Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Pham.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Jennifer. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My husband and I started Fat Straws in 2002 in Plano. We had just gotten married six months prior before entering our entrepreneurial journey. It is not an easy or a glamorous road but we would do it again in a heartbeat! Currently, we own four Fat Straws locations in Dallas, North Dallas, Plano, and Richardson.
Fat Straws is our own twist on a bubble tea concept. When we first opened in 2002, bubble tea wasn’t really popular in the U.S as it is today. If there was a bubble tea store, it was in a high Asian population area. We wanted to create a brand that welcome the diverse culture of Dallas with excellent customer experience and of course, high-quality products. We serve beverages from teas to fruit smoothies, slushes, and milkshakes. Customers can add tapioca bubbles/boba or jellies to any drink.
In 2019, we introduced a new brand Chewy Puff by Fat Straws. We are the first in Texas to introduce these Japanese mochi donuts that we are calling chewy puffs. We have customers from Houston, Austin, Oklahoma, Louisiana road-trip to buy Chewy Puff donuts. We make them fresh every morning at our Richardson location. They are available to purchase at all four Fat Straws locations while supplies last each day.
Has it been a smooth road?
Everyone at one point or another probably thought about being your own boss. There is a lot of blood, sweat and toil that you don’t see. They say that being an entrepreneur is one of the loneliest jobs on the planet and I have to agree!
When we started Fat Straws, we worked 19-20 hours a day everyday for two years before we can afford to hire an employee. After 18 years in the business, it is still a rollercoaster ride.
Advice I can give to young women is to keep learning and if don’t know something ask someone who knows. Don’t be too prideful to ask for help. But, you will need to have a clear purpose on why you are doing what you are doing.
Being an entrepreneur gives you the freedom to be your own boss but there are a lot of sacrifices that come with freedom.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into Fat Straws story. Tell us more about the business.
Fat Straws is our own twist on a bubble tea (boba tea) concept. Bubble tea is a tea-based drink that originated from Taiwan the early 80’s. When we first opened in 2002, we were one of the first to bring bubble tea to Dallas. Our menu has evolved since then, we serve hot tea, iced tea, fruit smoothies, slushes, milkshakes. Customers can add tapioca bubbles/boba or fruit jellies to any drink. Our newest addition to the menu are Foam Series. Teas topped with Sea Salt Foam or Cheese Foam. If you haven’t tried cheese foam, you MUST!!
The most unique thing about Fat Straws is our Chewy Puff by Fat Straws. Chewy Puff donuts are Japanese mochi donuts that are made with rice flour. We are the first to offer this product in Texas. These are not your grandmother’s doughnuts! They don’t go through conveyor belts for mass production. Each chewy puff donut is hand-dipped and our glazes are made in-house scratch with Swiss chocolate base.
Chewy puff has crispy exterior but it’s chewy inside from the mochi flour. We make them fresh every morning at our Richardson location and they are available at all Fat Straws locations while supplies last each day.
For good reason, society often focuses more on the problems rather than the opportunities that exist, because the problems need to be solved. However, we’d probably also benefit from looking for and recognizing the opportunities that women are better positioned to capitalize on. Have you discovered such opportunities?
I think right now is a perfect opportunity for anyone to start a business! Internet is a great resource to learn and research any subject.
With all the technology available to start an online business on Shopify or network with people all over the globe who might be subject matter experts on things you are trying to learn. I feel like if you are willing to put in the time and invest in learning, the opportunity is there for anyone.
Internet also gives you the opportunity to increase your customer base to anywhere in the world with direct to consumer sales model.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.fatstraws.co
- Email: smile@fatstraws.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fatstraws/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fatstraws/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/fatstraws
Image Credit:
Jennifer Pham
Suggest a story: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
