A complaint was filed against a young entrepreneur, but officials had a different plan.
Jaequan Faulkner, a 13-year-old entrepreneur from Minneapolis, opened a hot dog stand in front of his home.
Instead of asking for money from his parents so he could buy new clothing items, he decided to earn it on his own.
His stand quickly became a hit after police officers with Bike Cops for Kids gave him a shoutout on their social media page.
But then someone filed a complaint against him.
The complaint claimed that he was selling hotdogs without a permit.
But instead of closing down Mr. Faulkner’s Old Fashioned Hotdogs, the officials helped the young businessman get up to code.
“When I realized what it was, I said, ‘No, we’re not going to just go and shut him down’ like we would an unlicensed vendor,” Minneapolis Environmental Health Director Dan Huff told KCPQ-13.
“We can help him get the permit. Let’s make this a positive thing and help him become a business owner.”
The officials decided to help him out.
Huff and the staff from the health department chipped in to help him get the $87 10-day permit. To make his business appear proper, they even got him a tent for shade, meat thermometers to see that his hotdogs are cooked well, and a handwashing station for food handling.
He didn’t only get help facility-wise. Northside Economic Opportunity Network or NEON stepped in to assist Faulkner as well.
The nonprofit organization helps “underserved entrepreneurs” in the community. And for Faulkner, they worked with him on basic business principles like financing, marketing, and pricing.
After his 10-day permit expires, Faulkner will move to a new location.
Each location is sponsored by different organizations.
His first stop will be at the police precinct. Then, he will set up shop at the Urban League. Finally, a community church will collect donations for his next permits until Faulkner goes back to school.
“It’s the cooking and the people,” Faulkner told KCPQ-13 of why he does it. “I see someone go by with a frown on their face. I’m there with a smile, then I see a smile on their face. I just made a smile on somebody’s face by selling them a hot dog.”
And more than just giving him a permit, local officials have succeeded in building character and responsibility.
They also proved that a community is more than just a place. It’s encouraging every member to participate and contribute, no matter the size and age.
As for budding entrepreneurs just like Faulkner, he leaves us with a piece of family wisdom.
“My auntie always told me, ‘Can’t nobody stop you but you.’ If you say ‘I can’t do that,’ well, then you just set yourself up for failure.” He said to CNBC.
Who knows, maybe in the future he will venture into something bigger than sausages – and when that time comes, he knows he has a whole community backing him up.
Click the video below to see the heartwarming story.
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