Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Cristy Lenz, Founder, and CEO of Food Tours Atlanta, located in Atlanta, GA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Food Tours Atlanta offers walking food, history, and street art tours in the city of Atlanta. We serve food from locally-owned restaurants and Atlanta culture to locals and travelers alike.
Tell us about yourself
I was a journalist for 20 years but always a lover of food at heart. I spent my college years waiting tables and eating above my means. I started my food tour after traveling to Paris and going on a food tour there. I loved the idea of showing what I loved most about my city to others. I returned home from my trip and was laid off a few months later. I took my love for food and my city and created my company, Food Tours Atlanta, in 2015.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Surviving the COVID shutdown and the two years that followed. I was just coming out of my slow season and saw the bookings for March and April roll in. I was planning to expand my business that year. The shutdown was devastating, and I wasn't sure I would make it. But here we are in 2022, and my business is thriving again.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The uncertainty. It's always hard to predict what will happen with the economy. As a small micro-business owner, I survive on slim profit margins. I think being comfortable in that uncertainty and being able to change as needed is the hardest part of owning a business.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Plan without overthinking, follow what you love, and listen to advise but only keep what feels relevant to you. You're going to make mistakes. You're going to wish you had done something you didn't. But we can only move forward and take what we've learned to help us in the future. Believe in yourself.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://foodtoursatlanta.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FoodToursAtlanta/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/foodtoursatl/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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