Lazarius “Ken” Walker is a self-sufficient serial entrepreneur, philanthropist, and native of Lithonia, Georgia. He began his business ventures in Columbia, SC. His entrepreneurial spark started as a mere hobby while making various meals for his fraternity brothers. The spark led him to leave his 9-5.
His most notable achievement is the Guinness Book of World Record for being the World’s Most Expensive Crabcake along with a host of other competitions and shows.
Walker prides himself for being a one-man show without an agent or manager. He admits that marketing is what helped him along the way. He has not stopped there, he has transitioned and leveraged businesses in both the technology with the launch of two applications. The most recent application is an augmented reality app, MetroYou in which many business owners have opted to use for networking, landing pages, and presentations.
Please tell us a little bit about your company – what is it all about?
I own a fast-service restaurant in the heart of Richard County. We are about Community Service and Quality food with a twist.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
My background is in Biology. However, I’ve always loved to cook growing up. I used to watch Emeril Lagasse with my mom, and we would experiment with her recipes. I started The Twist shortly after winning a National Food Truck Competition in 2016. I took the $25,000 winnings and opened up The Twist.
What would you say are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
- Reading. Information won’t just be handed to you. You will have to research and cross-reference the information you read.
- Perseverance. You will have to stay at it for a while with no results but you slowly understand that you’re still making traction no matter how small.
- Adaptation. You should change with time and reinvent yourself.
What are your plans for the future, how do you plan to grow this company?
I plan on franchising it starting at the end of this year to allow others in on the secret sauce. I also plan on using modern-day technology to give customers an experience when they come in.
How do you separate yourself from your competitors?
My cooking, community service, and my culinary achievements. We pride ourselves on being heavily involved in the community through and through.
What were the top three mistakes you made starting your business, and what did you learn from them?
- Time Management. I had to learn how better use the time I had to make it work for me
- Not adapting to the demographics I was trying to serve
- Trying to do it all myself and then realizing I needed help and hired more people.
If you had the chance to start your career over again what would you do differently?
Absolutely nothing. I needed all the life lessons that I gained from my years of failure and wins.
If you only had 1000 dollars to start a new business, knowing everything you know now, how would you spend it?
25% on Supplies, 25% on becoming licensed, and 50% advertising. These are the main components necessary to get your business off the ground and to consumers.
What is your favorite quote?
One step at a time. One punch at a time .
Rocky Balboa
What is the one thing you wish you knew before starting your business?
How much work it took to get started and then multiply that 10x to thrive and stay relevant in an ever changing society.
How can readers get in touch with you?
You can visit my website metroyouar.com to get to know more about me.
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