NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–ESSENCE’s January/February 2022 Black History Month issue champions the power of Black love and business by featuring power couple Pinky Cole, CEO and Founder of popular vegan fast food chain Slutty Vegan, and Derrick Hayes, CEO and Owner of Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks. In the cover story, Hot in the Kitchen, ESSENCE talks to the business owners about everything from food, community, their love for each other, second chances and how they turned their multimillion-dollar businesses into a family affair. Here’s what Pinky and Derrick tell ESSENCE:
PINKY COLE ON MIXING BUSINESS WITH PLEASURE: “I think that our relationship is symbolic of what the world should look and feel like…It should look and feel like a place where there is no judgment. Just because you might not believe in the things that I believe in, doesn’t mean that we can’t come together in friendship, love and spirituality…”
DERRICK HAYES ON HIS ROAD TO SUCCESS, SECOND CHANCES…AND THE FIVE MINUTES THAT CHANGED HIS LIFE (ESSENCE EXCERPT): “…The 34-year-old seems to have it all together now, but that wasn’t always the case. Like many young Black men in inner cities throughout the country, who lack resources and feel there’s no other way to provide for themselves and their families, Hayes once fell into the trap of selling drugs. ‘I got arrested, and I was looking at some time,’ he reveals. Hayes recalls going to court every day thinking that his life was over. ‘I thought, If I get out of this, I’m straightening my life up. I remember before walking into the courtroom when I was supposed to get sentenced, my sister called and prayed for me. That day was the third time the DA didn’t show up. The judge said he would give the DA five minutes and then he would throw the case out,’ he says. Hayes admits those were the longest five minutes of his life, waiting to hear if his sister’s prayers had worked. Those five minutes until the judge hit the gavel and threw his case out also changed his story. The entrepreneur continues to be deeply thankful for his second chance. ‘While I was walking out, the detective who was supposed to testify against me was coming in,’ he remembers, ‘and I realized how close I came to losing my freedom, and now I had to change my life…’”
PINKY COLE ON HER RESILIENCY: “Let me tell you something about me…I’m so confident in myself that two things are either going to happen—either you’re going to love me and be inspired, or you’re going to be intimidated…”
ACTRESS/PRODUCER/DIRECTOR LENA WAITHE ON WHAT MAKES THE COUPLE UNIQUE: “I think people look at them and see themselves…They inspire others to take their destiny into their own hands. They make it clear that the road was long and difficult, but they continue to wake up every day and get things done. I admire them both a great deal…”
