Everybody sees the booth. The pretty jars, the samples, the smile. Nobody sees the 2 a.m. inventory counts, the invoices, or the mornings I wonder if I should just quit and get a regular job.
I started Ms Mickey's Creole Seasonings in March 2021 with family recipes and a whole lot of faith. I'm a retired Army veteran — 21 years, 100% disabled — and I thought discipline and hard work would be enough. Turns out, entrepreneurship has its own curriculum, and tuition is paid in stress.
Struggle one: money. This business has been self-funded since day one. Every jar, every label, every market fee came out of my pocket. I've carried debt to keep it alive. There's no investor cushion, no safety net — just me deciding, month after month, that this dream is worth the sacrifice.
Struggle two: doing it all alone. I used to pay a content team every month to handle ads, editing, and market signups. I had to let them go — I just couldn't afford it anymore. Now it's me: the CEO, the cook, the marketer, the bookkeeper, the delivery driver. Some days I'm great at all of it. Some days I'm barely holding on.
Struggle three: staying consistent. Burnout is real, y'all. There were stretches where I just couldn't show up online the way I needed to. And in this business, out of sight is out of mind. Learning to keep going — even tired, even discouraged — has been the hardest lesson of all.
Struggle four: the setbacks you can't control. I've lost inventory. I've lost my original domain. Things break. And every time, you get to choose: fold, or figure it out.
So why keep going? Because of you. Because of the customer who tells me my Super Creole is the only seasoning they reach for. Because of the kid at the market who asks for "the spicy one" (Bayou Cajun, obviously). Because this food is my heritage, and sharing it matters more than the hard days.
If you're an entrepreneur in the thick of it right now, hear me: the struggle doesn't mean you're failing. It means you're building. Keep your head down, take care of your people, and don't quit on a bad day.
I'll be at the Riverfront Farmers Market this Saturday, October 10, 8am to 1pm, with the Bayou Bewitched duo — Super Creole and Bayou Cajun bundled to save you up to 20%. Come taste, come talk, come remind me why I do this.
And if you want 15% off your first order plus recipes and market invites, join the Flavor List at msmickeys.shop. Let's keep building — together.
