Goodies Frozen Custard & Treats, a Black-owned dessert truck in the D.C. area, is on its way to expanding its dessert empire by opening its first brick and mortar store in Old Town Alexandria. After an electrical issue delayed his grand opening, the only thing stopping owner Brandon Byrd from realizing his dream is the sign-off from a city inspector.
No one knows better than Brandon Byrd that running a business can be precarious: In his journey toward opening a storefront for Goodies, a frozen custard truck in the D.C. area, he’s rebounded from several setbacks. One of them being a worldwide pandemic that hit when he was preparing to remodel an old ice house for his storefront in Old Town Alexandria.
“I always say things happen for a reason, I’m not really sure why they happen, but they do happen,” Byrd said about the setbacks he has faced before opening.
In the third episode of Rebound, Byrd gives viewers a behind the scenes of the health department’s final inspection of his store —one of the last hurdles before he can open up.
“You can never be prepared fully,” Byrd said about the inspection process.
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As the D.C. area relaxes mask mandates, Brandon also has to figure out the logistics of the store’s functionality. After working out of a truck for almost a decade, Byrd has to adjust and create a workflow for the store.
Before opening, he has to figure out where to put boxes of containers, straws and spoons in a 300-foot space and map out what set up will work best to serve customers during busy hours.
Byrd compares it to learning a new language.
