It seems like everything is happening so fast, and I'm loving it! But let me back up a step.
It was only a few short months ago that I found myself once again thinking about what it was I was supposed to do in life. Things were going ok, and I had work, but something was missing. I've always felt like I needed to be doing something more than just the status quo.
I had spent better part of the last decade behind a keyboard. Now don't get me wrong I love technology, but I had had enough. I wanted to create some type of business that would allow me to support my family, be able to spend time with my family, and hopefully be able to help others. And not do it ALL from a computer. Sounds kinda cliche now that I type it out, but those were my criteria.
I don't remember the exact thought that led me to popcorn as a business, but I do remember the night that it happened. It was my wife, my son, and I sitting around the living room watching television when I blurted out that I was going to start a gourmet popcorn company. A company that makes the best all natural popcorn in the world! I admit I did get a couple of strange looks, and there were only two other people in the room.
After the words came out though it felt very natural. Not sure why really because most of my ideas had to do with tech solutions, but I have always LOVED popcorn. So in one sense, I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner!
A Brief History Of Popcorn (as it relates to me):
When I was growing up my mom had always made popcorn for us on the stove and I could never get enough. I liked everything about it. We would hover around in the kitchen waiting for it to cook, anticipating that popping sound. I still smile every time I hear popcorn start to pop, I just can't help it. Usually what would follow would be our family hanging out in the living room enjoying the popcorn and spending time together.
And I don't even want to get started on movie theater popcorn! My dad and I spent a lot of time at the movie theater when I was growing up and there was NO WAY we were watching a movie without popcorn. It was every bit as much of the experience as the movie itself. And when the movie was bad at least you knew you were getting great popcorn. Too bad I now realize that a bag of movie theater popcorn is about as unhealthy as it gets.
So I was very pleased to introduce my family to cooking popcorn on the stove, and what real popcorn tastes like. I don't know if I've mentioned it, but I'm NOT a fan of microwave popcorn. To me there's no comparison. My popcorn was always a hit when we had movie night at the house and all was well with the world.
So where was I? I start reminiscing about the history that popcorn and I share and I can get a little side tracked....
So there I was having a eureka moment in the living room declaring that I was going into the popcorn business. So what did I do next? I made some popcorn of course!
The next thing I needed in my estimation was a business plan.... just kidding. Starting with a formal business plan requires more discipline and organization than I posses. No what I needed to get started, besides good popcorn, was a name! The formal business plan will be third of course...
My wife and I kicked around several ideas waiting for one to stick, and eventually I came up with Chad's Carolina Corn. I think it has a nice ring to it and explains what the company is about. There's me (Chad's), there's where I'm from and where the popcorn is made (Carolina), and there's the popcorn itself (Corn). And the fact it makes a neat and pretty acronym didn't hurt either: CCC.
I also love the fact that popcorn isn't so serious. People are smiling when you give them great popcorn, and popcorn is just fun. In the spirit of keeping this fun I've given myself a self appointed title: The Popcorn Czar. It's a title I will do my best to live up to :)
Now let's flash forward a few month's and I'm now in the thick of getting a business started completely from scratch, which is always a little more work than you think it would be, and I'm loving it! I get a little overwhelmed at times, but that's to be expected I suppose. I've already managed to pull a few all nighters getting ready for some events. But hey, if you can't enjoy popping popcorn at 3 in the morning when can you enjoy popping popcorn?
Everything is still in the beginning stages, but so far the response has been fantastic! I've managed to create a few addicts right off the bat.
I'm putting together the website, www.chadscarolinacorn.com, and things are starting to get really exciting.
So check out the site and follow this blog to find out where you can get your next fix of Chad's Carolina Corn.
Chad aka "The Popcorn Czar"
