Lisa Lindsay on Entrepreneurship, Data, and Building Community

[music] >> Welcome to Infoversity, the official podcast of Syracuse University School of Information Studies or iSchool. I'm your host just Jeff Hemsley. Today I'm joined by Lisa Lindsey. It's good to see you again. She is a 1993 iSchool alum and co-founder and CEO of Fruity Bubble Cafe. She's also a 2025 Cuse 50 honoree, which recog- So, she's recognized as one of the fastest-growing alumni-led businesses. Before launching her company, Lisa spent years in corporate technology roles focused on project leadership, process improvement, and strategic operations. Now she's applying that same systems mindset to growing a successful consumer brand rooted in cultural community culture, community, and thoughtful operational design. We'll talk about how her iSchool background shaped her approach to entrepreneurship, the role technology and process thinking play in running her business, and how she scaled from a small idea to award-winning company. So, I'll start by asking um how did your information systems degree influence how you run and scale a business today? Sure, Jeff. Well, first of all, thank you for having me. I'm so delighted to to be here today and um representing the iSchool. So, thank you again for for having me. Um how did my information systems degree kind of influence my just ability to run a business? The my education in the high school was all about systems, right? My degree's in information systems. So, working in systems and not silos is is what is operational. It's It's the foundation of operations all together. So, I learned to take a look at how people, process, technology, they all just kind of work together. >> [snorts] >> And it shows up in how I've designed the operations of my business. Even from inventory, taking inventory to scheduling to customer flow, uh to recipes. And my I'm just of the foundation that information is power. And systems are what makes business successful. So, were there technical skills that you learned, technical or analytic skills that you learned while you were here that you still use today? Definitely. Um process mapping, for sure. And then most importantly, problem solving, hands down. There isn't a problem I don't have to solve every single day. So, I'm looking at average ticket size. I'm looking at peak hours. I'm looking at labor ratios. Um and just product performance, just to see what is working, what's selling well one day. Um am I overstaffed? Am I understaffed? Um and then I high school just taught me how to break down complexity, right? That then that's what's incredible and incredibly valuable for when it comes to running a business and and things are changing on a daily basis. Having to constantly pivot and uh again, back to systems. Systems create consistency. Yeah. So, so speaking about this stuff, um how did your high school experiences, like in student organizations, shape the way that you approach leadership and community? Yes. Um great great great question. Um so, BLISS, Black and Latino Information Study Support Group, was uh one of the or was the organization that I co-founded during my time in in Syracuse. Um and it just it really taught me how to to lead, how to recognize a need, and then essentially develop a a a process, a system, um and and build a foundation. Um and that's similar to exactly what it is that I did uh with creating Foodie Bubbles Cafe. Um I saw that there was a need. Uh I took all the steps necessary to to develop that need, um and then implemented as as such. So, innovation, creativity, identifying a need, taking the steps um to to satisfy that need. Um but I couldn't have done it without the community that I was involved with. Um and I keep really relating those parallels. Um in in BLISS, I wasn't the only one that that founded it. Um and so, I had others, but then others bought into that idea. And that's how the the the group had been established. And then now, it's it's just a community organization, and others support that. So, speaking about BLISS, are you still in touch with people that uh that you were working with back then? Absolutely. Um even though all of us have gone into different career directions, um there's a couple that I I call like I in-bounce ideas off of and uh re-pivot in in directions. And we're constantly learning from one another. So, we absolutely all still keep in contact. I've got all of them on speed dial right now. >> [laughter] >> That's nice. So, are they also are some of them also in leadership roles? They in fact are all in leadership roles. Um but again, just in different industries um all together. All right. So, so, you've gone from a corporate career to a founder. What parts of your experience leading technology projects translated most directly into entrepreneurship? I would say my background in project program project management. That essentially was the foundation. Um When this idea became came to be, it happened in around August, September. And from August until to December is four months that I literally had to develop an idea to fruition. And that was because of my strong project management skills. Identified a critical path, identified all the the the potentially pain points and all the steps that needed to to happen in order to make that be successful. So, whereas I I know spoken to a lot of other business owners and may take upwards of 9 to 12 months for a business to launch and especially a restaurant um because of my critical thinking skills and that critical path and my project management background, four months to to opening our doors is is all that it took. That's pretty fast. So, that must have been an exciting time. Very exciting, very stressful, but I think with with just being focused and and knowing what the end result