I started with a dream. Then I learned the hard way.

I wanted to start a food truck in New York City. To save for it, I worked three jobs around the clock, including overnight shifts. There were stretches when I slept for about two hours in the shower, waking up when the water turned cold so I could get to my next shift.

By the time I had saved around $10,000, some friends and I took a trip to Florida. I had barely traveled before. I thought I was going on vacation. I didn’t know I was about to change my life.

One night, I stepped outside a party and walked around the block. Surrounded by palm trees, I started thinking: Maybe I can do this here. Maybe I can start my food truck in Florida.

I went back to the Airbnb, started running the numbers, and made a decision: I’m moving.

About two weeks after the vacation, I packed my bags. No family there. No close friends. Just a few acquaintances and a dream. Looking back, I had a lot to learn. But I took that leap of faith.

Five years later, I returned to New York. Marriage and fatherhood became part of my story, and with them came a different kind of urgency. When little ones depend on you, providing for them becomes personal.

I bought my first food cart for $5,500. I think I found it on Craigslist. I didn’t know what questions to ask, and it didn’t have a permit.

I soon learned that buying the cart wasn’t enough for the street business I wanted to run. After about six frustrating months trying to find a permit, I sold it and bought another cart that had one.

The second cart had about six months left on its permit. I still needed to design the wrap, get it installed, and learn how to operate the cart. I didn’t even know how to hook it up to my car.

By the time I figured everything out, only about three months remained. But once we got on the street, we were a hit. Business was going great. Then the permit ended.

Around that chapter of my life, I got married and moved about an hour and a half away. The distance made the business harder to manage, and eventually I sold my second cart.

After that sale, people started reaching out. Hundreds approached me about selling their carts. Over time, thousands asked about modifying and wrapping theirs.

That is how my journey grew into Food Carts On Demand. I started out wanting to run my own food business. Along the way, I found myself helping other people take their next step.

I know what it feels like to put your savings into an idea and discover how much you still don’t know. That experience is why I care about the questions, the details, and the person behind every project.