Darlene Fantel's Journey of Crazy Chic Inc. - Faith, Family and Rescues

When Darlene Fantel—better known as the Crazy Chick—tells her tale, it's clear that life's curveballs can lead to remarkable enterprises. In a world where quality often takes a backseat, she stands as a paragon of meticulousness, deriving her business ethos from a pharmaceutical background that prizes precision. As she unravels the threads of her personal and professional journeys, listeners are treated to an inspiring blend of family, faith, and a fervent passion for animal welfare—all while whipping up delectable chicken chips that are a hit with both two and four-legged clientele.

Journeying into the heart of the podcast, we find ourselves amidst tales of canine rescues that tug at the heartstrings and a business venture born from a mission to safeguard pets. The genesis of Crazy Chicks pet treats is steeped in love and an unyielding commitment to research and development. It’s a story of adaptability, underscored by Darlene's swift pivot when her homemade treats unexpectedly entranced the palates of children, leading to a rebranding that's as quirky as it is endearing. Her narrative is a masterclass in turning adversity into opportunity, resonating with entrepreneurs who are navigating the unpredictable waves of starting a business.

Concluding with pearls of wisdom for fellow women in entrepreneurship, Darlene doesn't skimp on the realities of launching a food-related venture. Her pharmaceutical acumen shines through as she details the intricacies of lab tests and the stringent standards required for scrumptious production. Whether it's her stewardship of a farmers market or her belief in a guiding higher power, this champion of the indie community imparts a message of resilience and balance that will inspire current and future business owners alike. Join us for a heartwarming session with Darlene Fantel, where passion, persistence, and plant-based delights converge in a symphony of entrepreneurial spirit.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

Hi and welcome to the R2RB podcast series. My guest today is Darlene Fantel, warmly known as the Crazy Chick. Darlene will let us know how she became known as the Crazy Chick and Darlene resides in Lynnhurst, long Island, new York, with her husband, robert, and their fur babies from wife, mom, grandmother and business owner. Darlene is one busy woman. Entrepreneur. Darlene, welcome, and how are you?

Speaker 2: 0:30

I am good and thank you very much for the invite. How are you doing?

Speaker 1: 0:34

I'm good. Thank you Not bad for having yesterday off as we were speaking earlier, but getting back into the groove. So Tuesday is almost done.

Speaker 2: 0:44

Yes, so one day down.

Speaker 1: 0:46

That's it. So I'd like to ask two questions to get us warmed up, and the first one is if you could pick a superpower, which one would you have?

Speaker 2: 0:57

So I kind of struggled with this one because I wasn't sure if I wanted to say superwoman or flying. I'm going to say flying because I'm not a big risk taker. I have to, you know, I have to know that the ground and the foundation is kind of secure before I jump into anything. And I know in the near future I am going to be challenged with the possibility of scaling up the company, and I have not mastered scale up yet. So I would say I would love to have that ability to fly.

Speaker 1: 1:38

I like it and I like the reasons. That's a pretty good reason to do that one. Thank you, oh my gosh. All right, so if you could visit anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Speaker 2: 1:49

Australia. Since I was a child, I've always wanted to see koalas in the wild Kangaroos.

Speaker 1: 1:57

Oh, that would be awesome. Yes, do you have?

Speaker 2: 2:00

I don't know if it's possible, but we'll see, maybe one day.

Speaker 1: 2:05

Yeah, I mean you could put it on the bucket list. Yes, do you have anything else in that bucket list yet?

Speaker 2: 2:12

Oh, there's probably a whole bunch in that bucket list. It's hours long. I keep adding to it too.

Speaker 1: 2:21

It doesn't stop, yeah, and it doesn't have to. Absolutely All right. So who is Darlene the Crazy Chick?