would or should be, it it really time just flew by quickly. Yeah. Now, I asked about leadership before. Um my sense is is that leadership skills grow over time. So, I'm wondering about We talked about leadership from Bliss. How about leadership in your corporate roles and how that plays a role in how you lead your company today, your experience? Yeah, no. again, great great question. Um what I've learned is that people overall, they want to do good work, but they need clear direction. They have to be have their expectations set for them. Uh and then you also have to give them the tools as well as the support to let them be successful. Um I remember my my kids used to always tell me that I project managed them and then also the household. Um but this just goes back to being a testimony that systems and structure is is what was important and that's what made for a smooth operation. So, with that, that is truly exactly how it is that I lead. I lead my my household and and I lead the team um by giving them the tools that they need to be successful, making it clear of the expectations, and then supporting them throughout the journey. Yeah, I know for me I feel like like one of my key jobs is to empower the people that report to me. Absolutely. And give them the resources they need to be successful. Yes. So, um So, what processes or systems did you put in place early to keep operations running smoothly as the business grows? So, I recognized that repetition, again, that that word consistency, consistency breeds that that repetition. You have to be You're not going to go into your favorite cafe and expect to get the same drink that you are each and every time be different, right? That's definitely not going to work. So, when it came to standardizing recipes, ensuring that the customer experience was always going to be the same. Uh my point of sale reporting system, opening, closing checklist, again, back to the the systems and processes, that's that's how I just live live my life. When you put systems and processes in place and instill that those are the same processes that repeat consistently, you're going to get the the results that you do expect. Now, granted, you may have to tweak them and and and make some modifications and pivot, but so long as you have that foundation of repetition, that is what is going to work. Now, you know that the iSchool is very passionate about data. And so, my next question's about data. And how are you using data? How did data and metrics guide your daily kind of work, you know, how you choose what what you're serving, employing people, like all that stuff? Oh, absolutely. Um after the first year, and you could say that my first year was kind of my testing grounds, right? I didn't know what I didn't know. Didn't know what worked. And and a lot of that, although somewhat data-driven based on the research that I've done, uh the actual data is going to tell you what you need to do the the following year. So, first year, we had an idea of the menu that that our customers would would like. We had our hours of operation set, but quickly did I learn that by this time, the wintertime, that sales would would drop because our business [clears throat] actually is seasonal. Uh so, with that, using that data, I was able to adjust the hours of operation, adjust the the inventory that we kept in supply at any given time. My staffing would change, the types of product that we were offered to our customer would change, even our marketing would adjust as a as a result of that. So, we truly truly rely on data to see what works and what doesn't work, and we're quick to respond to those adjusting needs. So, my next question is about, um, thinking about how you decided it was time to evolve from making smoothies and juices, uh, for your community to opening a storefront. And it kind of sounds like data might have played a role in that. Data along with opportunity. So, when I first began, uh, I I always wanted to be in business. I recognized that, um, juicing was kind of a dime a dozen. I I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur. I did what I wanted to do. Uh, and I made, uh, drink concoctions for some friends and family. And word got out to the to the community, uh, as well. So, um, when my daughters actually introduced me to this new concept of bubble tea, didn't know what it was myself, um, I again, data driven, you did some research and realized that, uh, bubble tea business was about a $4.9 billion industry. Well, did some more research and recognized that that did not exist in the market, uh, in which we lived. So, uh, but I I will tell you that I wasn't quite a fan of all the flavors for for bubble tea. Um, so using my family's background and our, uh, Caribbean influence, I was really more attracted to the tropical flavors. So, kind of merging the two together, that's how the brand was created. Now, the opportunity part was, uh, just in some networking and discussing, um, opportunities with, uh, one of my sorority sisters. There was actually a place downtown Smyrna where we are right now that was opening up. Another person had attempted the same concept, uh, but just did not have a a solid business plan in in order for it to work. So, as I mentioned before, I created my own brand. Um, I just really utilized the space or or kind of, uh, reassumed the lease of the space and created an entirely new brand, um, and concept, uh, that didn't currently exist in the community. So, um, so we're talking about community, and I'm wondering about balancing cultural inspiration with operational efficiency. To be a business, operationally you have to be successful, but be to be part of a community, you you need to speak to the community. Can you talk about how you design your menu and customer experience to