‘Be confident and believe in your own product’ – Joseph Leonard Ansis

It was a somewhat easy decision to go into this line of business, said Joseph Leonard F. Ansis.

“I’ve loved cooking ever since I was a child; I got it from my mom and dad. Cooking is my passion and I always feel blissful preparing food for my family and friends,” he said.

He was actually an OFW for five years before returning home in July 2019. And “being away from my family was very hard, especially during special occasions. This triggered me to think of a business that could sustain my family and at the same time something that I love doing.”

So yeah, Chubby Joe came into being, established in November 2019 with a startup capital of PhP40,000 (a big chunk going to the smoker, which is the equipment used for cooking/smoking the meats).

When he started Chubby Joe, Joseph Leonard “was browsing YouTube… and came across Aaron Franklin’s video. At first, I didn’t know that he was famous in Texas because of his style in smoking meats. I admired his style and was captivated by the science of how he smoked different type of meats.”

Now, he considers his wife and family as soures of inspiration for continuing “to support and inspires me to continue and think of new ideas that will help Chubby Joe to grow.”

Looking back, he never imagined he’d be going into this line of business. “I finished Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, I would say it’s not aligned in our business right now. I was supposed to take HRM back then, but changed my mind because I love computers too.”

With the business, “I only wanted to do this as my hobby but because of positive reviews from my family and friends, they asked me why not make it a business and – Boom! – Chubby Joe happened.”

There remain challenges – e.g. finding the right suppliers who can deliver the goods in Cavite because most of the frozen storages is located in the north.

But “we kept on looking through various Facebook groups that sell meats, asking if they’re fine to deliver in Cavite and luckily, we found one that can cater our needs.”

And for people who may want to also open their business, what tips can Joseph Leonard give?

“Turn your passion/hobby into business because you won’t feel it as something that burdens you, but a thing that you enjoy to do,” he said. “Be confident and believe in your own product. Don’t be too much of a perfectionist; it will bring you nowhere.”

He added that “it took me long time to decide when to start because I was so afraid that it was not yet the time, or I need more time to do research and development, but sometimes you just need to press the start button, all learning and development will happen along the way. Actually, it is a continuous learning so don’t be afraid to make that huge step.”

For more information or to grab the offerings of Chubby Joe, head to FB or Instagram: @itschubbyjoe.