Speaker 2: 2:29

Darlene the Crazy Chick is a motivated person that wakes up wanting to be better every morning. I want to push the company as far as it can go, be the best that we could be, and I have to say I'm kind of meticulous with everything that I do. I have a very strong quality assurance background. My 30-year career was spent in the pharmaceutical industry, so federal regulations are. I'm very familiar with the federal regulations, so I try to keep everything quality-oriented, high quality in compliance. It's a lot, yeah, there is a lot. There is a lot and, like I said, I'm not a big risk taker, so I want everything done right First time, absolutely.

Speaker 1: 3:19

With the motivation. Is there anything in particular, besides the business, that motivates you?

Speaker 2: 3:27

Oh yeah, there's a lot. So, on the personal side of things, I love the Sol, dare. I grew up close to the coastal area. I love the wildlife, the beach. I like an amateur photographer since high school. I like to photograph scenery and the wildlife. I love cooking, I love walking, I love gardening. Do you Family time?

Speaker 1: 3:52

Do you turn to all those things when you need to de-stress?

Speaker 2: 3:56

Yes, I do, I do, but you know what, sometimes I don't have enough time to de-stress. Family time is important too. I love spending time with the family, the kids, the grandkids. Try to get out there and be a kid with the grandkids, roll the skating or getting on swings with them. I'm trying not to grow old too fast.

Speaker 1: 4:18

With you on that one. Yeah, it's like how is this happening? Yes, yes. Sometimes you just need to have that place to go to de-stress, because it is a lot. Absolutely, you and your husband are very much involved in the. Is it a town or a village? What's it called?

Speaker 2: 4:40

So it is a village.

Speaker 1: 4:41

It is a village, yes.

Speaker 2: 4:44

It's an incorporated village.

Speaker 1: 4:45

Which is Lindenhurst.

Speaker 2: 4:47

Lindenhurst. We're the fourth largest in New York state we have. I believe there's somewhere in the range of 27,000 residents, but we have that tiny hometown feel where everybody knows everybody. It is so nice? Yes, it's very nice, and what's really nice is the majority of our grandchildren are growing up here. I grew up in Lindenhurst, so, yeah, so it's kind of nice and we try to stay involved, like the kids are here.

Speaker 1: 5:20

And you two are very involved. I mean, you're involved with the animal rescues, you're involved with agriculture, you're involved with the overall wellness of everything, not only for yourselves, and we want to talk a little bit about that.

Speaker 2: 5:34

Yeah, sure. So I guess you know the whole wellness thing in agriculture started for me as a child. My parents always had gardens and you know we go out to the garden and pick whatever we wanted to eat. You know a piece of raw corn if we wanted, or pull carrots up out of the ground and you know, snack on them during the day and it just. It's a nice thing that stuck with me. So I continued. When I can have gardens, if I have the time, I have gardens. My kids have grown up. They know gardens. They know I've had chickens in the past where they've had fresh eggs. They, you know, they know the difference. So I guess it kind of goes hand in hand with eating healthy and the wellness.

Speaker 2: 6:19

And I'm going to share something with you that I don't tell a lot of people. I'm not. I am not a big meat eater. I prefer to eat produce and fruit and the chicken chips because once we're finished with them, the texture has changed. It allows me to eat meat without that resistance that I would normally have. They crunch, they don't have the texture of meat.

Speaker 2: 6:47

So it's true, yeah, so it's all part of it. You know it's so funny. I step back and I look at it, I'm going. Every little piece is part of that puzzle that makes sense in the long run. Yeah, you know, my grandchildren even know it. They know what it's like to plant seeds and watch it grow and they love picking it. You know, picking the vegetables or the apples off the trees. You know I spent a lot of several years trying to grow apple trees. I grew up with apple trees in my yard. We go up, climb the trees up there and eat an apple right so by the saltwater where we are. It was a challenge, like I. It was several years and I finally got apples off of two trees last year. Oh nice, the kids loved it. The apple picking and Grammy and Grampy's backyard. You know it's kind of a special thing.

Speaker 1: 7:40

Yeah, absolutely, absolutely. I mean, that is something that you've passed on to your grandchildren, or your children and your grandchildren to be passed on again and again to the next generation, and we don't have enough of that.