balance cultural inspiration and operational efficiency? Um, absolutely. Yes. So, I will tell you, so Fruity Bubble Cafe is all about the experience. When you walk into the doors, and you might even see it even in the room that I'm sitting, um, you walk in and you almost feel like you're transformed into at a Caribbean island. So, that you've got the the walls that are are sky blue. The floors, you can't see them, but they're sandy. Uh, they they have a sandy kind of look, and then you've got Caribbean music kind of playing in the background. So, that's your first take when you feel when you walk into the doors. Now, our menu, it's got, uh, kind of quirky names for some of our drinks, from Caribbean Sunset to Mango Mommy, to Taro Ting. So, it it's got a play on what maybe some of the most popular drinks are, along with, um, the the Caribbean influence or even the Asian influence, uh, where that's concerned. But, how from an operational perspective, they essentially are all the same. Most of the drinks are really all the same, uh, or the same makeup, but you get your customization from the flavors that are different. For example, you can pick a a base tea, a green tea, a black tea, a lemonade base, then you add a flavor, and whether it's passion fruit or or mango or strawberry, and and a plethora of others. Uh, and then you choose a topping. So, those are the three main ingredients, and the topping is the boba or the pat the the the popping pearls, which is also a a number of different flavors. That essentially is the makeup of the the the drink and every every person every customer that comes in orders exactly what it is that they want or if there's too many choices, then we have a standardized menu which are the most popular some of the ones that I I spoke about before. But what makes us different is that we have even created themed themed menu like desserts. So you can get a New York style cheesecake still following that same operations, right? It might be a vanilla milk tea but then you've got the cherry pearls that are on top. That's what makes it inspired by New York style cheesecake. So same concept different ideas and makes you guys really kind of feel like you're getting exactly what it is that you want. So what's your most popular drink? Our most popular drink is the Caribbean Sunset. That's a strawberry lemonade with rainbow popping pearls followed by the mango mommy which is a mango green tea with passion fruit popping pearls. And then wouldn't you believe we have the the brother drink to that which is a passion fruit green tea with mango popping pearls. So we have a lot of fun creating our drinks and I give a lot of autonomy to the team to come up with some really fascinating drink ideas. Well, if I'm in the area, I'm going to have to try the mango one. Oh excellently. Okay, so what surprised you most about moving from a corporate environment to being your own boss to being an entrepreneur? I'm the one that wears every single hat or at least to begin with. It was wearing every single hat. I am the final decision maker on everything pertaining to Fruity Bubble Cafe. If I had a partner that might be something different, but um being a uh the sole owner of of the business, it is it is all me. And again, even further, because this was a created brand, I also have autonomy to kind of march to my own beat. Um it's not a franchise yet, but maybe it will one day. Um so I don't have to follow the guidelines, but that also meant that every single thing, every um uh uh every system, every uh What am I thinking of? And I'm drawing a blank right now. Standard operating procedures, every single procedure had to be developed from ground zero. Um that's a lot of pressure. >> [laughter] >> Whereas in corporate, uh at least you had other resources to potentially bounce ideas off of, you had other people who would share the same responsibility. Um unfortunately, that was not the case. Uh that is not the case when you leave corporate environment and go into entrepreneurship. Okay, so now you've talked about strategic thinking, you've talked about systems thinking, you've talked about being creative, you've talked about leadership. Um I I mean, all sorts of different aspects. Which ones are your favorites? What do you enjoy the most? I do enjoy the autonomy of making my own decisions um and watching the brand grow in parallel to what I had in envisioned um overall. Um and it's actually grown beyond what I had initially thought it to to be. Um I remember one one point, we had a probably a 100-lb ice maker, and we thought that that's all or at least I thought that that's all we were going to need. No, in fact, we had to go and trade it in pretty quickly. But that was testament to Yes, we we we've got the foundation, but now we can we can grow bigger than what, you know, I may have initially had in my project plan or at least my projections for the next couple of years. So, we've far exceeded that, and even the the goals that I set for myself, some of the awards that we've we've won. As I said, this year we were named minority-owned business of the year for 2025 Cobb Chamber. Well, last year we were women-owned business of the year by Cobb Chamber. We have a number of other awards, as you can see on the shelves behind me, that that we've won. Never did I set out to just win awards, but following my passion and and following my vision, this is what it's afforded me. So, that sounds rewarding, and I'm happy to hear that that's satisfying, probably. Yes, definitely. So, so a lot of times we have these ideas about how things are going to work out. I think that a lot of people have this idea that you're an entrepreneur, you get to kind of make stuff up, and you get to just kind of be creative and kind of loose and run your own business, you're