The Clumsy Interloper

Within the last two weeks, I’ve formed Hawk City Pizza LLC and received my business license with the County of Albemarle. I’ve also established a bank account and submitted a pending application with the Chef’s Warehouse wholesaler. I had a wonderful meeting with Ellen Martin with CVSBDC to discuss QuickBooks basics, meals tax, state tax and inventory integration between Square and QuickBooks. I’ve also launched my provisional website – hawkcitypizza.com – which I will be updating regularly.

In the next two weeks, I plan on acquiring a Square point-of-sale account and creating a HCP Instagram account. I’m also going to create a Google business listing mostly for reviews but also for legitimacy.  On 2/21 plan to make my first bulk order on Chef’s Warehouse and bake and deliver my first round of pies (20 to start) over that weekend. The aim is to beta test my preparation protocol, packaging and quality control. I will send along surveys to capture anonymous feedback and I hope to conduct 2-3 of these trial bakes before my VADACS inspection at Bread and Roses Community Kitchen. If you would like to be added to one of these pizza giveaways to assist with my market research please DM me on Instagram or email alan@hawkcitypizza.com with your name and phone number.

The rising tide of a productive fortnight has lifted my spirits. I made and froze two pizzas for a coworker who is visiting her 90 year old father in Tennessee – a custom order of sausage and green olives to appease his pizza palette. The smells of butter crust kept my 7 year old awake past her bedtime that night, she huddling near the oven door drawing deep breath. There are jigsaw pieces that are starting to fit together telling me that this will be a good thing – for the IX farmers market, for Chicago transplants in Charlottesville, for my soul. Many hurdles ahead but the work is exciting and affirming. Thanks for your support as always.