This has to be one of my favorite stories of all time. These guys have what it takes to be successful in whatever they decide to do. They take ACTION…
It has been said that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.
Two Sewickley brothers also are finding out food can be a direct path to a good education.
Lee Drake, a Quaker Valley High School senior and his brother Chris, a sophomore at Hobart William Smith College in New York, came up with the idea for College Tuition Hot Dogs while tossing around ideas for summer jobs earlier this year over breakfast.
Uninterested in the typical summer jobs usually sought out by students, the brothers, following the advice of their father who works in Pittsburgh’s South Side, decided to become hot dog vendors in the town peppered with bars, taverns and clubs all along its main street.
To get the ball rolling on their new business venture, Lee and Chris thought up a name, logo, slogan — “Hot dog technicians on a mission for college tuition” — ordered a hot dog vending cart online and proceeded with obtaining the necessary permits to sell on the streets of Pittsburgh.
It was a long process, Lee said, but finally, by mid-summer, the brothers were approved for two spots in the city, the corner of Fifth and Liberty Avenue downtown and in the South Side.
Though they knew a hot dog vending business would go over well during afternoon lunch hours downtown, Lee and Chris, instead, opted for the South Side location, Lee said, because many restaurants closed before the early morning hours, aside from the occasional pizza or burrito joint.
They viewed East Carson Street as an untapped market; a location that would provide the perfect opportunity to cater to a hungry bar crowd after a night of drinking.
Lee and Chris first thought about selling other food, like kielbasa or pierogies, before finally settling on the delicious dogs.
Through trial and error, the brothers found the perfect way to cook the hot dogs to maintain “the perfect temperature for the maximum amount of time,” Lee said.
“The key to a good business is a good product,” he added.
College Tuition Hot Dogs also offers condiments like saurkraut and onion free of charge, in addition to mustard and, of course, Heinz ketchup.
Cost is one hot dog for $3 or two for $5, but Sewickley residents who visit their stand will get one free dog.
Though they insist they sell “the best hot dogs in Pittsburgh,” it’s not only food that keeps the customers coming back, but their freestyle-dancing mascot, “The Wigglin’ Weiner.”
The idea was conceived after the brothers found a hot dog costume online and thought it would be the perfect addition to their business.
“We knew we needed a marketing theme since we were not an established business,” Lee said.
Now, he added, the dancing hot dog has turned into a South Side celebrity.
“Everyone on East Carson knows him, Lee said.
Though he declined to say how much they have made from their hot dog vending business, Lee said it’s been pretty successful, providing the brothers with money for college as well as “light spending cash.”
With Chris away at college, Lee enlists the help of his friends to man the cart on Friday and Saturday nights from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. However, as the temperature begins to drop, Lee said they will likely pack up their cart until next summer.
With the brothers both away at school next year, they’d still like to keep the business going by hiring people to work when they are not there and possibly branching out to other areas.
“We’re going to be the next Heinz ketchup,” Lee said.
Find out exactly what you need to know to start making REAL money with your own hot dog cart at HotDogBiz101.com.
Original article at Your Sewickley
That’s a great story! Goes to show you if you put your mind and heart into it, you can accomplish what you want!
I want to be honest and say that I hate it when one or two people want to open up as many hot dog carts as their greedy imaginations can grasp onto because that is taking the opportunity to earn a living away from others. I can understand opening maybe 3 or 4 carts, but when you want to be the next Heinz and basically take over an entire city for your own, that is just plain greedy and wrong.
I feel that there should be a limit on how many places you can get licensed to operate. One person shouldn’t be able to just take 50 carts and pay people who can’t get a job anywhere else $8 or $9 bucks an hour and make a million dollars simply because this is the land of opportunity here.
I see both sides of your argument. I agree with you that having one company monopolize the entire town is not a good thing. On the other hand, if that company creates 50 jobs for those who honestly can’t find one anywhere else, is that a bad thing? These issues are complicated but one thing I know for sure is that I appreciate your input Gina. You are a compassionate person – we need more of that.