Today we’d like to introduce you to Latasha Smith.
Hi Latasha, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My career started off in healthcare. I was passionate about caring and helping others. Medicine and the science of the body has always been my interest. Helping others has always been my passion since I was in middle school. I never thought I would do anything else, so when I decided to go back to school to get to grad school, I knew I wanted to pursue something different. Through some personal and professional interactions, I began to understand I had a distinct interest in business. I eventually got hired into Corporate America, joined a couple of entrepreneurship organizations, got a business mentor and started business school. I quickly realized that corporate America was not for me, so I cultivated an exit strategy and began seeking other opportunities around my passion. Then someone close to me, introduced me to real estate investing. And once I was bitten by the bug I wanted to learn more. This lead me into investing full time. I spent about two years learning everything I could, which gave me the courage to pivot from healthcare full-time to real estate. To be honest, I was scared but I knew I didn’t want to pursue higher education in Healthcare. Yet, I did desire to further my education in business, so at this point it seemed fitting to merge the two. I went on to complete my degree in 2016, with a Masters in Entrepreneurship and Leadership. After finishing grad school, I decided to take what I learned as an investor, and my leadership roles in those corporate environments to improve on my business acumen. I was able to put things into practice like how to read and understand contracts, negotiate deals, set up my own business entities and ways to create and manage a diversified, investment portfolio. Since making decisions to step outside of my comfort zone years ago, my POV is completely different in how I operate in my daily life. So fast forward to 2021, when I was given the vision to start my own business, I quickly realized I had all the tools I needed to begin the process without help from any outside resources initially. I simply used the knowledge I gained along with the motivation to succeed and a business was concepted and birthed.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I am a person that believes if you’re going to do something, go all in and do it the right way. Learn as much as you can, from the inside out in order to set your foundation, then take that foundation and build on it as you go. As I stated before, entrepreneurship was not something I ever imagined for myself, this is why I believe this business concept was given to me by God. Although I believed it was given to me for my daughter, it has actually helped me and inspired other family members in so many ways. This journey, albeit a new journey, has come with its share of ups and downs, wins disappointments. Frankly, I would not change anything about it because it has helped us grow as individuals and as a family. And the fact that entrepreneurship can be such a lonely space, having family support has truly been an eye opener. I have never felt so loved, supported and validated in my life. Support from your people means so much! In this business you get your fair share of no’s, doors not opening and misunderstandings of your vision. So it’s good to be embraced by a team who supports you, and who will tell you the truth and give you the energy you need to keep trying.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At Dolce Tropical, we offer gourmet frozen treats, delicious Mexican-themed beverages, and an assortment of homemade sorbets and desserts. We offer delicious, tasty treats with a variety of different options – dairy and non-dairy, vegan options. Our flavors are different; flavors that offer a whole OTHER experience for those interested in trying something new. And as we grow, we plan to expand on what is already an elevated dessert experience. Because we are not your basic ice cream shop. As one of our customers once stated after he tried on of our nadas, “That was a whole vibe!”
We like to say we are known for our Mangonada and our other fruit Nadas (which we individually crafted). But each of our desserts are like no other in the metro Atlanta area because we are the only, black-owned dessert company providing these niche products. Our customers get so excited to try what we offer. We revel in educating our new customers, who are our biggest clients, but our repeat customers and those they refer are truly our foundation.
Although some of our treats are not new to certain cultures, we are excited to be able to introduce it to the masses who’ve never tried it. We enjoy the smiles we put on faces by providing the sweetness of tropical flavors with the savory flavors of spice to make your taste buds come alive.
As an entity, we are hoping to expand, so we are raising capital to grow our brand. We plan to use the funds to open our first store and food trailer so we may be able to offer our customers what they love on a consistent basis. Please check out our story on Go Fund Her and Go Fund Me. You can donate on one of our pages by using the links https://gofundher.com/
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
What makes us successful is our ability to educate our customer population. What we offer is new to this geographical area, so we take our time to educate. We want to allow the customer to make their own decision. For us, we understand that being knowledgeable about our product is key. Next, we allow the presentation to excite and then allow the taste to do the rest. For those reasons, we are able to convert 99% of our consumers into customers on site. Its rare anyone leaves empty-handed, pleasantly pleased, and wanting more. Most everyone leaves with a smile. And the blessing of it all is they often return, usually not alone, and they visit again. We love our customers!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dolcetropical.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dolce_tropical/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dolcetropicalatl
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/dolcetropical
- Other: @southerngirlgigi
