ways to help them access services around town. And we are working to increase our minimum wages to $15 an hour. It’s almost a ministry where we are helping our community thrive- no one can survive on $7-$8 an hour. And we are excited about helping our employees move from a $12 to $15 starting wage. 

Why is it important to support local businesses? I think what gives us an advantage over a national brand is that we know and use the local suppliers. We use the same equipment as the national brands that are well known. For example, when equipment breaks down, we have the same relationship or better with the local people that provide that service. The same people that they would reach out to we often have a better relationship with them and can get quicker, better service. I think when companies consider working with local businesses, this is important to consider- they have the connections to get the job done, unlike national companies who have to turn around and find and build new relationships. The employee base is also important to understand. A national company must hold a career fair to obtain employees.  At one time we were competing with a national company who had a career fair where less than 40 people showed up to meet them versus the 300 people who showed up to meet us. Who knows Memphis more than local businesses and can relate to our local worker base and their needs? This insight allows companies like ours to flourish and provide a higher level of professionalism to the market. 

How have you been working with Hire Local? 

As our contracts are growing in Memphis and with institutions partnered with MMDC, we have partnered with their Hire Local program to identify and fast-track local residents into a new career field. Hire Local is targeting residents who live in the 38103, 38104, 38105, 38106, 38107, 38112, 38114, 38127 zip codes who may be interested in learning a new skill, in full-time roles, close to home. The current training collaboration helps both Fresh Start Facility Services grow their talent team and supports MMDC’s strategic goal to increase the employment rate of residents in and close to the medical district. Get more information on the Hire Local training opportunity by visiting https://hirelocal901.com/job-seekers/training/. 

Is there anything else you’d like the public to know about yourself or your business?

We are a business with a proven track record that is ready to scale. We value relationships with both our clients, our employees and local suppliers. And we are committed to helping our community grow as we do.

Slim & Husky’s | Derrick Moore

Interview by:

Mariko Krause, Senior Program Associate 

What do pizza, the arts, and snacks have in common? Read more to find out! I had the opportunity to interview Derrick Moore, co-owner of Slim & Husky’s Pizza Beeria, where I learned about their mission, their drive to be part of the community, and more about their specialty items. Not only is there a dine-in and to-go option, but they also have walk-up windows for those that are on the go. Reader warning: you may be inclined to immediately crave pizza, cinnamon rolls, and head to Slim & Husky’s right after this!  

Can you tell me a little bit about yourself and the history of your business?

Yes, Memphis is the seventh location. From the beginning, my partners and I had a  moving company from 2010 until 2017. We grew it and sold the company. We started working on Slim & Husky’s in 2015, finalized the concept, and opened in March 2017. I  was one of the original founders. I’ve been in the thick of it from the beginning until now.  

What attracted Slim & Husky’s to the Medical District – Edge District?

Memphis was #1 because it’s down the street from Nashville and we have close ties to the city. My family is from Memphis – my mom, grandma, aunts, and cousins are from here. As a kid and adult, I spent time down here. Memphis is familiar and feels like home. The people are just awesome. The culture of Memphis is to really embrace small and local brands, and they do it better than any city I’ve seen. We knew we’d have success in Memphis. We wanted to pour more hope into the city and provide jobs for those in our community. The Edge District was the perfect location. It wasn’t all the way Downtown but wasn’t far away from neighborhoods. It was the perfect place for us to open up. The opportunity presented itself and we jumped on it.  

Have you ever received any business support from MMDC? 

Yes – tons of it. Not just grants but also they helped pay for some outdoor seating.  They have been a tremendous help with everything from top to bottom. Vonesha  [Mitchell] has been great. If we needed employees, they were willing to help find employees. Everything that they could help us with, they either did it, or they offered it. It’s a great organization with really good people. It’s been dope working with them. And they didn’t just leave us at the open; they still keep in touch. It’s a good relationship.  

Do you have any special or signature items? Most popular? 

[As far as,] special items, we’ve got signature pizzas, vegan options, the “Nothin but a  ‘V’ thang” – that’s a vegan option, all the way up to the “Cee no green” for the men and women who like to pile on the meats. We have specialty cinnamon rolls drizzles to die for. Everything is 100% authentic. We pour a lot into it and the reception has been awesome. Anything someone wants to put on a pizza, we got it – except for anchovies! We substituted anchovies with something with a little bit more taste. We’ve got salmon and shrimp for our pizzas.  

What’s your favorite pizza topping? 

I get the same pizza every single time. I do “Build my own” with red sauce, five cheese blend, my meats: beef, pepperoni, chicken sausage, and my vegetables are green olives, mushrooms, onion, and green peppers. I get that every single time.  

This is “The Derrick” Pizza! Slim & Husky’s has a really prominent social media account and website. What’s the best way people can stay in touch with S&H?

Probably Instagram [fun fact: S&H has over 73K followers on IG!]  

Do you have any recurring special events that happen here? 

Before Covid-19, we used to do a scholarship for kids and movie nights. As a business, you have to be careful because people are looking at you to set an example. We just haven’t been able to right now. We used to do so much. We are looking forward to  getting that back started; we don’t want to put people in danger so we’ll hold off [until  we can gather again.] 

 How do you see S&H growing within the Medical District community? 

We will grow within the Medical District for sure. We are looking forward to when things open up to produce events with the MMDC. Anything we can do with the community as a whole and our neighbors. I just love the Edge District, especially once  [the Ravine] comes up. The only way is up with the Medical District right now!    

I love the artwork and vibe in the space when you first walk in. Slim & Husky’s has worked with Quantavious “Toonky” Worship (@toonky_berry), Jamond Bullock (@alivepaint), and a couple of other Black artists that I saw are from Nashville. Why is that important, and can you speak about that experience?  

It’s always important for us. Our thing is Pizza. Art. Music. We highlight the creativity with the pizza, the creativity with the music – you come in and might hear R&B, some hip hop from the 90s, 2000s, we’ll play it. The arts are very important to us. We love the exposure and continue to expose our community to the arts. 

African Americans as a whole are very creative with the arts, music, food, and also business. Historically, to survive and make it in this country as a whole, we have to be creative. For the artists, we always want to tap into the local community and give exposure to them. It’s always fun [to work with those artists.] 

Is there anything else you’d like the Memphis/Medical District community to know about your business? 

I would like for people to know that we are a community-based business. If they don’t know, hopefully, we can show them based off by working with teachers, artists, and employing people from the community. When things really open back up, we can show them how we like to get our hands dirty and get involved with the community. I would  like people to know that we appreciate the community we go in and when you make  yourself part of the community, and not just move and say “Hey, I’m open, now come  support.” [Instead,] we believe in really getting in there and getting after it with the people in the community.  

I love it! That’s really inspiring and makes the business model so much more humanizing and engaging.  

If you weren’t eating pizza, what other things would you be working on or eating? When I’m not eating pizza, I’m snackin’ for real – I’m a chips and fruit snack type dude.  If I wasn’t working in the pizza sector, I’d like to be working on a bar or art gallery. I’m actually doing some of that stuff now in Nashville. I love it and we look forward to doing something like that in Memphis.  

Slim and Husky’s is located at 634 Union Ave. Follow them on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter!

Hire Local Stories | Anjelicia P.

Hire Local helped me take care of my family.