Speaker 2: 7:55

No, we don't. And there was nothing like eating fresh. Yeah, my body rejects me when I would buy store-bought produce.

Speaker 1: 8:03

Oh, I understand that, because I can't wait for, like the summertime or the springtime, knowing that the vegetables and the farmer's markets are going to be open again. Yes, yes. So then, along comes rescues too. With all that, you have the rescues, and you have your agriculture, and it's a where did it all start, then? With crazy chick product.

Speaker 2: 8:27

So Robert was in for a procedure one day and I was waiting in the lobby for him and a local news station did this Dog Day Friday event every Friday and I was hooked. I was the big fan. I may try to miss it. So I'm watching Dog Day Friday that morning while I'm waiting for him to get out, and here's this cute little puppy that they presented and I just knew I had to have him. Well, I find out years later that you kind of influence when you're under anesthesia. I never knew this. I only recently found out. So when Robert came out of the procedure, oh babe, I have to tell you I am in love with this puppy. We have to go out to Southampton to get him. I call up. I call up. I tell him don't let that dog go, I'm coming out for him. So the two granddaughters, our two granddaughters, were little at the time. They were like two and three years old. We took them with us to make sure the boy would be good with them. So here we are at the shelter. Robert's not saying anything, he's just kind of going along for the ride.

Speaker 2: 9:38

I'm at the doorway with the girls as they're bringing the pup in. I'm on my knees. The girls are standing next to me, robert's behind us on a couch, just sitting there. Chance decides to walk right past me and the girls and jump on the couch and lay his head on Robert's lap. Oh, my goodness. Well, there was Robert's. I get the papers. We took him home. He was abused, he was emaciated, he had his issues, he was scared. We had to empty a walk-in closet for him for the first year so that when he was scared he could go in there and lay on his bed. And he wound up being the most confident, lovable, the best baby ever. We worked with him and he is amazing. We lost him in May, broke our hearts. He was 12 and a half.

Speaker 1: 10:29

And.

Speaker 2: 10:29

Robert and I figured we said, listen, we'll ride it out with our girl who was nine. She just turned nine in February. We'll ride it out with her and then maybe we won't adopt for a while. Six weeks after Chance passes, here's this picture there's a boy at a kill shelter and it was like two days before they were going to euthanize him and I was obsessing over him and I'm going, no, we can't do this. I'm crying over Chance because it's only six weeks. And then I'm crying that they're going to take the life of this boy and I said to Robert we have to go out and get him. Like we have to save him.

Speaker 2: 11:09

Well, he was a crazy, real crazy boy. Like you couldn't even hold him on a leash. He came out, he jumped and leaped up on Robert's shoulders so high because he was freed. It was amazing, oh my gosh. We worked with him for eight months and I have to tell you that it's scary how his personality is almost identical to Chance's. Wow. And I said to Robert what are the chances of me being obsessed over two dogs that have the same exact personality? Like I always feel. Like Chance is back with us, like Rebel was heaven sent, I guess.

Speaker 2: 11:47

Oh my gosh he saved us as much as we saved him.

Speaker 1: 11:53

And I just want to say something, because you've said it with both, about both Chance and Rebel, that you worked with him. It is a labor of love with rescues because many of them, like you said, have been abused, neglected, the whole gambit and I know people have the best interest when they go to rescue but they still have to stop and just for an extra minute say it's a commitment and you don't want to rescue and then just return it because one day was a bad day. So thank you so much for taking that time and rescuing those two beautiful boys and taking the time and working with them, because I talked to a lot of different women who are in the rescues and that's part of it is just knowing that it's going to take time to adjust your new fur baby. So thank you.

