Today we’d like to introduce you to Adolfo Jimenez.
Hi Adolfo, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I’ve always been interested in small and independent businesses. I was a car wash and recycling kid. I had my first job when I was 11 and my first business when I was 17, detailing cars. I’ve spent many years in the corporate world but never felt at home there. It wasn’t uncommon for me to have a full-time, fairly demanding job (hotel management, financial advisor, banker) and have a business on the side.
I finally took the plunge during the pandemic in 2020. I’d had enough of the corporate world. I was in the cruise industry and I disagreed with how my employer was handling cancellations, deposits, refunds, etc. I had started The Cafeteria Company in 2020 and decided in the second quarter of 2021 that it was time to go all in. I quit being an employee and became a full-time entrepreneur. It helps that my business partner is very convincing and she told me to take the plunge already. My business partner is my wife, Abdaliz. With her support and encouragement, I knew there was no point making excuses.
We started TCC to manage one school cafeteria and have added two more since. We are a cafeteria outsourcing company serving mainly private schools in South Florida.
But why stop there? We reopened a company we had closed over ten years ago, HoneyBee Party Rental. We made what is for us a fairly significant investment in November 2022 and its full steam ahead. We’re also working on other ideas for businesses, services, and products that are a good fit with our existing businesses.
Another area we are expanding into is working with other small businesses. We are currently in talks to invest in a custom sneaker business with a very smart young lady who graduated from one of our schools. She’s been buying, selling, and trading custom and rare sneakers for years and although she is a college student, she can’t help being what she is – an entrepreneur!
Our two daughters are also closely involved in our business. Our older daughter, who is in college, works for TCC, and our younger daughter, who is finishing high school this year, helps us out part-time.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There were always struggles. Particularly when you’re starting out. It’s easy to get discouraged and want to give up. I hate to admit it but I am a negative person by nature. My wife is the opposite. She helps me keep my head on straight even in the toughest times.
We had times when we came close to losing our home. We had a car repossessed. We had credit cards cancelled. We had unscrupulous employees. We’ve had to fire people. We’ve been taken advantage of. We’ve fallen flat on our faces! I wanted to quit a million times and sometimes I still do but I think of the faith my wife has in me. I think that I am the model for the men my daughters will marry. I remember what it was like to be in the corporate rat race… and I keep on working.
For the record, I know I seem to be anti-corporate jobs. I am not. I am grateful for the experience and the benefits I received working for big companies. I just found that, in the end, I needed to be my own boss.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My aspiration has always been to be a writer, a novelist. I have written 17 novels, as well as over a dozen screenplays. I have published several volumes of short stories and poetry and three blogs. I would typically wake up at 5:00 AM (still do) and write until it was time to shower and shave and go to work. I didn’t do it for fame and fortune. I did it because I was given the ability to do it and to waste that ability would be a sin.
I apply the same work ethic to my businesses. I am not going to be outworked and I believe in exceptional customer service. Anyone can cook or manage a cafeteria but doing it with a smile and the right attitude is what sets us apart. I make each day my masterpiece.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I was always in trouble. I was restless and curious. I was a juvenile delinquent who got in fights, got brought home by the cops, was expelled from more than one school, and still came home every night and read books. Maybe that’s why I have some funny stories and I’m also pretty good at Jeopardy!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.adolfojimenez.com
- Instagram: adolfo.jimenez
- Facebook: facebook.com/hbpartyrental
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adolfo/
- Twitter: adolfojimenez