“After completing Hire Local's training program, I went from being unemployed to hired full-time. Next week I will start a new career with Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital as a Housekeeping Attendant. I have always wanted to work in the healthcare field. Before I had my son I wanted to be an anesthesiologist and work at Le Bonheur. I can see the hospital from my home and dreamed about working there. I heard about Hire Local through Urban Strategies. I needed a change and decided to give it a shot. Now I can take care of my children’s needs and not say no to the little things they want. I will be working close to home, in a hospital and making double the wages I made in food services. I went from making $7.50 an hour to $15.00 an hour. I can see the hospital sign from my home and can walk to work. I’m looking forward to growing with the company and moving up the healthcare ladder. Hire Local helped every step of the way from training to job placement to uniform support. I am proud to be one step closer to my goal and I can’t wait to start."

-Anjelicia P., Hire Local's 2020 Housekeeping Training Cohort member

Oteka Technologies

MMDC sat down with Alandas Dobbins, owner of Oteka Technologies.

Could you tell me a little bit about yourself and your business? How long have you been in business?

My name is Alandas Dobbins. I’m a second-generation entrepreneur doing this work. I started a company with my father 25 years ago, and we were an Avaya business partner, but we also started doing cabling with that business because with Avaya, our lead-in was telephone systems, so it was Southern Communications Systems. We soon found out that some clients needed cabling as well, so instead of contracting that out, we decided to develop our own cabling division. That started growing, and we ended up doing a lot of the e-rate for Memphis City Schools some 20 years ago My father passed about 14 years ago this year, and I left the industry for some time. I got back into it with Oteka Technolgoies. Oteka Technologies is officially four years old the month of March, so we focus primarily on cabling. The telecommunications industry has changed so much. A lot of the phone are in the cloud, the margins are low, and I didn’t really want to deal with the break-fix and all that comes with that, so we are focusing strictly on cabling and anything that has to do with cabling— security cameras, access control, the cabling to get to those types of devices— is what our primary sweet spot is.

 How long has your business been in Memphis?

We moved to our current space about two years ago, we have warehouses in the back and offices up front. We have space for our project managers in the back as well. It’s very centrally located. I grew up in Whitehaven and wanted to be back a part of what’s going on in Whitehaven. Memphis is my home. We are extremely excited to be growing in our home. We have so much happening now with construction. Being a part of the Memphis landscape is exciting. Also, as an owner, I’m able to make decisions. For instance, I can hire second chance citizens. I am looking to start a program that serves veterans. Even though I am not a veteran, I’d like offer opportunities to help hire veterans. That is exciting for me because I’ve heard stories about how when veterans get back home, they can’t find jobs. They’ve done a lot to protect the rest of us and make sure we’re okay. When they come back, we need to make sure they’re okay, too. I’m excited to be able to start researching, and I’m sure over time, we’ll be able to integrate that program.

 Why Memphis?

Why not Memphis? Memphis is a city that is on the move right now. It’s long overdue. Staying here is our way of keeping talented people here, keeping them employed— that’s important to me. I’ve got both of my children working at the company right now. They’re twenty-seven and twenty-four, so that’s exciting to me. They’re excited about what’s to come in Memphis. We’re getting more restaurants and spaces for people to hang out and be able to bond and network and meet other people, so it’s good to be a part of something sometimes and make sure you’re on that ground floor to help it grow. Then, you can say, “I’ve done something substantive in my life.”

 Do you have a training program those interested in joining the business?

I’ve just gotten exposed to a program that allows training, so we’re researching that. We’re working closely with WIN. We’ve been able to take our technicians through training via the programs that WIN offers. We’re big on training. We’ll eventually put together a formalized training program here.

 How did you get into the cabling industry?

When I was in the industry before, cabling usually came under the electricians and then, somehow, it changed and it’s with owners. Now, people are realizing that low-voltage cabling is critical. For instance, if you go to the grocery store, you’ve seen where if you close the refrigerated section, the light goes out. That’s the cable that has to come to make that happen. Well, these are the new things that are happening in the industry right now, so cabling is becoming more and more important. That’s part of the reason that I’m focusing on the cabling industry and utilizing the knowledge that I gained from working in the industry through my last business. 

 What does it mean to you to be a part of the BUY Local Marketplace? In what ways has this helped your business?

I’m a little biased. I think you guys are doing such a great job! The sentiment behind BUY Local is something unfortunate that we have to put organizations together to support and increase local minority and women-owned spend. That’s not part of our mindset in Memphis. We haven’t been historically pro local business, making sure that we take care of home. To now have our organization really focusing on that, it’s really critical. Memphis has not usually been that type of city where we make sure we take care of our homegrown— make sure they have jobs, contracts, and can sustain their businesses. It is critically important to our community to make sure we have organizations to really key in on that.

 You’ve recently given a presentation for our anchors at a BUY Local Council meeting. What was that experience like and what advice would you give other business owners who have the opportunity to do the same?

The anchors will listen to you intently. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t get an immediate response. Since then, I have gotten some callbacks for future opportunities. Don’t overthink your presentation and make sure to follow-up just like you’d do with any other call. Be diligent about following up with those particular clients because everybody is busy.

 What was your experience like at our recent BUY Local Connect event?

I was glad to present at the event. After presenting, I got comments from people who expressed that they were glad that I presented and that it gave them some thoughts on strategies that they can implement within their companies. The anchor institutions also gave positive feedback. It was a really great turnout with informative content. It was so nice to see so many diverse business-owners present, and I hope to share this opportunity with more business owners in the future. Y’all are doing a great job! We appreciate the support!

OTEKA TECHNOLOGIES, LLC is located at 3332 Winbrook Drive. They can be contacted at (901) 334-7304 or alandas@otekatech.com.

A Square Meal on Wheels + Aspiring School Meals Dining Services Trio

MMDC sat down with chefs Derrick and LaQuonta Clark, owners of A Square Meal on Wheels/A Square Meal Café and Chef Quan Anderson, owner of Aspiring School Meals Dining Services. The trio has teamed together to be the next food service provider for Southern College of Optometry.

Chef Derrick Clark

Chef Derrick: My name is Chef Derrick Clark. My wife is LaQuonta Clark. We started about 10 years ago with a food truck. I went to culinary school. Chef Quan just happened to be one of the chefs teaching classes at the school. At that time, my desire was to be a private chef for one of the Grizzlies. That was what I was going to do. One day, I was watching TV and “The Great Food Truck Race” just happened to come on TV. At this time, I was stricken with cancer. After I got over cancer and got through school, we decided to get a food truck. We paid $5,000 for it. We built it up and purchased parts from Facebook, eBay, everywhere. At this time, food trucks weren’t popular in Memphis. I was one of the chefs that started the food truck craze. We got our food truck at the right time and right place. We just blew up. We started the food truck serving fish tacos, fried green tomatoes, and lobster rolls. Those were our main dishes. Overnight, we just became really popular. We would go to different business complexes to serve from the food truck. At one of the complexes we went to, they told us they had an empty restaurant space. They said it would be really tough for us, that there was a tough crowd in that area. They had two restaurants come in that didn’t last six months. We told them we were interested in the restaurant space and we took the opportunity. We had already branded ourselves as “A Square Meal on Wheels” and decided to name the restaurant space “A Square Meal Café.” The café is located in the Lenox Park business complex. Every company that came in before us struggled to make it, but we’ve been there seven years and going strong.