Speaker 2: 12:46

Yeah, Thank you. I think people go in with this idea oh, it's a cute little baby, it's a puppy. I think they go in without the full knowledge. Rebel's a big dog. We got him he was underweight at 65 pounds. He was a year and a half. The boy is now 80 pounds. We've had him eight months. He's a big dog. He was in a city apartment. You don't put a big dog in a city apartment Like they need. We will walk in him three times a day. I think I dropped 15 pounds in the first three months just to try to burn his energy, Like people don't know.

Speaker 1: 13:26

So you have to have the knowledge, yeah absolutely, and I said, people's hearts are in the right place, but it does take an extra minute to think about the responsibility and taking on, and then it turns out to be a beautiful thing. Yes, absolutely, right, absolutely. And then excuse me. So then, who ended up with the seizure?

Speaker 2: 13:50

So that was Chance. We had him. I'm gonna say it was within the first six months to a year that we had him and he went into a seizure and I thought, oh no, like I started reading, like the labels on the dog food and stuff. Well, so let me back up. I was buying him these pick and fillet things from one of the big, one of the big stores of branches out here, and my niece called me. She said Aunt Doll, chance's treats are being they're being discontinued and they're recalling them because they were made overseas and dogs are dying from them. And it was. It was right around the time that he had the seizure and I grabbed them and I threw them out and I knew it was a seizure because I had a dog once before that had seizures. So I thought it was the treats.

Speaker 2: 14:46

Being in the pharmaceutical industry, I know that there are certain things that should occur and don't occur in certain places. So when I realized where they were coming from, I thought I did this to him. How could I do this to him? Like I was feeding him crap, so to say right. So I stopped when I felt guilty because he loved them. They were like a thin chicken jerky. So I got into the kitchen and I tried to recreate them, and that's how crazy chicks started.

Speaker 2: 15:20

That's how crazy chicks started. It was a mission of love and, as I meant. So, research and development took like a year and a half. I told you I'm not a risk taker, so it was testing. I kept going back until I got it to the point where I thought it was perfect, like shelf life studies, nutrition values, everything across the board. As I'm doing it, the kids are coming into the house and they're going wow, it smells really good in here. What are you making? They start grabbing chips and they're eating them and they're going oh, now you need to add flavor to them. And oh, this one should be salted. And how about lime on this? That I like it's spicy and like they're throwing all this stuff at me. So now I'm going.

Speaker 2: 16:02

Well, my first company name is that I registered with New York State is not going to work. Oh, what am I going to name it? And I struggled and I'm going to change in the name. This was supposed to be a pet product. What are you guys doing? You know you throw a wrench into this on me.

Speaker 2: 16:21

So I said to Robert what am I going to do now? Like I already registered the business name, what am I going to call it that you know nobody's going to eat something that's got a doggy name to it, you know, like for baby treats. You know he goes call it crazy check and I knew when he said it that was the name. That is he named the company. I love that. I love that. And there's a story behind it. For as long as I can remember, since Robert and I were dating, anytime that I'd leave him with that words because of my actions on my mouth, he'd have nothing else to say about crazy check, you're a crazy check. And he started signing it in cards and little love notes oh to my crazy check. And so, when you said it, I'm like bingo, bingo. Yeah, that was it.

Speaker 1: 17:10

I love it.

Speaker 2: 17:11

Yeah, it was it. So it all just kind of came together without I don't know. This is it was meant to be. Yeah, it was meant to be.

Speaker 1: 17:21

Absolutely.

Speaker 2: 17:22

It was meant to be and then. So then I had to struggle with the logos. You know, I can't do a poor print Like. I originally traced chances for print and and added like a letter to it or something. I added something to his poor print and that was going to be the registered logo. So now, now I have to look a different logo because that's not going to work either. So somebody told me to go to I don't know one of these web pages where they a whole bunch of graphic people. Oh, yes, they, they give you ideas, they send you ideas and whoever's you pick, they get paid. Oh, I'm going and I have no clue what I wanted. So I'm going, you know what? Maybe something with two C's, like, and somebody hit the nail. Well, Robert actually said why don't you have them loop the C's like, the head being one of the C's, the belly being the up, and that's how we got the logo. And it's like so bizarre you can't make it up. So you know somebody's got a bigger plan.

