Marcus Crawford always wanted to own a business.
The Old Bridge native was first introduced to the food industry while working with the Original Soupman, where he operated a food truck with the company for a few years before deciding to head off and start his own food truck brand, looking to fulfill his entrepreneurial goal.
The question was what type of food would he sell?
After some market research, Crawford and his friend Jonathan Gibbs – now co-founders of their own company – eventually settled on a Mexican classic: burritos. After seeking advice from family and friends for some unique recipes, by 2016 Bro-Ritos specialty burrito food truck hit the streets.
“We realized there actually wasn’t a burrito truck in New Jersey,” says Crawford, adding that while there were taco trucks, there weren’t any trucks dedicated to burritos. “We figured we could fill that void. Obviously, when you drive by Chipotle, you see that they always have a long line, so that showed us that there is clearly demand for [burritos].”
In an effort to save capital, Crawford and Gibbs bought a used truck on Craigslist, which they gutted and subsequently built into a proper food vending vehicle – adding everything from stainless steel walls to electricity and lighting.
Aside from just burritos – which include items like the Chicken Chipotle Bro! – Bro-Ritos also serves specialty tacos and quesadillas, and offers several vegan options.
Bro-Ritos has put a big emphasis on “guaranteed business,” such as catering for events like graduation parties, baby showers and weddings.
“When you look at New Jersey, we don’t have a city with a major foot traffic footprint like New York or Chicago. When there’s a ton of people walking around it’s easier to do business, so we have to keep the wheels spinning,” Crawford explains. “During the week, we also like to visit various businesses and serve during their lunchtime.”
Bro-Ritos has leveraged social media to help build its brand, including creating a vlog-style YouTube series giving a behind-the-scenes glimpse at what goes on in the life of a Bro-Ritos food truck vendor.
Crawford was also a participant in BLUE-RAP (Black and Latino Urban Entrepreneurship – Retail Acceleration Program), a 13-week program offered by Rutgers University providing entrepreneurs with training in various areas of operations.
“The course provided us with a financial and business coach to help us structure our numbers,” Crawford says. “It really helped on the financial side with things that I’ve been able to put into place trying to grow Bro-Ritos.”
To further bolster the company, Crawford says the next step is to open a brick-and-mortar location in the Newark area, potentially as soon as this spring.
“A storefront for us becomes a hub,” he adds. “It not only gives us a place to prep and store food, but also gives us a set location where our customers can find us.”
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