Chef LaQuonta Clark

Once we opened, an MLGW employee came to the café and ate. They saw a post shouting us out when we were serving at Cooper Young Festival. We served a lot of customers at Cooper Young Festival. That’s how I ended up gaining exposure and teaching culinary classes at Arkansas State with the credentials that I received from L'école Culinaire. The customer that was working at MLGW let me know that they had a vacant restaurant space in their building and asked if I would be interested in it. The next thing we knew, we had two locations—one in East Memphis and one inside of MLGW. We gained more traction on Facebook and got contacted by someone at Swift Transportation that had an empty restaurant space. They asked if we’d like to come check it out. We did, and we expanded there as well. We starting to grow every 2-3 years. A lot of my culinary school classmates have been working for us ever since with our food truck. We treat our employees like we’d want to be treated. We look out for each other. If they’re down and out one week, we make sure to lift them up.

From that point on, people kept referring us to companies looking to occupy their restaurant space. Next thing I know, someone referred me to Southern College of Optometry (SCO) telling me they had an empty space. In one night, we prepared our RFP and we were determined. I called SCO and secured a meeting, then called my main man Chef Quan to let him know that I had a meeting set. Chef Quan told me that he had a meeting with SCO as well. I told him that we need to team up and tackle SCO. Chef Quan specializes in catering, and I knew that if we came together, our unified team would be that much stronger. We teamed up, and here we are today. My wife has been here with me from the beginning, and we thank God for everything. 

Chef Quan Anderson

Chef Quan: Latasha Harris, manager of the BUY Local Program at Memphis Medical District Collaborative sent out an email regarding the opportunity. I received her notice through another friend who passed the opportunity along to me. When Chef Derrick called letting me know that he had a meeting set, I said, “Let’s do this together!” For an opportunity of this magnitude, it works well to team together. Through my background in contract food service for the last ten years, Derrick and I have crossed paths many times. I used to be the Executive Chef/Catering Director in UT Health Science Center, then went to St. George’s, managing the catering at three schools in three different locations. We’re very well-rounded. We’ve got a lot of food service knowledge all together. I’ve done nine years at the Peabody as a Banquet Chef. I have served Presidents of the United States.

We will be serving good quality food. We look forward to this opportunity. We’ve known each other for quite a while. The brand name, “ASM— A Square Meal” came from our original idea to work with some of the charter schools to prepare meals for them. We’ve got a formula built for catering for schools as well as corporate events. We’re always looking to grow and give back to the community. That’s the whole plan.

Hire Local Stories | Amber Gardner

Memphis Medical District Collaborative sat down with Amber Gardner, HIRE Local participant and recent recipient of HIRE Cares COVID-19 Emergency Assistance. 

What was your living situation like before COVID started?

I had to bury my sister, so funds were kind of low. My job at a fast food restaurant released all but two employees once around mid-March. I didn’t have any money to buy gas, food, or household supplies. It was kind of rough.

 What has your living situation been like during COVID?

I was having a hard time paying my bills—like my light bill. It’s just been hard period for the simple fact that I haven’t been able to work, and that’s how I usually provide everything. Me being laid off wasn’t helping me at all. My family helps me as much as they can, but they’ve got their own lives and their own bills to pay. I can’t keep calling on them. I’ve tried getting assistance from other programs like MIFA and CSA, but they were saying their programs were already full. Luckily, I ran across the HIRE Cares assistance, and y’all helped me.

How has COVID impacted your job search and/or career progress?

Before the virus even came, I was in school trying to get my high school diploma. They halted classes once the virus hit, and that has posed a major setback. I was trying to build my skills, and now I can’t because the virus messed a lot of stuff up. I was also in the process of getting my CDL certification through the Excel Center, and those classes were halted as well.

How has the HIRE Local program assisted/not assisted you with the hardships faced due to COVID?

The HIRE Cares assistance helped me pay my light bill and the Visa gift card assisted me in purchasing household supplies and groceries. 

What other resources are getting you through COVID? — Unemployment? Stimulus? 

I was able to receive the stimulus check, but had to spend the majority of that money on paying my sister’s funeral costs.

Outside of local and federal resources, what else has been getting you through the pandemic?

My kids—especially when I’m feeling down. We haven’t been going out to prevent from getting the virus, but we do enjoy time together in our yard. We’ll play catch or hide and go seek. We spend a lot of time having movie nights and cooking. They’ll help me cook breakfast, lunch, or dinner and we occasionally bake. Usually, they’ll be on their phones 24/7, but we’ve spent a lot more family time together since COVID hit.

What do you think about our federal and local government’s response to the pandemic?

They should have gotten the money out faster than they did. There are still people who haven’t gotten a stimulus check and are still struggling. They are struggling to pay their bills. A lot could have been done with the proper budgeting and a timely response, but that is not what we’re experiencing.

What would you say your next steps are for yourself and your family?

Right now, I’m still looking for employment. Most of the companies that have called me are nursing homes and hospitals with COVID-19 patients. I’m not trying to put myself or my kids at risk by getting sick, so I’m still trying to look for a job where I know they are following the proper safety procedures to prevent COVID-19 transmission—requiring masks, providing hand sanitizer, and regularly sanitizing their buildings. I’m trying to work somewhere where I’ll be safe and I know I’ll come home and be safe. I’m currently in search of customer service, hospitality, and food service positions. I’m going to get a job because work is the only thing that’s going to help me to provide for my family.

Hire Local Stories | Jessica King

Memphis Medical District Collaborative sat down with Jessica King, HIRE Local participant and recent recipient of HIRE Cares COVID-19 Emergency Assistance.

What was your living situation like before COVID started?

Before, we had everything under wraps. We were still kind of late with rent, but it was more so because our pay periods didn’t fall on the due dates for our bills. When we were late, it was more like 2-3 days late instead of being months behind. Before all of this happened, we were good and on top of everything.

What has your living situation been like during COVID?

It’s been a living nightmare, just about. My fiancé’s hours have been cut short and I have been let go from my job. It’s like— where is the next dollar going to come from? How are we going to be able to basically keep everything together with the small amount of money that we do have as far as feeding and taking care of the kids, keeping up with light bill, keeping up with rent? It’s a feeling of “what do we do next?” instead of getting paid on payday and immediately taking care of the bills.

Have you had your hours cut? laid off? furloughed? — When did you see a turn in your situation due to COVID?

I was laid off from my warehouse job. Because of COVID-19, they weren’t getting as many orders as they thought they were going to get. They had a last in, first to go policy. I had only been working there a week when COVID-19 hit and was let go. When customers stopped purchasing because they heard the rumor that Coronavirus was carried through the boxes and that delivery drivers might have it, it slowed everything down. It went from employers saying we need you all to we no longer need you, as everything slowed down. With that job, seniority ruled. If you were there for six months or so, you still had your job. Anybody having worked less than 6 months, they did not need. This all happened towards the end of March. 

How has COVID impacted your family/ ability to afford necessary goods?

