Fly

What a random breakfast meeting and the Knicks taught me about being ready before you think you need to be. Like ❤️ and share 🏹 it with someone who needs the reminder.

We just got back from DC where I attended my last conference until the fall and I am beat.

Image: Selfie right before the ribbon cutting of Eataly at JFK T5.

On Thursday, after the kids’ last day of school, we boarded a train to DC so that I could attend the AMAC (Airport Minority Advisory Council) Business Conference and they could have an early summer break adventure at their grandmother’s house. We stayed with my mom because she lives close to where the conference was happening and she could provide free childcare while I attended the conference around the clock. To give you a sense of things, I saw Nico for the first time on Sunday morning. He was asleep when I left each day and when I returned home. I was on the go attending workshops and networking with people as I got lost in the humongous hotel’s hallways that divided the breakout rooms from each other. These conferences are work. While I’m often well fed and have moments to hang with colleagues, these trips take a lot out of me. But, the insights I gain from other businesses and even how ours fares in relation to others, is worth it.

Images: The kids on our way to end of the school year festivities

While on this trip, I met veterans who’ve been working in the aviation space as retail and food and beverage merchants for years. One of the weekend’s refrains was how hard it is to get into the airport business. Another refrain was how volatile the industry is. Hearing these things made me feel at once grateful and fearful for the opportunities that landed in my lap three and a half years ago.

Many people ask me about whether Sugar Hill Creamery will be opening in the airport and I always have to explain that I am in no rush to marry my ice cream lady identity with my airport lady identity. I am a Joint Venture Partner working in concessions, which means I am an established streetside (airport speak for a business on the ground, outside of the airport) operator partnering with several other restaurant owners to operate a variety of food and brand concepts in the terminals. Some of these brands include Eataly and more local brands like Brooklyn Tea, Bessou, and Field Trip.

Image: My mom and me at a breakfast she moderated at the AMAC conference this past weekend.

I am new to the industry and looking to learn slowly and cautiously about how to navigate it. The two projects that I’m on could be the beginning of a completely separate business for me and maybe my kids if they decide to join the family business. For now, I am in awe of what my mother was able to give me because of an uncalculated friendship in the industry that led to a random breakfast meeting with her friend’s direct report followed by an invitation to be included on the firm’s proposals to win these airport contracts. My readiness to seize an opportunity in the face of uncertainty was needed also. There’s something to be said about being ready before you think you need to be—that takes vision, faith, and perseverance, which if the Knicks’ outcome during the NBA Finals is any indicator, are three great approaches to have with your goals.

Go Knicks!

Petrushka

Your Local Ice Cream Lady & Life/Business Coach