Our Road To A Dessert Truck 25 Years In the Making...

When I was about three years old and my parents asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I said, “A Black doll.”

“Is that all?” they asked.

“Yes!” I replied.

Christmas morning, I remember waking up to the sounds of Al Green on the stereo and my father in the kitchen cooking a southern breakfast of biscuits made from scratch, ham, grits with butter and cheese, eggs, and my favorite drink, hot cocoa.

While waiting for breakfast, I couldn’t take my eyes off the large box under the Christmas tree. My dad said, “Let’s say grace, so you can eat and then open your gift.” When I begged him to allow me to open my gift before breakfast, I was thrilled when he agreed.

I ran over to the Christmas tree and tore open the box, and there was a beautiful Black doll. I named her Luv because I loved her so much! I carried her to the table where she ate Christmas breakfast with us. When I was just a bit older , I wrote “I ♥ LUV” in my diary. (I didn’t know how to spell “love,” and no one told me that “Luv” wasn’t the proper spelling for my new doll’s name.)

Throughout my childhood, Luv went everywhere with me. The drive-in movies, dinner at restaurants such as El Torito, Charley Brown’s, and Benihana. Family events like barbecues and Easter Sunday gatherings. I fed her real food and changed her diapers.

One day, my father mentioned that something smelled funky in the house. One of my brothers said, “It’s that doll.” He was right! Luv had mold growing inside her. My father and brother flushed her out with a garden hose and put her back together for me. From that day forward, Luv was restricted to a water-only diet.

Fast forward to 1996. I had decided to open an online bakery, and I was collaborating with a designer on my logo. I told him I had been praying about the name of my company and wanted to name it after my doll, Luv. I also told him I wanted to bake brownies shaped like hearts. When I showed him the long-ago diary where I’d written “I ♥ LUV,” he decided to base the logo on my childhood printing. And, boom—the Luv’s Brownies logo was born!

Learning the value of refusing to give up

From the time I was in elementary school, I knew I wanted to go to college and work for Hewlett Packard. But I also I knew that something was wrong with the way I processed information.

My high school counselor told me not apply to a California State University because I lacked the math requirement. He was wrong. Ignoring his advice, I applied through the Equal Opportunity Program (EOP) and was accepted at San Jose State University. While attending SJSU, I failed the same math class five times. My counselor advised me to get tested for a learning disability. I was diagnosed with dyslexia and worked with the university administrators to replace some classes with other course requirements, which allowed me to raise my grade point average.

The experience taught me the following important lessons: Never let anyone tell you what you can and cannot do. Put your mind to whatever you want to accomplish, make a realistic plan and timeline, and start working toward your goal.

Turning challenges into opportunities

Between the ages of 17 and 20, I worked three jobs at a time to pay my tuition, rent, and car payment. I was a Sears bill collector, a DoubleTree hotel phone operator, a Macy’s handbag salesperson, and a salesperson in the Nordstrom Brass Plum department and in credit card new accounts. Along my journey I met some wonderful people who believed in me. I even met someone at SJSU who helped me land a job at my dream company, Hewlett Packard.

I baked this friend some brownies to thank him for his help. At the time, I noticed that the dough seemed extra-thick, but I baked the brownies anyway and my friend raved about them. It was only later, after I was diagnosed with dyslexia, that I revisited the brownie recipe and realized that I had transposed numbers in the recipe. That very fortunate mistake led to Luv’s award-winning brownies.

I opened LuvsBrownies.com in 1996. At the time, I wanted a dessert truck, but I just wasn’t sure how I could swing it. On the 10th anniversary of my business, I wrote a book called Brownie Points: Seven Steps to Success From One Who Made It. I wanted to share the story of how I’d run Luv’s on a shoestring budget, without doing expensive things that business consultants had insisted I needed to do, like buy or rent a storefront or hire a delivery company.

Taking a new direction two decades later

Around the time Luv’s Brownies celebrated 20 years in business, I was on the verge of giving it up. I felt as though the business had run its course. But then I met someone at a food truck manufacturing company who opened my eyes to new possibilities. When I told him about my original dream of having a dessert truck, he found me a used truck for just $9,500. I will always be grateful for his resourcefulness.

Despite the great deal, I had to save about $60,000 to wrap the truck and equip it with oven, a refrigerator, a freezer, an espresso machine, and more.

Here are some of the things my son and I did to save money at home:

We used produce and bread bags for food scraps to save money on trash bag liners.
I sold or traded clothing at Crossroads Trading Company. With the credit, I would take my babysitter shopping to pay her for watching my son.
If we had extra rice, we would make single-serve rice balls and freeze them.
Whenever we were given ketchup packets, salt packets, napkins, and other items with a to-go order, we kept them in a jar at home.
We froze as much food as we could. For example, we always sliced and froze un-needed fresh vegetables to make sure they didn’t have a chance to go bad, and we made soup stock or gravy from leftover rotisserie chicken scraps and bones.
We made beans in a crock pot and froze them in sandwich bags for single-serving dinners, and did the same with seasoned taco meat, spaghetti sauce, etc.
We always kept boiled eggs in fridge for an easy, healthy breakfast when running late.
We refrigerated or froze bread—never left it out to go bad.
We carried our own metal water bottles. (I refuse to buy water!)
I repaired my shoes instead of buying new ones.
We hand-washed and hung certain clothes to avoid dry cleaning expenses.
I always asked for CSAA and alumni discounts.
At CVS, we combined Extra Bucks and manufacturer discounts.
We used self-service car washes or washed our car at home.
I used Bed Bath & Beyond coupons to buy color hair spray and extend amount of time I could go between touch-ups.
If I needed a manicure, I did a DIY job or got a French manicure—the cheapest option because it lasted the longest.
Going out to dinner? Not us! We only went out to eat if we had a coupon or if we’d joined a loyalty program or birthday club.
I sold or traded books at the used book store to purchase the books my son wanted.
Our entertainment was exercise. On a Friday or Saturday nights, we would ride bikes, play tennis or racquetball, hit balls at the public golf course, and more.
Our local Salvation Army and YMCA allowed me to cut their Bird of Paradise flowers. If I needed a hospitality gift, I would purchase a Dollar Tree vase and fill it with a bouquet.

Once I had saved the money I needed for my dessert truck, I developed a brand-new menu that includes fresh-baked brownies, Café Cubano, mocktail Mojitos, and ice cream. I worked with Celia Cruz’s management staff, the song writer Victor Daniel and Sony to license my favorite song “La Vida Es Un Carnaval” for the truck and mobile app notifications. I’m part Cuban, and Celia is my favorite salsa singer. And I started working on an execution plan to get the truck ready for farmer’s markets and private events.

I also created the Andrea R. Lacy Grit Award Scholarship because I want to recognize, encourage, and support students in their pursuit of higher education. The Grit Award looks beyond academic accomplishments. It will be given to students with demonstrated financial need who have shown that they have the tenacity to overcome challenges and who have been involved in community service. The scholarship money may be used for a four-year degree, a two-year community college degree, or a trade school certification. A portion of every Luv’s Brownies purchase goes toward the scholarship fund.

This year marks our 25th year in business, and I feel so excited about the new opportunities that lie ahead.

Thank you for being part of the Luv’s Brownies journey.
❤️
Andrea (pronounced Aundrea)

Andrea LacyMarch 22, 2021Luv's Brownies