It went from me and my fiancé having everything together to him now having to do everything on his own. I have to figure out if I need to pay my car note. You have to pay your car note in order to keep the car in order to keep going to work. It became a question of if I should take all the checks that I made throughout the month and put them together with the little bit of money that I do have to pay rent; or should I pay the lights, the car note, the things that the kids need. It became more of a this or that situation. Instead of working with my fiancé to split the bills with the money I had coming in, I watched him have to make choices of what bills we could and couldn’t afford to pay. It wasn’t like that before. We went from comfortable to sacrificing some bills to pay others. It was really very hard. You want to do it, you know you have to do it, but at the same time, you don’t have the funds to do it. It’s a living nightmare.

What bills or needs did you find yourself having to put on hold or sacrifice during this time?

The kids are growing rapidly, but I had to put purchasing new clothes for them on hold. Buying groceries was put on hold. After seeing my check each week, I knew that it wouldn’t cover rent, so we’ve put rent on hold. It came to a point where I applied for food stamps, so purchasing food was no longer an obstacle. Before, we would sometimes go to Grandma’s house to eat or scrape up the few dollars that we had to make sure that we can eat. It became overwhelming after a while. 

How has COVID impacted your job search and/or career progress?

Thankfully, I have an interview and an orientation tomorrow to start Monday. It’s for a temp warehouse job. I feel like I can do this temp job, and hopefully it lasts because Coronavirus dies down. Normally, you go to work for temp warehouse jobs and they say we’ve got to get a certain amount of work done on current orders and backorders to reach their quota. Once we get that certain amount of work done and shipped out because everyone is working so hard, then they don’t need you, and warehouses start letting people go earlier than the normal 2-3 months for temp jobs. It’s now mom going from one job to another to another to another to try and make ends meet. People still have bills and kids. We still have to maintain our health and our children’s health, a household, and we still have to maintain cars to make sure we can go back and forth. To hire somebody and tell them they’ll be here for a couple months, to then saying we don’t need you anymore after two weeks— it becomes frustrating. 

How has the HIRE Local program assisted/not assisted you with the hardships faced due to COVID?

We were literally two months behind on rent for the month of April and June because of the cut hours and no job at all, so we were literally facing eviction and losing just about everything we have and splitting the family up to make sure everyone had a place to lay their heads. When I received the call regarding HIRE Cares rental assistance, it was perfect. We no longer had to split up. We could get caught up on bills. We no longer had to decide whether or not we had to pay one bill and lose something else or risk losing the house. It was making everything back stable how we had it. We no longer had to pick and choose what we should pay off and put on hold until the next paycheck. To see some type of relief on my end and my fiancé’s end, it was like finally something good has come out of this whole Coronavirus. Something good has finally happened. The support means that we can still have our spot, not break the family up, and still be able to keep everything that we had worked hard for before this Coronavirus even started. I literally sat down and broke into tears because we finally have help— and it’s not from family because family is going through the same thing. We finally have help to where we can still keep our little family we created together without going to a hotel, Grandma’s house, sister’s house, cousin, auntie, none of that. It helped us out a lot.

What other resources are getting you through COVID? — Unemployment? Stimulus? 

I got the stimulus check, but my fiancé didn’t due to his child support costs. I was able to take the stimulus check to get us caught up for the month of March on rent, utilities, and groceries. My fiancé no longer had to look around to see where the next dollar was coming from or work overtime. I’ll be calling CSA for utility support as well. Food was no longer a problem once I started receiving food stamps. I received the HIRE Local Visa gift card as well, which has assisted me in paying for gas to make sure I can get back and forth from my interviews and make sure my son has a consistent babysitter.

Outside of local and federal resources, what else has been getting you through the pandemic?

Taking the time to pause and gather with the family has helped— to come together to joke and laugh. We might go sit with aunts, uncles, grandma and cousins to sit, talk, laugh, and play and get our minds of everything that’s going on. We just have a good time and get our minds off of what’s going on.

What do you think about our federal and local government’s response to the pandemic?

They really move so slow. I don’t know if it’s just Tennessee, but they really move so slow. I filed for unemployment 8 weeks ago, and I still haven’t heard anything. It would be better if they were to move a little faster and pause on taking vacations, even as this work becomes overwhelming. For people like me, unemployment is needed because this is how we’re able to not lose everything we have or go end up in court to face eviction. If everyone was to just come together and work like they were before COVID, even though everyone is at home, everything would be so much smoother. Instead, I’m told that representatives are on vacation and I have to wait until they come back from vacation for assistance. Anything can happen during this time. We can lose our house, our cars, we can have a medical emergency in the family— and if they don’t have insurance, we have no way to pay for it. If they were to move quicker—not too quickly, because we don’t want them to make any mistakes—but, if they were to move how they were before and actually work with us, it would help out a lot.

What would you say your next steps are for yourself and your family?

My fiancé’s job has picked back up. Now, he’s getting every day work. He’s getting his regular hours plus extra hours. Within the next week, we are planning to move to a bigger house in our price range. My new job is paying about the same amount as his and it’s a weekly job. COVID has made us really sit down and create and stick to a budget. We’re making sure to save money aside from our jobs weekly so that we won’t be behind. Even though Coronavirus is going on, we still need to have savings. Whenever the unemployment hits, we can take that and pay off bills for a month or two and now work towards taking care of the kids’ needs and maintaining our bills instead of picking and choosing what to pay. It’s a work in progress, and it can be stressful, but we’re sticking to it.

Johnson Mechanical Services

MMDC sat down with Antonio Johnson, BUY Local business owner of Johnson Mechanical Services.

Can you tell me a little about yourself and your business?

My name is Antonio Johnson. I am a resident of Memphis and owner of Johnson Mechanical Services. We’ve been in business since 2008. We’re a family-owned and operated business. I have 22 years of experience in the business. I wanted to start my own company. The business was originally named Johnson Heating and Air when I started because I was a sole proprietor, but as I began to grow, I understood that I needed an LLC, so I changed the name to Johnson Mechanical Services LLC. I am a local, veteran, and minority-owned small business, certified by Shelby County and categorized as a Small Business Enterprise with the City of Memphis. My primary goal is to be recognized as one of the leading minority contractors in the mechanical services.

How did you get started in the mechanical industry?

I was in the military for 6 years and after I was honorably discharged from the US Army. I got an opportunity—God blessed me— I went to the unemployment office looking for a job, an opportunity opened up to be a forklift driver at a heat and air company, Jackson Supply. They sold all the materials and equipment needed for the mechanical services. I worked there for 6 years and gained a tremendous amount of hands-on experience and knowledge in the heating and air field. I met and talked to a lot of good people that helped me. One of the guys, Joe Johnson, told me that he could show me something that would change my life forever if I was willing to go back to school. I went to State Tech and learned the heating and air business and received my certification. I’ve been doing it for 22 years now.

Why did you choose to locate your business in Memphis?

I was born and raised in the City of Memphis. I grew up in South Memphis and graduated from South Side High School. I wanted to give back to the community that I love and show my family, especially my son and nephews, that you can be a successful black businessman in this city.

Do you offer any training programs for those who also want to learn about mechanical services?

Yes. In the past 22 years of business, I have trained 9 people that have become productive business owners in the industry. They have become mentors to other. I assisted them in doing their business the correct way— getting their licenses, getting insurance, and being bonded. If you’re out doing services or working in someone’s home, you always want to cover yourself. I have 2 people that I’m currently training in my program.

What has it meant for you to be a part of the BUY Local Marketplace?

