EP01: Toa Green Tells the Story of Crank & Boom, Pt. 1
Welcome to our first episode of the Crank & Boom Podcast! In this episode our host, Toa Green, shares the very beginnings of her entrepreneurship story and of what would become a very successful business and important pillar in her community.
The origin story of any successful business usually has pivot moments, unexpected obstacles, and huge amounts of sacrifice. Not feeling alone is crucial when you’re starting out. Toa wants to share how she started, what went wrong, and what eventually started to go right.
In this episode, Toa will discuss:
Growing up in an immigrant household that owned a restaurant
Starting and dropping obligations in her life until she found her passion and purpose
The moment where she knew that her ice cream was a “thing”
Listening to customers to find out what works
Asking for help to start a business
Quotable Moments From the Episode
“I learned from childhood about customer service skills. I used to be very terrified of people. They would come in the restaurant and I would literally run away to the back and my dad would l push me back out into the dining room and say, ‘Well, go seat them!’ And so I would and I would conquer my fear.” - Toa Green
“[I had] a very untraditional childhood. I never got to go to summer camp and didn’t get to participate in a lot of other activities that other kids did. Only in adulthood do I look back and really appreciate what that meant and how much that has built the foundation of who I am now and how much it has helped me in my professional life.” - Toa Green
“If you use real ingredients, it can make this product that is just absolutely phenomenal.” - Toa Green about her first run making strawberry ice cream
“Our whole relationship [with Toa’s husband] is rooted in giving to others. And I think that's why our business is rooted in that as well.” - Toa Green
“I really started integrating [giving back] in our business when we started. We were tiny and we didn't have any money to give anybody, we were just trying to survive. But I would always find these other ways to still give back and I could give what I had, and that was food, and it was my time.” - Toa Green
“A car pulled up in front of our restaurant and a lady came in wearing an Eskimo parka, all bundled up, running through the snowstorm. She came in and said, "I'm just here for a few pints of ice cream." I said, ‘Oh, great, do you want any dinner or Thai food?’ And she said, ‘Nope, just the ice cream.’ Mike and I looked at each other and said, ‘Maybe . . . maybe there is something with this ice cream.’ - Toa Green
Listen to the rest of the story in episode 2 of the Crank and Boom Podcast!
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