Juan Rodriguez says his business acumen emerged from the influences he's surrounded by: growing up in Mexico, Chicago and Fort Worth; spending summer and winter breaks with family in Mexico; working at a range of restaurants in the area after he finished culinary school, including Rough Creek Lodge & Resort, Café Aspen, Lonesome Dove and Reata. His uncle grew an excavation company into what's today a big concern. Rodriguez's parents sold pottery in Mexico and Chicago. He worked in a retail store as a youth for his grandfather, who owned it. "I've always been around it," Rodriguez, 37, says. He describes the cooking produced by his four-year-old Magdalena's Catering and Events in Fort Worth as a mélange of Mexico, Chicago's melting pot and everything else he's picked up. Even the prix fixe supper clubs that have boosted Magdalena's sales came from an idea he got while working at a restaurant in Oregon for the experience. "I kind of learn from everybody," Rodriguez, a member of the Entrepreneurs" Organization Fort Worth chapter, says.
Starters: Working at Motorola with his mother, who had transferred to Fort Worth for a job, "I wanted to go into animation. I got a tour [at a college]. Holy cow, I'm good, but I'm not that good." Steered into culinary arts by an adviser, he completed that program in two years while working at Motorola on weekends. "I got into two accidents because I fell asleep at the wheel." He worked at a string of restaurants, capped by Reata. "Reata really taught me the business. You're cooking for a lot of people. You've got to know the numbers. You've got to manage it."
Starting Magdalena's: "My wife said stop talking about it, and do it." Initial capital for the launch, initially using the kitchen at Fort Worth's Z's Café and later that year into a space on Fort Worth's Northside: $30,000 loan from an uncle, $15,000 401(k) from Reata, and $15,000 line of credit ("I think we used half; we bought a lot of equipment at auction.").
Almost Out of Business: By October 2015, "we were down to our last $1,000 in the bank. My wife said, "Let's hold on; I think one of the brides said she wanted to pay for her whole event up front." That Monday, she wrote that check. We floated it, and we haven't looked back."
Magdalena's weekend Supper Clubs, $60 per person, BYOB: "We started the supper clubs because we didn't think we could fill the slots with caterings." Friends can come with friends or rub elbows with strangers at the dining room's three tables. "My grandmother was big on community and bringing people together. I wanted to recreate my grandmother's table. People love it. I do a speech at the beginning to introduce it. [Patrons might sit next to a] new friend, a new neighbor, new client. Sure enough, people make friends, and they make plans to come together the next time."
Growing: Joined EO's Accelerator program two years ago for entrepreneurs who haven't yet hit $1 million in annual sales. "Within a year, I was granted full EO member." Magdalena's sales last year grew to $1.8 million, up from $649,000 his second year.
Goals: "My goal is to get to $2.5 million and grow a little on the staff [currently six back of the house and one up front], and that's it."
What's next: "We want to be a one-stop [catering] shop. We want a coffee shop and Mexican bakery." But no full restaurant. "It's almost every chef's dream to open his own restaurants. Just hearing everybody talk about their restaurants, I didn't want to have to deal with that. We're having fun; we don't have the stress of a restaurant."
First year sales: $259,000
Last year's sales: $1.8 million