It has been a great opportunity. I didn’t know about it at first, but once I was invited to a BUY Local event and was presented the information about your Anchor Partners, it has been great for me. It has opened my eyes to opportunities to expand and market my business and what I’m trying to do to the public. It’s a wonderful opportunity to be a part of this network. When I go to those meetings, I see a wide array of minority business owners in attendance. You guys are opening up the doors for people such as myself.

What was your experience like at the February Buy Local Connect Event?

I was able to get business cards for all those that I talked with. There were Medical District partners that had booths set up who gave me great feedback. Rory Thompson at Tennessee Small Business Development Center set me up with Dr. Branch, one of their consultants. They’re helping me create a business plan and capability statement. Event speaker Veronica Clark with UT Center for Industrial Services has followed up with me and helped me navigate the services they are offering and set me up to participate in the Turner Construction Management Program in Nashville. I’ve gotten positive feedback from everybody. You guys are pioneering opportunities for minority businesses to network with Anchor Partners representing major companies that we can later sub-contract to and work with in the future.

Is there anything else you’d like the public to know about yourself or your business?

I work for the City of Memphis Fire Department as an active duty firefighter for the past 17 years. I love this job, I love helping people, and I’m looking forward to being promoted in July as a Lieutenant and continuing to share my knowledge and experience with the young people hired on the job. I’m certified as an Advanced EMT by the state of Tennessee through the Fire Department and have various life-saving training certifications that I must continue to educate myself on an annual basis. I love what I do for the City of Memphis! It gives me great pride and joy!

 Johnson Mechanical Services, LLC is located at 5495 Winchester Suite 1 and can be contacted at (901) 650-0348.

Off the Walls Artist Collective

MMDC sat down with Artist Yvonne Bobo, owner of Off the Walls Arts located at Warehouse Studios.

Tell me a little bit about yourself and your business?

My name is Yvonne Bobo. I’m a sculptor. I’ve been doing public art—large-scale metal structures since about 2000. I’ve been renting studios over the years, and this is the first time I’ve been able to own the studio where I am. I was in Cooper Young and kind of got priced out of there, so everywhere I go as the neighborhood gets better, the rents go up, and then you have to move on. This [the Medical District] is the upcoming neighborhood now. This is our new arts district. And I won’t have to leave, because now I’m a building owner!

 How did you get into sculpting & metal work?

When I went to college, I really loved art, but I had a middle-class family and they really wanted me to do something more useful, so I tried business and I had no idea what they were talking about. Then, I quietly drifted to liberal arts, then went into fine arts. That’s where I found my real love was building things. I was mixed media at the time, so I was doing a little bit of everything. Woodworking was my first sort of real skillset, then when I came to Memphis, I met metal artists. I worked with Tyler French and James Summerhill, and I was just sort of surrounded by metal. I just sort of went in that direction. 

What attracted you to the Medical District?

I’m a midtowner, and I live just a few blocks up Peabody, so this is my neighborhood. We’re right at the border. I call us the Edge of the Edge because we’re right on the line. I like the feel. Friends of mine had studios at Marshall Arts for years, so I’d been going over to the Medical District for a long time.

Many artists are attracted to the Medical District due to the creative culture of the area. Can you speak a bit on the elements of creative culture that you notice within the District?

I think there’s an interesting thing about artists. We’re generally attracted to affordable rents because it’s hard to make a living as an artist. In the District, there are big spaces that are affordable, and that you can build in. That always drives artist because a lot of us don’t make a lot of money, so having an area where we can all be together, we can get a little synergy going. It’s interesting about the way neighborhoods change, too. A little but of what I’m trying to preserve here is having a group of artists together since an artist owns the building—that’ll never change, so the group of artists won’t change.

Have you received any supports from MMDC to assist in your move to the District?

Yes, I received a façade grant. We actually replaced some of our doors with bifold overhead doors and MMDC helped us with some of the exterior lighting also.

You’ll soon be opening your studio to the public. What can people expect from Off the Walls Arts (gallery showings, classes, events)?

We’ll be having our Grand Opening on March 28th from 11am-3pm. Christopher Reyes will be showcasing an immersive art experience and we’ll have about 4 new artists moved into the building and will have their work on display as well. We’ll have a fashion show, the band will play, there’ll be different elements of the Off the Walls Arts artist collective showcased during the event. This will be a free, family event.

Can you explain more about the Artist Collective that will be working in Warehouse Studios?

The Artist Collective will be a core group of people who rent studio space in the building. Those people will stay here as long as the space serves them. In the future, we hope to develop the nonprofit arm of Warehouse Studios, Off the Walls Artist Collaborative. Essentially, there’s three things that go on here. We have the Yvonne Bobo Studio, which is me. Then there’s Warehouse Studios, which owns the building and houses the Artist Collective. And people rent space here. Then, there’s Off the Walls Artist Collaborative, the nonprofit that supports Christopher Reyes building out the immersive art experience. We hope to have artists that come in to build out installation-style art, so we help to support that and provide them space to build weird art that they can’t really do anywhere else. Maybe later, we’ll have some changing studios for artist. People who are in the building have already made a financial commitment to their artwork. They have a dedicated space and community. We’ll have workshops where people can come learn and do things with us, and maybe we’ll have transitional space where people can submit something and get free studio for a period of time to kind of work around. We’d like to nurture artists at all levels, that’s the goal.

For artists who would like to be part of the Artist Collaborative, is there still space available for rent?

Yes, I think with the workshops and the changing installations space, that’ll be a nice way to bring people in to work with the artists in residence, work together, do shows, and get folks involved who aren’t in the building. There are a few studios left for rent, about four. If someone is interested in renting space, they can reach out to me on the website offthewallsarts.org or at yvonnebobostudio.com.

Memphis Medical District Collaborative is all about highlighting vital connections within the District. Your work is featured around the Medical District. Can you name a few of your pieces that people can spot around the area?

I have a piece at Methodist Le Bonheur hospital, “Under the Rainbow.” It’s a dichroic piece that’s kinetic. I also have a piece in the entrance of Methodist Le Bonheur’s Community Outreach Building at 600 Jefferson. I hope to do more work in the District! 

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

I am grateful. I think right now in Memphis, as an artist to by a building, I realized what a challenge it was financially to try to buy a commercial building. It’s difficult. Because there were a number of organizations in Memphis supporting people who are trying to do stuff to improve the neighborhoods. It was a really good time for me because MMDC helped us with the façade grant and EDGE did a matching grant with us for the work, and we also received support from DMC. We received a lot of support, which is great!

I think that speaks to you being connected with a lot of the various local community development organizations. For other folks who are looking to follow in your footsteps, can you describe that process and how you went about identifying those grant opportunities?

I actually reached out to Poplar Foundation because I knew someone there. They put me in touch with River City Capital. I already knew about MMDC. I didn’t know about EDGE, but started to investigate them. I started to see who was interested in supporting this type of work. A lot of community development organizations are interested in supporting artists because they realize how valuable supporting artists and their art is to an upcoming neighborhood. I think everyone wanted to support an artist-owned and artist-focused business because we’ll make sure to keep it that way. People are stopping by the building since we’ve installed the mural on our exterior. It’s interesting to watch people start to put up signs and start making improvements, too. I think other businesses are having a little encouragement. The work is definitely having an effect. 

Warehouse Studios is located at 358 Walnut Street. You can keep up with them at offthewallsarts.org or Facebook.

