‘My dream is to be in every waterfront in Canada' Mizo Drinks adds sweet success to the Halifax waterfront
What started as a one-man-show has grown into a refreshing business for a young entrepreneur in Halifax.
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Menza Mohamed has put his business degree from Cape Breton University to good use.
'I graduated with no money at all. So, I saved $600 in six months,' Menza 'Mizo' said. 'I bought a little cart and I put a sink in it with two ice boxes, put in some coconuts and went to Rainbow beach.'
And people loved it. The beach goers encouraged him to make his business more professional, which led to his next steps.
'I invested all the money I made on the coconuts and bought a utility trailer,' he explained. While he wanted a food truck, it was too expensive at the time, so he made the trailer work.
'I got the trailer, made the window, built some shelves, put in some plumbing and two blenders and started selling pineapple smoothies, watermelon smoothies and coconuts.'
People flocked to the trailer and so he decided to keep growing the business, getting another trailer, upgrading the menu and serving two beaches, Crystal Crescent and Rainbow Haven.
'Our family got bigger, and we had really good staff, and the business grew faster than we thought,' he said. 'And this year we just opened on the Halifax waterfront.'
'This was my dream the last couple years since I opened the company. This is what the waterfront needs.'
From coconuts to smoothies, Mizo Drinks now serves smoothie bowls and lemonades at the waterfront location.
And they are always looking to expand their menu.
'We try to be creative with the items we have. We looked in the market, made our research, see where the gap is and we try to fill the gap with new items,' the business major said.
In addition to the creative drinks, customer service is top priority.
'We are largely based on our connections with our customers and how we listen so deeply to customer feedback,' explained Amelie Moulin, the first employee turned manager at Mizo Drinks.
'For example, the strawberry banana smoothie was not on menu last year, and we only brought it from high customer request. So, I think customers see how we implement their suggestions into our menu.'
The product is what makes customers come back, Moulin said.
'I never treat any person as a customer,' said Mohamed. 'That's I think what makes us a little bit unique.'
Treating people like family and making sure they feel valued is one of the reasons Moulin is excited to continue this next chapter with Mizo Drinks.
'I think for a small food business this is almost all of our dreams,' she said about being a permanent shop on the waterfront.
'And it just means so much to me. Especially that customers recognize us from the beaches. It's just so exciting to make even bigger connections with the community.'
Mohamed is originally from Egypt, with his mother, father and sister still back home.
'I'm very proud of myself. I finally made my family proud. My father is proud of me,' he said with a smile.
'In Egypt, part of the culture is you must grow up to be an engineer, or doctor, or businessman. I'm the only one if the family who decided to open my own business. So that's what I'm proud of.'
And the quality of product is something he continues to be proud of.
'Our product we choose the best supplier. We need pineapple, I will get three different pineapples. I will see which one is the best,' he said.
'Maybe one is a bit pricey than the other, but the quality first and then the price. And also, we do lots of research and development.'
Spending the off season testing new flavours, Mizo Drinks will be importing mangos from Egypt later this summer.
Though business can get draining at times, Mohamed reminds himself why he is here, by looking back three years.
'When I feel a little bit down, I look at the first cart, I look at the pictures where I started,' he explained. 'Where I just wearing a shirt half open and just standing on top of cart, casually talking to people at the beach as if we are family.'
That's the business model he continues with.
Mizo Drinks got its name from Mohamed, who is nicknamed Mizo. He was told he needed a name for the business when applying for a permit, and needed something longer than Mizo, so drinks was added.
The name stuck.
The business is growing, and for Mohamed, hopefully not stopping in Halifax.
'I thought it was just in my head. I never thought it's going to be something to happen in the future,' he said.
'So right now I can believe what I'm dreaming. It's not just a dream; I'm living my dream. So, my dream is to be in every waterfront in Canada.'
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