Business leader and wellness entrepreneur Steele Smiley, the founder, owner, and executive chairman of Crisp & Green, chatted about his latest endeavors and the digital age.
It is one of the nation’s quickest-growing fast-casual health food chains (with 22 locations across seven states). He is also the force behind new plant-based eatery Stalk & Spade, America’s premier plant-based franchise offering healthy, meat-free alternatives to your fast food favorites, which opened its first two locations in the Midwest over the past year, with nine locations set to open in 2023.
What led you to open your first healthy eatery?
I spent over 15 years in the service business – running, then subsequently selling my shares in the largest wellness franchise in the world in 2017. I was non-competed out of the business that I knew the most, which was fitness. I felt healthy eating was a natural extension of that industry, so I decided to go into the food business at that time.
What inspired you to start a plant-based eatery and franchise?
Franchising is something that I’ve done my entire career. I have franchised in over 30 countries and reached millions of people through my brands across the globe. Alternately, I believe plants are the future.
People are already familiar with those first-generation options, like the Boca Burger and some of these earlier innovations of products from over 10 years ago. We have come so far – a plant-based chicken sandwich is now indistinguishable from its real chicken counterpart. You cannot tell the difference.
Generally, the products are healthier for you and lower in calories. This is the future and I decided to be the first in the country to build this type of franchise.
How does it feel to be a founder, executive, and entrepreneur in the digital age?
Well, it’s a very different perspective than the needs of 10 years ago. Even 20 years at this point. Everything you do is essentially available in real time to everybody. Social media and the way we all choose to communicate requires more preplanning and thought into your business and of course, how you curate yourself.
People choose to do business with the people and brands that they like and if they choose to support, it is important for leaders to recognize they’re on a platform and it is all a part of the overall equation today.
How do you use technology in your daily routine?
Technology is at the center of everything we do, I don’t think that’s changed over the last 10 years or even the last 20. Ultimately, technology has enabled us to do so many things so quickly — by three hours into your day you can accomplish five times what you used to. It allows me, in real-time, to see how each of my businesses perform in every market in the United States, which we didn’t have available to us five years ago.
What do your plans/goals for the future include?
For me, it’s about building the concepts that I have and furthering our global expansion. Ultimately, we have the first plant-based franchise in the United States. We are seeing a large penetration to key markets like Miami and New York in the first quarter of next year and across the board. Crisp & Green will be known by everyone within a year and at this point, that has my full attention and focus.
What are some of your proudest professional moments thus far with Crisp & Green and Stalk & Spade?
When it comes to Crisp & Green, when you’ve been doing something you’re not known for, especially on a global basis, generally, people are not necessarily rooting for you or believe that you can be a top performer in another industry that is completely unrelated to what you have done before. I’m really excited to have learned a new skill and built a new career, in a new industry, in five short years.
At this point, we have a store opening once a week which is really exciting, and next year will be every three to four days in the United States. With Stalk & Spade, we have never seen lines like we had when we opened. I went to the store and expected to see 20 people there.
When I arrived, there were over 800 people in a line that lasted for nine hours and we ran out of food. That was a really humbling moment that makes you realize something you created has that much demand and the people are excited to try something that you’ve created. It is a very proud moment for myself and the team.
Were there any moments in your career that helped define you?
There are so many. From a personal perspective, I moved 14 times before I was 20 – that was a humble experience. So for me, my career becomes the grounding for me as an adult that I didn’t have as a child – it’s important to surround myself with coworkers and partners that become your family.
To be able to do that and work with people that you want to work with as well as people that want to work with you is something I look forward to that every single day.
What is your advice for young and aspiring entrepreneurs?
Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t do it. I was shocked as I look back on my career, at how many times people, even those who were close to me, tried to dissuade me from doing something that I knew I could do.
Sometimes we allow the closest people in our lives to have way too much influence over us and allows us to hold us back from things that we’re passionate about.
I don’t think people mean to do it but ultimately, it just happens and so one of the things that I would tell everyone is that you need to always monitor your inner circle and who you are getting advice from.
Reevaluate that every single year. Some people probably need to move out and some people need to move in. It’s very important that you always hone your inner circle because those people are the ones you do listen to and take advice from. Cut out any bad influences or those that don’t align with your goals and vision for your future.
What does the word success mean to you?
This has nothing to do with my monetary or personal goals. To me, success is about doing well enough to be able to help other people and so I’ve mandated that the vast majority of my success and wealth will be given back to those in need.
The ability to accumulate something that is large enough to impact people in a meaningful way – I crave giving back through the Steele Smiley Foundation, it allows me the opportunity to change lives in a meaningful way.
You do a lot of philanthropy work through The Steele Smiley Foundation. What does it mean to you to be able to give back in various ways?
You know, the interesting part about that, is I really had no interest in doing it publicly. I wanted to do it anonymously. I realized that it was difficult with just my time alone to be able to identify the groups that needed resources.
By being public about it, people who want to reach me through various avenues, such as social platforms, can find me, and ultimately, I can impact them. I’m excited to wake up every day and meet people with who I think I can make an impact.
To learn more about the Steele Smiley Foundation, visit its official website.