always in charge. What's the big surprise? What's different? What's What's different than you expected about stepping into this role? Uh it's not as as luxurious as it seems. I think we were just talking a little bit before the call, um >> [snorts] >> in terms of vacation, I'm probably way overdue for a vacation. >> [laughter] >> So, you don't really just get time away like you like you normally could if you had a a regular 9-5. So, this really is a 24/7 job. I know my my daughters, at least one's still in school, one had graduated, and then I went ahead and I birthed a business, right? So, now I have a baby that I've got to think about first thing in the morning, and it's the last thing that I think about at at night. So, misconceptions about that, but I think um the knowing what I've done and what I've developed and uh what the community now has is what is most rewarding. Um I'm all about service and uh we have created that environment for the community uh to be able to find a safe haven um and just uh enjoy tea time. I mean, that's that's our tagline. Um when best is is what's the best time of day? It's tea time. And that's just the time of day anybody can just have a cup of tea and a light snack and and just relax and the world just doesn't matter. Just that moment does. You know, I imagine that putting that kind of time and commitment into something and then seeing it grow, that's the part that's got to be amazing. It has. We're coming up on our 4-year anniversary and time has really flown, but I love to look back at where we were and now to see where where we are today. I mean, it it really pleases my heart and uh either I'm recognized or the brand is recognized and uh just people that we didn't think might have even heard about our our uh brand um says a lot of good things about it. Yeah, that's cool. Okay, so community plays a big role in your brand. Yes. How does that shape your business decisions or long-term goals? One of the uh early decisions that we um well, we we it was me, >> [laughter] >> but I had a team. Um that I made was to uh really get involved with the community. So, we've developed partnerships um with the schools. Uh that way the schools um their students would have jobs with with us and they would also earn earn school credits as well. Um Um, and called work-based learning. Um I'm very much in support of other businesses within the community. So, there's a a couple of other cookie uh cookie brands um that are homemade or home homegrown brands, and I support them by having them sell their products on on our shelves as well, too. So, community without the community, we couldn't be here in today. So, we listen to what the community says that they want. We go out in the community. We're not just a storefront. We also have uh we do pop-ups in at other locations. We're all throughout the county and branched into other counties, as well. So, it sounds like um it sounds like you have partnerships with other businesses as well as people in the community. Definitely. Together, that's kind of helped things grow. Absolutely. Absolutely. We've even done collaborations with some of our neighboring business and contests, and when one grows, another grows, right? So, we might have a certain following, and when we partner and collaborate with another business, uh then we share that uh their following, as well, and so on and so forth. So, now you were recently named um a Cuse 50 honoree, which is probably a major milestone. What does that recognition mean to you and your company? It validates all of the education that I obtained when I was at the high school. Uh followed by the implementation of uh that education into my corporate career, as well. Um and now, following into the steps in the the realm of entrepreneurship. Um it's it's just been an evolution, and it it also reassures me that not it doesn't have to be any traditional path. There's no set forth path towards becoming towards being in any of the careers that you you would choose to be. So, that evolution is can just lead to any any impactful outcome overall. So, go orange. Oh, yeah. All right. So, what's next for Fruity in terms of expansion, innovation, or new opportunities? Is there a Fruity truck in the future? There is. We already have a Fruity Bubbles Cafe trailer. Um so, we do pop-ups throughout metro Atlanta. Um and I'm really really excited that the World Cup is coming to Atlanta. So, we are already in in discussions and we are going to have activations everywhere in Cobb County, down by the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. We have already as I said I I let my team just have a field day at creating new drinks. So, we may have drinks that are themed by each of the countries. So, we we have a lot of fun. But, that is what I see in my nearest future. I mean, 6 months 7 months is is not that far away when it comes to to planning and making sure that we've we've done all we can do. So, I am in the process of looking for even temporary locations, potentially some another long-term location. As as you asked before, we already we're already mobile and we have capabilities to do pop-ups throughout. So, long long-term may possibly be creating Fruity Bubbles Cafe into a franchise. So, if there's any franchisees who might be interested >> [laughter] >> We might see you in Syracuse sometime. I'm sorry? So, we might see you in Syracuse sometime. Oh, that would be lovely. That would be lovely. I'll I'll have somebody else do I can kind of, you know, do without the snowy weather, but I'll go ahead and have my franchisee own that one. Well, Lisa, like every time you and I have talked, I have enjoyed this conversation. And thank you for joining the podcast. And go orange. Go orange, and remember it's always tea time. Yep. Thank you.