Speaker 1: 18:31

Oh my gosh no, I love it Absolutely. So you work on it for a year and a half, getting it all together, getting it all prepared and passing all the tests, and that just had to be a long haul.

Speaker 2: 18:45

It was.

Speaker 1: 18:46

Was there a point in time, though, that you wanted just to throw the chicken out the door?

Speaker 2: 18:50

Yes, but not within the first year and a half. Oh really, okay. So I was working on it for a year and a half. I enjoyed the ride, like I learned a lot of stuff. I was working with a you know, patent people and trade market attorneys and you know I was. I was learning a lot. I grew from that year and a half experience. It was when the pandemic hit. I wanted to throw the towel in.

Speaker 1: 19:13

Oh my gosh.

Speaker 2: 19:14

It wasn't so bad that we went into lockdown because the market I was managing, knowing federal regulations, I put a safety protocol together, got approval to run the market where will the other markets was shut down. You know we had social distancing. We showed, you know, crowd control and everything else hand sanitizes everywhere. It was an open market. So we were good with that. And the pot that made me want to throw the towel in was the price of chicken went up four times the amount.

Speaker 1: 19:47

I remember that time as well. It was insane.

Speaker 2: 19:52

It was really insane and I thought this is the end of crazy chat. Like you know, we can't do this anymore. Every time I went back in to the supplier I, you know my heart sunk every time I went back in there because it just kept going up and going up. We were paying so much money. It was ridiculous. It was ridiculous. That's when I wanted to throw the towel in.

Speaker 1: 20:17

Oh my gosh. And so how did you work through that that you didn't throw the towel in?

Speaker 2: 20:22

Kind of just bit the bullet went along with it being hopeful that things would change. You know we have a lot of loyal followers that we didn't want to disappoint. Even though sometimes Robert doesn't always agree with my paths or my decisions, he's always 100% behind me, like so he was behind me with the whole thing and he didn't try to discourage me. You know, we just we wrote it out. Wow, we wrote it out.

Speaker 1: 20:51

Wow, and here you are, it's 2024. Yes, chicken has come down.

Speaker 2: 20:57

Yes, it has, Thankfully. I'm so thankful for that.

Speaker 1: 21:01

I had forgotten about the crazy prices on the chicken at that time. I was working at Trader Joe's at that time and all the when the prices just started to go up and up and up. It's like what's going on. So kudos to you for writing that out, cause that's a big one that could have shut the doors on you.

Speaker 2: 21:19

Yes, absolutely could have. I'm thankful we kept it going.

Speaker 1: 21:23

Me too, absolutely All right. So describe chicken chips to someone that's never tried them.

Speaker 2: 21:30

Okay. So chicken chips we take a high quality chicken breast, we dry them until we get them to crunch like every other chip. They crunch, but they've got the taste, the smell, the taste and eventually the texture of rotisserie chicken. There's no preservatives, there's no artificial flavors. They're high protein, low sodium, low cow, low carb, low cholesterol, gluten free. So we leave the doggy ones unflavored and we flavor for the people. And no, we are not feeding people doggy treats, we are feeding the dogs people treats. I can't tell you how many times I've been asked are you trying to feed me dog chips? No, I'm not. We get our stuff from a restaurant supply company.

Speaker 1: 22:21

So yeah, yes, it is. It is the you're doing it the right way, it's easier to do, and your newest chip is chocolate covered chicken chips.

Speaker 2: 22:36

Yes, I got in there and I tried to, you know. I thought you know they're doing bacon covered. Try, they're doing bacon, chocolate covered bacon. Let me try the chicken chips.

Speaker 2: 22:49

And a few people that tried them said yeah, you know, I always the kids and grandkids I test them on, they're the first. They were like it's good, it's good and I'm going yes, storage is gonna be. You know, I'm not sure I'm gonna launch that one yet. Okay, there's a lot of things you know. When we're out at the farmer's markets I have a lot of chocolate people that are not there for the.