Chef Tam's Underground Café

MMDC sat down with Chef Tamra Patterson, owner of the  new Medical District restaurant, Chef Tam’s Underground Café.

Could you give a brief history of yourself and your business?

My name is Tamra Patterson, and I have been cooking professionally since 2010. I am not a native Memphian. I’m from Texas, but I’ve lived in Memphis since January of 2015. I was a food services provider for a charter school first. Once the charter was lost by Shelby County Schools pulling it, I opened my own restaurant in Cooper Young. I was there for three years and grew exponentially before moving to the Medical District. We’ve been open since the first of the year. We’ve seen a packed house every day, and it’s been phenomenal!

What inspired your move from Texas to Memphis?

A friend of mine was doing some ministry work here. He was relocating back here because his family was from here, and he asked if I would come and help him because I have a background in ministry. So, I came to Memphis to help him, even though I didn’t initially plan on staying. I ended up saying, “well, if I’m here, I might as well grow where I’m planted,” so that’s how I ended up staying.

How did you end up transitioning from ministry to the food industry?

By trade, I’m a hairstylist. I did hair until 2010, but I was always around really good food. My grandmother was a professional baker, my father owned a restaurant, and then my mom’s dad owned a barbecue restaurant. I spent my days washing dishes after my dad did a catering job or ironing linen. So, I never wanted to cook because of that side of it. It was always washing the dishes or cleaning up, and I didn’t want to have to deal with that even though I could cook really well, nobody ever taught me. Most kids have the opportunity to say, “oh, my Dad taught me how to make this.” My dad only taught me how to make about two things and that was it— even though he was a cooking fool. I only have sisters and he didn’t allow us to cook. He cooked all the time. I was in high school still taking a sacked lunch. Even with my stepmom there, I can never say I remember her cooking up until his passing. So, I always kind of knew I could cook, but I never thought that I would step out and do it and actually make money off of it. I felt like I would always be the person that was doing hair. I did hair and I kept all my nieces and nephews so after school, before school, and in the summers, they were with me while their parents were at work. I just knew that would be my lot. Then, all of a sudden, I started having these dreams of recipes. I’m the type of person that journals, so I would wake up and write down whatever I dreamt, but I would never cook them. I would just write down what I saw or heard. Finally, one day, I got up and actually made the stuff. When I made it, it was like, “This is really good! Wait a minute.” I ended up sending the pastry that I made to a coffee shop right outside of Dallas. When I sent it to them, they ordered it instantly. I would make them 24 pastries and before I could make it home, which was maybe 15 minutes away, they would say they were sold out. So I’d go back home and make some and take them back. I did that for like a month, month and a half. It was like, okay God I feel like you’re telling me to do something else, but I don’t understand it and I don’t want to be stupid or foolish taking a leap doing something that is not founded or secure. But, I did it, and here I am 10 years later really grateful for the opportunities that I’ve been given from feeding celebrities to being on Food Network five times. In fact, on February 5th, I’ll be back on Food Network.

My son who is 16 now just said to me yesterday, “Do you remember when the goal was for you to sell 10 plates at 10 dollars a plate so you could make 100 dollars a day?” He was like, “Mom, you made it. You’ve finally made it. I’m so proud of you.” So, for me, that was the one thing that I’ve always wanted to hear, and it put me in a different mind space and gave me a different perspective. Rather than just thinking it needs to be better, I need to work harder, I established an appreciation for the hard work that I’ve already put in and the humility of how much work I still need to do. It’s a delicate balance, but it’s a balance nonetheless that I’m really grateful for.

When you were moving to Memphis, did you already have in your mind that you were going to work towards building a restaurant?

No, I was going to do the ministry stuff, and I was going to sell a few plates on the side if I needed to, to make some cash. It was never in my mind to build a restaurant here or to accomplish any of this. It’s interesting— the Bible says that we make our plans, but God directs our path. I had so many plans to do so many things, but God directed the path that I was supposed to go. I stood in here in the restaurant last week and I fought back tears because the restaurant was packed. I’m not from here. I don’t have any family here other than my husband, my son, and my husband’s family. For me to have seen the amount of success— I don’t spend any money on marketing, I just go post food on social media. To have had that kind of success is amazing. 

What were the steps you took to start your first restaurant?

This was birthed out of obscurity. When I was working at the charter school, they ended up closing. The owner of the charter school said, “I’m going to open a restaurant.” I foolishly thought it would work and went to work for him for about 3 months at the restaurant until they ultimately had to close. A woman that used to come to that restaurant, Cristina McCarter of City Tasting Tours, told me about the space in Cooper Young. I said, “I don’t know what you’re telling me for. I don’t have any money.” Surprisingly enough, one of my friends called and said, “God told me to bless you because you’re supposed to open a restaurant,” and she gave me the money to get the restaurant started in Cooper Young. Literally, the building is 100 years old—it’s an old house. I went to Dollar Tree and bought putty to fill the cracks in the walls. I would Uber at night and sell plates during the day, just to make the money to get the construction done. When we first opened, we ended up with 125 people coming in the door with no advertising, no marketing, no anything. So, we’ve had that type of eerie, crazy success since we’ve opened, and it hasn’t stopped since we’ve moved.

What inspired you to move your business to the Medical District?

Interestingly enough, we had looked at this building several times because it had the sign out that said ‘restaurant space.’ When my husband called, they told him no. Another guy had already put a contract on it. I happened to call him myself maybe a day later or so, and the broker—Robert Taylor— was actually my broker for the building in Cooper Young. I told him I was really interested in the building and he told me someone already had the building. I asked, “Well, have they given you any money yet?” He said no, but they didn’t want to go back on their word. I was like, “Well, if they’re not giving you any money, why are we talking about them?” What ended up happening was I bothered him and bothered him until he finally said okay. I turned in all the paperwork we needed to turn in, and I got the building. My husband has a God sister that actually worked in the area and told me that if I could just find a building in the Medical District or Downtown, they’d help me. It seemed so far-fetched because the prices were so steep. This building, as large as it is, turned out to be only a few hundred dollars more than what I spending in Cooper Young. To kind of give you an idea, we have an upstairs dining room that we rent for private events— all the furniture from the old restaurant fits up there and there’s still space left over. That lets you know how small we were versus where we are now.

What kinds of supports have you received from the Memphis Medical District Collaborative?

I’ve received Predevelopment and Façade Grants from MMDC. The building itself already had really good bones, all we had to do was make it prettier. The organization has been extremely kind, willing to help, and very patient. I am very specific about things happening a certain way and for things to happen at a certain time, and they were very understanding of that.

What can people expect from Chef Tam’s in the Medical District (programming, ambience, environment)?

You can expect live music on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings starting at 6:30pm. We’re about to apply for our liquor license, so we’ll have a full bar, and we’re also going to host some amateur nights and karaoke. We have the private event space for booking. We also have, what I think is my favorite thing in the entire building—the store. That store has everything from vintage candy from when I was little, to vintage toys, to our aprons, spices, food products, and our newly-released item is my grandmother’s chocolate chip cookie dough. We are really trying to put a different spin on things, and I think this helps us do just that.

You speak a lot about the importance of family and honoring your family through your business & products. Can you speak more on how family is represented throughout your restaurant?

