iamamomandpop:

Written, photographed and directed by: Robert Hooman

This video was produced to promote the crowd-funding platform, Fairstreet.com, which is intended to help small businesses raise start-up and expansion capitol. When we were approached for this project, we thought we want to focus on the heart and passion behind a small business. After a few days of scouting Mom and Pop Shops throughout Brooklyn, we met Meghan and Jeff or Mable’s Smokehouse and decided they’d best represent our intentions and goals for this project. Plus, they were literally a mom and pop!

Meghan and Jeff’s story was exactly the stuff that goes into starting one’s own business: love, passion and sacrifice, especially in this economic environment. The challenge after that was telling their story effectively.

In only two weeks, this video has seen over 11,500 hits on youtube. Fortunately, social media, blogs and video are allowing small businesses to compete and prosper on their own, without the limits and expenses brought about by traditional TV and Magazine advertising. Thanks to youtube, videos like this can easily rake up hundreds of thousands of hits and help promote the business and drive customers to websites.

- Robert Hooman 

Watch on Youtube or Vimeo

iamamomandpop: I’ll admit, things have not been easy the past few years with our restaurant business nestled in Jersey. As a business owner, you always try and focus on the positive even if there’s more negative floating around in the mix. Also in business, you can never predict what might get thrown your way as you go along. This year, we received a curve ball that we may never recover from. Two words: Hurricane Sandy I sit here typing this in the middle of a high school gym that we have basically been living in for the past few weeks. Right now, our house is gone and our restaurant too because of the storm. Your heart probably just sank a little bit didn’t it? Mine did too when morning came and I didn’t see a trace of either things that I’ve poured myself into for so many years…As I stood there trying to make sense of everything and how something like this could happen not only to me but everyone else around me, I went back to a memory of my father. He always use to tell me, “Sam, you’re going to have many things in life if you work hard but don’t be fooled by thinking that any of it is really that important. What’s important is your character and how you act when things are not going your way. That is where people show their true character. So no matter what happens in life, take a moment, breathe and stand tall.” That’s exactly what I did. I took a moment to take it all in, took a deep breath and then stood tall. I immediately kicked in gear to help others around me that had also lost so much in the storm. It’s amazing how people come together when something terrible happens. Sometimes I think bad things happen to remind us that we are only human. I’ve had many ups and downs through running the restaurant but listen to me when I tell you this, enjoy what you do, work on your character every day and don’t be afraid to work hard. Your hard work might get wiped away by a hurricane one day but what you learn through hard work is persistence. Persistence is what will keep you going in the rough times. Also, never forget to help people. Money is not everything and if you think it is, you’re in business for all the wrong reasons. God Bless. I Am A Mom and Pop -Sam K. photo credit: NBC News instagram
Pop-upView Separately

iamamomandpop:

I’ll admit, things have not been easy the past few years with our restaurant business nestled in Jersey. As a business owner, you always try and focus on the positive even if there’s more negative floating around in the mix. Also in business, you can never predict what might get thrown your way as you go along. This year, we received a curve ball that we may never recover from.

Two words: Hurricane Sandy

I sit here typing this in the middle of a high school gym that we have basically been living in for the past few weeks. Right now, our house is gone and our restaurant too because of the storm. Your heart probably just sank a little bit didn’t it? Mine did too when morning came and I didn’t see a trace of either things that I’ve poured myself into for so many years…As I stood there trying to make sense of everything and how something like this could happen not only to me but everyone else around me, I went back to a memory of my father. He always use to tell me, “Sam, you’re going to have many things in life if you work hard but don’t be fooled by thinking that any of it is really that important. What’s important is your character and how you act when things are not going your way. That is where people show their true character. So no matter what happens in life, take a moment, breathe and stand tall.”

That’s exactly what I did. I took a moment to take it all in, took a deep breath and then stood tall. I immediately kicked in gear to help others around me that had also lost so much in the storm. It’s amazing how people come together when something terrible happens. Sometimes I think bad things happen to remind us that we are only human. I’ve had many ups and downs through running the restaurant but listen to me when I tell you this, enjoy what you do, work on your character every day and don’t be afraid to work hard. Your hard work might get wiped away by a hurricane one day but what you learn through hard work is persistence. Persistence is what will keep you going in the rough times. Also, never forget to help people. Money is not everything and if you think it is, you’re in business for all the wrong reasons. God Bless.

I Am A Mom and Pop

-Sam K.

photo credit: NBC News instagram