When I first met John Cline, he was President at one of my new clients in the life sciences space. He handled the marketing for the client, so we had a lot of engagement for several months until one day, he left to move to another firm. We hadn’t connected until a few weeks ago when I noticed that his LinkedIn profile had the title, Chief Dough Officer. I needed to know what he was up to and how and why he pivoted in his career.
John spent most of his career working in corporate positions focused on life science companies. Like many of us, corporate life can become a grind and you can only play politics for so long.
When I reached John, he explained that he and his son Mike would work together to form Carolina Crust. This is a business that caterers weddings, parties, and celebrations. Together they bought a woodfired Italian Mugnani Valoriani® oven installed on a beautiful old-school truck and Carolina Crust was born.
The idea came from a business in South Carolina who creates these vintage trucks and has many of them operating in the south selling amazing pizzas, salads, and beer. Equipped with four beer taps, coolers and generators, John and his son Michael see an opportunity to get their slice of the pie. They have pre-booked many weddings and events and is finalizing all the licensing and food department challenges that come with a startup. Someone has to watch the finances so John became the Chief Dough Officer.
The Story Behind the Story
Charlie, Pepper and Michael Cline
John shared with me a personal story. It was about his other son, Charlie who passed away from a drug overdose several years ago.
He spoke openly and told me that as he was considering his career options, the idea of spending time with Mike became a powerful motivator to both work together and to honor the memory of Charlie, his other son who passed at twenty-eight.
One of the points of difference for Carolina Crust may be the opportunity to employ hard to place individuals who perhaps have a difficult and troubling background or known addictions. What if he could help give meaning and purpose to someone like his son where work could help them in their struggle with their illness. The idea of combining a fun business model with a powerful cause has captured John and Michael’s imagination, and it will be exciting to watch as his brand rises to the occasion.
Check out Carolina Crust if you have an event and want to turn it into a celebration of life.
Does your business need a marketing coach, guide, or sherpa? Are you generating enough leads? Is your marketing underperforming? I can help.
You can set up a time to chat with me about your marketing challenges using my calendar. Our initial conversation is free. You talk, I listen. Email me jeffslater@themarketingsage.com or call me. 919 720 0995. Visit my website at www.themarketingsage.com Let’s explore working together today.
Photos courtesy of John Cline and Carolina Crust
Note: The Marketing Sage Blog will take a little vacation and be back on January 2, 2020.