Throughout the restaurant, we don’t have much artwork on the walls. What’s on the walls are my grandmother’s hand-written recipes. I just got them blown up, my husband made frames for them, and that’s our artwork. I’ve got my family tree painted on the wall, dated back all the way to 1821. The pictures on the dining tables are various pictures of my family, original Chef Tam’s menus, and family recipes.

What are your signature/most popular items?

The most popular items have stayed the same, the Peach Cobbler Nachos and Bayou Fries, even since the move and additional items added to the menu.

Will you be having any promotions or specials?

We’re going to be having a Valentine’s Day special. Stay tuned to Chef Tam’s social media for the upcoming announcement!

You are nationally renowned. How are you able to market yourself on both a local and national scale, and how did the special appearance opportunities come about for you?

When I ended up being on Food Network, they actually reached out to me.  What I do is work my social media over and over and over. In me working it, that allows whomever is scouting for those outlets to find me. It wasn’t a hashtag thing, it was just pretty food.

Do you have a most memorable event or most memorable interaction with someone through your business/catering?

I think the most memorable moment was the first time I went on Food Network and I actually won. It was so surreal. I had watched Guy Fieri when he first went on Food Network. I had been saying for years, “I’m gonna go on there one day!” and I had no idea that it would really happen. That would probably be one of the highs in my career.

You can contact Chef Tam’s Underground Café by messaging, following, and liking them on Facebook and Instagram and calling them at (901) 207-2598. You can also view their website and send them a message at www.thecheftam.com!

Kickspins | Tonya Dyson

MMDC sat down with Damien Baker and Tonya Dyson, owners of Kickspins and retail tenants of MMDC’s new development BOXLOT. 

You are well-known to Memphis! You do so much for the city. For those who don’t know you, can you let us know a little bit about your background and the many things you do for Memphis?

First of all, I tell people I’m a singer-songwriter first and then that kind of shapes everything else that I do around music here in the city. I am a recording artist, a songwriter, a performance artist- I do soul and jazz. Outside of that, I’m very active on the business end of the arts and culture scene here in Memphis. I’m the Executive Director of Memphis Slim Collaboratory, Director of the Soulsville USA Festival, Curator at Large for the Downtown Memphis Commission live programming, owner of Neosoulville- a marketing & promotions company for concert promotions- and, of course, co-owner of Kickspins. I also have a radio show on 88.5 called “Soul School” that airs every Tuesday at 3 o’clock.

Your business model is very unique- 2 stores in one with unique services (shoe refurbishing & customization and music apparel). What inspired this business as well as your partnership with Damien?

Really just a nod to hip-hop. I’m a hip-hop kid. Of course, kickspin is a breakdance move. It was the perfect name/way to incorporate both sneakers and vinyl- both part of hip-hop culture. Kickspins just popped up and came together that way. I love music, but I’m also a sneaker head too, so this was the perfect way to blend the two. I co-own Kickspins along with Damien Baker. We’ve known each other for several years, and have been on the same scene. The hip-hop, soul scene was relatively small back then when we were younger and in our twenties. As an adult, we discussed a joint store idea and he wanted to do something to get out there with his sneaker customization. I told him about this opportunity, and asked him if he was interested in creating something together for that, and he was. That’s where it all came from. 

How did this opportunity come about? How has MMDC aided in the process of starting your business?

I original started working with MMDC in 2017 with the first iteration of a record store called OM in the pop-ups that were in Edge Alley when they first opened up. It was a 30-day pop-up. I was one of the first initial incubations in there along with a vintage thrift store, a soap-making company, and an architect. I was contacted by MMDC regarding another incubation opportunity, but around that time, I was working on a big project and was unable to get involved. This past Spring, I ended up getting a call from Vonesha Mitchell asking me if I was still interested in the opportunity, and I got the opportunity to sit down with her and Chris Porter of Creative Punch to workshop what we now know as BOXLOT. I was excited about the rebrand. The proposed branding, marketing, and programming elements proposed for BOXLOT really excited and interested me. At that point, I knew that I wanted to be a part of this project. 

How exactly do you go about finding all of the records, CDs, and other music apparel that you stock in the store?

I will be selling CDs soon- a lot of the local artists still have CDs. I am a local artist myself, and I want to support the local scene. Local artists can come to me- e-mail me at kickspinsmemphis@gmail.com or at tonya@memphisslimhouse.org if they’d like their CDs to be sold at Kickspins. Anyone that’s selling vinyl can also reach out. I don’t like going to a lot of estate sales—I like buying my records from people that are still alive because I like hearing their journeys—they usually have cool stories. They tell me about when they were a teenager when they bought this, when their wife bought this album when they had just moved in before they had kids…such interesting stories. A lot of times, I’ll connect with these people through word of mouth. I’ll talk to someone’s uncle or someone’s grandfather, dad—someone who had their parents’ collection and they don’t know what to do with it. I talk about vinyl, collecting, and music all the time. I’m an overall music aficionado- particularly for soul music, so a lot of people just reach out to me and say, “Hey, I have this collection. Do you want to buy it?” On the Grand Opening, I had people to come in asking if I buy albums and connected that way. That’s usually how I come across a lot of stuff. I’m always scouring Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist. I’m a vintage type of person, I thrift a lot. If I see something that has some good bones or some structure, I can see the vision. For example, I have these Yo! MTV Raps and Rap Packs trading cards in store. I put in a search for hip hop and they just came up. They were collected in 1991 when they first came out. The person figured they’d come in handy and bought boxes full when they first came out and stored them in one of their collector’s storage units. Now, they’re cleaning out their storage unit. I ended up meeting the person and purchasing the whole lot. 

As a new business owner in the District, what is some advice you would give other entrepreneurs looking to establish a brick and mortar in the Medical District?

Make sure you have your distribution line setup as far as how you’re going to stock your store. Always keep marketing and branding in mind. That’s the biggest driver, and of course, have some type of social media plan. Think out of the box. Have cool programming around it. It doesn’t have to be huge or super spectacular for it to be effective. A lot of people think they need to host huge events, but drawing in 4 or 5 people is still a win if you can get those 4 or 5 to at least purchase a small item and refer their friends to your business. Don’t think that any of your efforts are too small because the smallest thing can be effective. 

Can people expect any events or programming from Kickspins?

I plan on having weekly events including Music Trivia on Wednesday nights from 6-8 and Juke in the Box on Sundays from 1-3. Each week of Music Trivia will have a different theme. The upcoming Music Trivia during BOXLOT’s National Sneaker Day event (October 9th) will be themed “Guess That Sample.” For Juke in the Box, customers can come in and choose what song they want to have playing in-store using our Vintage Sounds Bluetooth speaker. Outside of that, I plan on having in store performances by local artists during weeks of their album releases. This would be similar to a short, unplugged performance where local artists can come and perform a song, sell, and sign their albums. I’ll also be going live on Facebook during those events and integrating Facebook with Paypal so that those who cannot be present can stream and order the artist’s album all on the Facebook platform. That way, those who order online can still get their albums signed by the artist and shipped to them.  

What are your signature/most popular items so far?

The records- that has been the biggest thing. A lot of the late 60s and 70s soul music has been selling very well. Now that I’ve gotten t-shirts, those have been selling quickly as well. 

Kickspins is located at 607 Monroe Avenue. You can like and follow them on Facebook and Instagram and contact them at (901) 286-3164 or kickspinsmemphis@gmail.com.

