Today we’d like to introduce you to De’Stini Henderson.
Hi De’Stini , thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Five Star Vending LLC started while scrolling through TikTok, as a simple idea of creating passive income while I was pregnant with my baby girl. I created my business with the intention of delivering top-tier service, premium products, and an unmatched customer experience. To be frank, I had no prior knowledge of the vending industry, but I knew I was going to step out on faith and build my business from the ground up no matter what it took. The name is inspired by my favorite number – five – and the fact that a “five-star” rating represents the highest level of quality and excellence. I never in a million years that I would business owner, let alone in the vending business, but I can honestly say it’s one of the best decisions I ever made.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The vending business is FAR from smooth, but it is truly what you make it. From trying to secure a location, to securing a HIGH TRAFFIC location at that, it’s a pretty cut throat lime of business. The DFW is massive of course, but securing a location was definitely my hardest struggle. I’m excited to share that I secured my biggest vending location yet, all thanks to the support of my amazing sorority sisters of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. To be honest, the first 4 months, I wanted to give up because I constantly kept hearing ‘no’ from companies to put my machines in their locations. My early challenges and struggles truly laid the foundation to my success in the end, and I will always acknowledge the times where I fell short; but also how I picked myself up.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My 9-5 I work for J.P. Morgan Chase where I am a Chase Private Client, Sr Home Lending Advisor. I have been with the firm for officially 5 years as of this November. In my role I serve as a guide for clients throughout the home financing journey. I am truly dedicated to helping individuals and families achieve their homeownership goals by providing expert advice, personalized solutions, and ongoing support from initial application to the very day that they close on their home.
With Five Start Vending, I don’t look at my business as a ‘side hustle’ or something that I ‘do for fun’. When I finish, my day job, I pour into my business. Whether it’s creating content, messaging businesses to submit business proposals, or even as simple as restocking my machines, I take my business very serious as I hold it very near and dear to my heart. I feel like what sets my business apart from other vending businesses, is that it’s a truly family owned and operated business. I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I constantly hear positive feedback on the customer service that I display to my customers. Anytime something is wrong with the machines, or if refunds need to be processed, I like to take care of those calls within 12 hours to ensure everything continues to run smooth. From my parents, to my family and friends, line sisters etc, we are all one band, one sound, when it comes to these machines to make sure the job is done at the end of the day.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
When it comes to risk taking, I am definitely one to push all the limits until I can’t anymore. One major risk I took was securing my first location at a trucking company. This company only had about 20 employees to the entire company, so I knew this wasn’t a high traffic location, but it was a start. Not only was it not a high traffic location, my machine sat in their break room which was a trailer with little to no ac. Of course, I put items such as different chocolates in the machines, so this caused major issues especially in the summer. I genuinely prayed over that machine/location everyday because I didn’t know what was to come from it. I don’t look at this moment in my business as a ‘risk’, but simply as a ‘leap’, because I knew what God had in store for us, was bigger than this one location, and it was just the first to many. I viewed this opportunity as ‘some of the biggest leaps start in the smallest places, but embracing every challenge along the way is what makes it so beautiful.’
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fivestarvending
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Five-Star-Vending-LLC-61561921786138/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@fivestarvendingdtx
Image Credits
Jameson Ray Photography for professional shots
