Today we’d like to introduce you to Lyisha “Lollie” Allen.
Hi Lyisha “Lollie”, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My journey begins working in the nightlife as a bottle girl, hookah attendant and bartender. I then realized I’m good at this and I can do this for myself as a part-time hustle. Myself and a friend then started a mobile bartending service in Memphis, TN. I moved back home to New Orleans a year later and eventually found myself bartending and being a hookah attendant again. As business picked up, we were then hit with the Pandemic and I had to see things in a different which birth Clouds & Cocktails.
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?
As all Entrepreneurs know, this life isn’t easy nor is it for the weak. Being an entrepreneur is a 24/7, 365 day job. The road is not smooth, at times it feels like it’s always something happening, something going wrong or unplanned. That’s the job! Being an entrepreneur has you on the most bumpiest road but the struggle is worth it when you begin to see your success.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Clouds & Cocktails?
Clouds & Cocktails started off as a Mobile Bartending and Hookah Rental company and is now the First Cannabis & Smoke Shop owned by a black female in the city of New Orleans and Baton Rouge in the state of Louisiana. The company started out with just mobile bartending and hookah rental service but then expanded into Hookah for Businesses, it’s a program where we do startup hookah programs inside of businesses and with individuals looking to start hookah rental companies. In looking for inventory for our smoke shop my boyfriend ran across some products that guided us into the legal cannabis industry and here we are today with two stores. We have our own branded Pocket Hookahs in Nicotine & Non Nicotine, Flowers and Gummies which can be purchased at www.cloudsandcocktails.com along with a variety of other products. I want the world to know the Clouds & Cocktails brand and be able to say “Wow they have quality and consistent products” because this is truly the goal.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
The biggest risk I had to make was to quit my corporate job to focus on my business. My business began growing at a rapid pace and begin to lose control of the balance between my corporate job, my entrepreneurship and my home life being a mother of three. I kept saying I can not lose out on this guaranteed money and benefits I have kids but my boyfriend said to me the same 8-10 hours you put in for your corporate job you can be investing in yourself. I put in my two weeks notice and haven’t looked back since.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cloudsandcocktails.com
- Instagram: @cloudsandcocktails
Image Credits
Reezus