Kickspins | Damien Baker

MMDC sat down with Damien Baker, co-owner of Kickspins and retail tenant of MMDC’s new development BOXLOT.

Can you let us know a little bit about yourself and the “Kicks” side of Kickspins?

Well, I've always been an artist /sneakerhead. I used to get in trouble for drawing in class, on desks and walls. It eventually led to me doing the same but on sneakers, then I decided to move on to restorations. We all have that one pair that we just dont want to let go of. That's one of the main reasons why I decided to give it a try for the first time.

When/how did you get into the sneaker scene, shoe refurbishing, and sneaker customization?

I've been into sneaker culture since middle school. I remember when classmates would bring in the latest Eastbay catalog. The entire class would stop just to look at it and see the what new sneakers were being released. I became interested in customization back in 2007. I was watching a television program that featured a pair of  customized  "God of War" Nike Dunks. I thought to myself, "I can do that." A friend of mine saw the same program and decided to give me a couple pairs of sneakers to try it out on. I did some free hand designs and people liked them. I learned the process and took it seriously back in 2014. Then moved on to learn the restoration aspect.

Your business model is very unique- 2 stores in one with unique services (shoe refurbishing & customization and music apparel). What inspired this business as well as your partnership with Tonya?

I've known Tonya since 1999. We've both shared a deep love for music and art. I showed her a pair of customs that I was working on for a customer. She admired my work and was very encouraging. She later pitched the idea of "Kickspins" to me and I loved the idea, so we ran with it.

How did this opportunity come about? How has MMDC aided in the process of starting your business?

The opportunity was presented to me by Tonya through MMDC. The MMDC has been supportive in more ways than one, financially, through promotion and events. I'm happy and thankful to be a part of something so special and innovative.

Do you sell any items in store? What can people expect from their experience with your services and your in-store offerings?

Yes, I sell various books about sneakers and the culture, 3-D printed sneaker keychains that range from "Off White Jordans" to "Travis Scott Dunks". I also sell various products for sneaker customization/restoration, ranging from leather paint starter kits, heatguns, shoe cleaners, shoe decreasers and sole cleaners, to restore them back to their original color.

As a new business owner in the District, what is some advice you would give other entrepreneurs looking to establish a brick and mortar in the Medical District?

If the opportunity, love and passion are there, go for it. Know your service, product and customer base. Properly set goals and means to achieve them. You will definitely be supported.

What are your signature/most popular services so far? Any design requests that stand out?

My most popular services have been sneaker restorations and colorway changes. Some sneakers are almost impossible to find again once no longer in stock. Those that are available are highly expensive.  Like I said before some people have that special pair that they just dont want to let go of, so they bring them to me. I'm able to remove creases, restore the original color to the sole and or change the colorway all together.

Kickspins is located at 607 Monroe Avenue. You can like and follow them on Facebook and Instagram and contact them at (901) 286-3164

or kickspinsmemphis@gmail.com

Majik & Co

MMDC sat down with Auston Freeman, owner of Majik & Co. and retail tenant of MMDC’s new development BOXLOT. 

Can you tell me a little about yourself and your business? 

I’m a native Memphian. I’ve been doing vintage clothing for about 11 years now. I started off just going to thrift stores and just picking up stuff here and there. I transitioned that into doing different trade show and sneaker events- the vintage clothing transitioned me into thinking more about the connection between both sneakers and vintage clothing and the culture that comes with the two elements. I originally started selling on Ebay. I had a small website. Now, here I am in 2019 with a store!

The vintage culture in Memphis is on the rise. How’d you get plugged in? 

The stuff that I like now is everything I kind of wanted as a kid, but I just never really knew the significance of the items back then. I saw apparel then, and liked it, but was too young to buy it for myself. Now, looking back on it, when I find certain pieces, I’m like “Oh yeah, I remember this from when I was a kid—” and there’s a certain nostalgia factor to it. I think that’s what’s getting everybody into the whole vintage, retro thing—the nostalgia in it. Whether it be an old jersey or an old pair of shoes, people remember those from their childhoods and earlier eras. The nostalgia factor really got me into the industry. 

Can you shed some light on the vintage scene in the city and what makes it so special here?

I’ve been doing this for a while and never really ran into many who were doing it. I would maybe run into a few who were. I definitely think that there was a resurgence of vintage reselling around 2012 and that kind of died. Now, there’s a huge wave of everybody getting back into the vintage scene. It’s this wave of 1: the vintage scene being publicized more, like people going to thrift stores and 2: there’s some large name brands that have launched similar stores. Like Round 2 in California— now they have one in New York, Chicago, and Miami. People are seeing that. They might have started selling vintage on the side, just kind of collecting and now seeing that they can make a business out of this. 

There’s not as much awareness here in Memphis of the vintage scene versus other cities. When I was probably starting in 2007/2008, they probably already had shops popping up across the country that were doing this. In Memphis, we’re just kind of now figuring out what vintage is and what the culture is really about—working to fill in the gaps and the lack of knowledge of the industry. 

What makes Majik & Co. stand out from other vintage resellers in the city?

I would say my overall knowledge of the product and the history behind it. There’s a lot of people that are doing it, but they might just be doing it because it’s cool or it’s like the thing to do at the moment. I feel like I have more skin in the game and am more knowledgeable about the products that I’m selling and offering. 

How did you go from doing your business mostly online to having your own shop here at BOXLOT?

I was working at The Pocket Downtown, and that’s where I met Brian who was over the Shab Chic development in the beginning. He referenced the Business Support and Incentives provided by MMDC that could help me transition into a brick and mortar, so I eventually met with Vonesha. Over a year’s time, we spoke regularly trying to figure out possible locations that could work for my business, the financial capabilities, and ultimately, when MMDC acquired BOXLOT, she had me in mind as a potential tenant. She asked me if I was still interested, and I said yes! I think more than anything, I made a splash on Instagram more than around Memphis. I was known in Memphis by certain people, but I was still kind of like a known unknown, but this opportunity gives me the visibility to make my brand known throughout the city. 

How has MMDC aided in the process of starting your business?

I definitely couldn’t do this without MMDC and having this strong support system. MMDC having the different tools to help a small business owner or someone, in my case, owning their business for the first time figure it out and transition from strictly online to a brick and mortar has been extremely helpful.

How exactly do you go about finding all of the apparel that you stock in the store?

Various sources anywhere from thrift stores to garage sales. People even walk in the store with items and I’ll buy stuff from them if they have cool stuff. People will message me online if they want to sell something. I also find things online. 

As a new business owner in the District, what is some advice you would give other entrepreneurs looking to establish a brick and mortar in the Medical District?

Be creative. If you already have a good thing going and a business that you can stand behind, follow your dreams! This area is in a way kind of like a blank canvas and you can create your own space and create your own vision within the area. Follow you vision!

Can people expect any events or programming from Majik & Co.?

I’d like to do some raffles, like a sneaker raffle or raffle for a piece of clothing. Some larger events are pending for 2020. 

What are your signature/most popular items so far?

So far, my top selling items are the Nike windbreakers. Everybody likes that 80’s/90’s retro style. The second top-seller is the vintage concert and tour shirts. People are really into those!

Majik & Co. is located at 607 Monroe Avenue. You can check out their apparel and follow them on Instagram!