Meet Allison Hill-Merriweather | Small Business Coach and Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Allison Hill-Merriweather and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Allison, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My thought process is always to start with the end in mind, if that makes sense. Like “whats the ultimate goal I want to achieve from this business?” Then I say okay what’s the plan of action to get there.

What should our readers know about your business?
I have several businesses. All, except one, fall under the Food and Beverage industry umbrella. I currently own 2 restaurants and a catering company. I am managing partner of both of my children’s companies. Drake’s Lemonade and King’s Elixirs. I also teach Business Classes for small businesses and startups. I will say being a business owner is not for the weak. Be prepared for the ups and downs, criticism, judgment, and discouragement. You have to really want it, and you have to know your why! Your why has to be bigger than all the hurdles, obstacles, and naysayers you will come up against. It is definitely not easy. If you want to be good at what you do. And not just exist ; there will be a lot of late nights and early mornings. My grandma once told me, “Real bosses don’t get days off!” And that has always stuck with me. You don’t get days off, you don’t get to quick when it gets hard,you don’t get to make excuses! You only get to come up with solutions. I learned if it looks like plan A might not work , you better work on plan BC and D just in case. I want the world to know that my brand is so much bigger than me. This is just the beginning and there is much more to come.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would definitely tell them to visit Flight’s Fish and Wings in Horn Lake, Ms where they could experience 3 of my brands. Great food paired with Drake’s Lemonade and King’s Elixirs. I would tell them to visit Sweet Amora Dessert Studio for a sweet treat. If they have children, I would suggest the Memphis Zoo and Botanical Gardens. Depending on the time of year, I would tell them to catch a Memphis Grizzlies, Redbirds, or Showboats game. I love sports and you can’t go wrong with the home team.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to give a shoutout to my parents, who have always instilled great work ethics in me. They have always owned their own businesses, and I have always been both of their employees. Now the tables have turned and now my mother is one of my employees. The most reliable one at that! She always told me, “You wait on customers, customers do not wait on you!” Which means, always be on time, and always be prepared. She is very inspirational, and I know she prays for me daily. Her catering talents are amazing! I try to mimic her style, and build onto what she has taught me. That’s my girl!
My husband, Andre is my motivational speaker, and he constantly pushes me to be better than I was the day before. We make a dynamic team in the different business we run together. His is my backbone, his support does come with plenty of constructive criticism and feedback, but I could not do any of this without him.
I really do not want to start naming names because there are so many and I don’t want to leave anyone out.
My sisters are always there to step in and help me when I am in over my head, which can be quite often.
My cousin Jordan, which I bounce ideas off of quite often. He is my voice of reason.
Last but not least, my business triangle, which consist of Shun Williams and Deina Dixon and myself. We meet and discuss our business goals, how we can improve, move forward, and assist each other when needed. It is extremely important to have like minded people and people who think differently from you in your corner.

Website: https://Www.Flightsfishandwings.com

Instagram: @drakeslemonade

Facebook: @kingselixirs