Speaker 1: 23:19

you know the storage is temperatures and all of that yeah.

Speaker 2: 23:23

So custom orders, yeah, I could probably do that, but to have it as a everyday purchase, I don't know that we're gonna go that route. Okay, I'll keep an eye out. Okay, yes, I will. I will definitely send you some. You like milk chocolate or dark chocolate? Yes, okay, good, I'm gonna take a note on that one.

Speaker 1: 23:48

So in the beginning, in the very beginning, when you, you know, you were first starting to put all your thoughts together and you were creating Crazy Chick, did you also start a business plan?

Speaker 2: 24:00

Not detailed. It was very basic, like I knew the things that had to have been done and I knew where I wanted to go with it. Not very detailed it was registering the business, it was creating, you know, the graphics for the webpage and the labels and registering two different trademarks, because you have to have a trademark for the pet side and trademark for the people side. And then, because it's unique, I started, I registered for a patent through the United States patent and trademark office, so that's pending. Like there was a lot, yeah, insurance and you gotta do the compatibility testing and make sure that the products are holding up with the PBA free bags that you're purchasing. There's a lot, yeah, the labels don't heal off.

Speaker 2: 24:51

Yeah, there's a lot too, so yeah.

Speaker 1: 24:54

You just didn't wake up one morning and get this business started. There is such, there's so many things involved and one just starting a business in itself and then taking on because you have, you know, food that's a whole nother ball game. Yes.

Speaker 2: 25:10

Yeah, it is. And you know what I have to say, that my pharmaceutical experience I'm thankful for that because I was it taught me. It taught me what I needed to do. You know from the labs, the testing, the, you know the stability studies, and you know there's certain equipment. You know you have to have a certain stainless steel that you use and cleaning solution. You know that it's a lot. Yeah, there's a lot to it.

Speaker 1: 25:41

Yeah, you know people. I mean, I go to a lot of farm markets and I, you know, I meet women entrepreneurs all the time and when you walk up to their table and meet them and greet them and see their product, and you look at it and it's like, and I know people because I've done it myself, it's like, oh, I can do that. Oh, yeah, no.

Speaker 2: 26:02

That's a lot. You know, in all the regulations there's different paths you could go down. They don't give you one path. They tell you how, what you have, what the end result has to be. You have to figure out how to get there.

Speaker 1: 26:18

Yeah, oh my gosh, is there anything that, knowing what you know now, that you would change in the beginning? Or, you know, do it differently in the beginning?

Speaker 2: 26:27

No, I wouldn't change a thing. I learned a lot. Yes, there were challenges. Those are the things that make you stronger.

Speaker 1: 26:34

Yeah, I agree.

Speaker 2: 26:35

This wasn't my plan. God planned this, not me, so I just went along with the ride. I had no plan. I don't like me, you know of all things. When I was younger, my grandmother used to have to wash out my turkey for me and put it in the pans so I could put it in the oven. I wouldn't even touch more meat back in the day Like. So this was not at all my plan. This was all God's thing, oh yeah.

Speaker 1: 27:03

You know, it is said he works in mysterious ways and the things that come about are just amazing. Yes, you know absolutely. What advice would you give another woman on to Pinua? Well, starting in business in general, Do your research.

Speaker 2: 27:19

Do your research, Know what's required. Know what you have to do to get there. Don't be quick to throw in the towel. You know you have to have tenacity. If you really want it, you have to have tenacity and you need to know that it's not nine to five. You're married to it. You know it's around the clock. Some people say it's easier to be a business owner and I disagree. It's around the clock, Absolutely.

Speaker 1: 27:46

Just and not give up. I mean, that is the big thing, it's. You know, I joke with my business partner, Ron. We each take a different day to quit.

Speaker 2: 27:57

You know that it gives you balance. Balance is important.

Speaker 1: 28:03

Women entrepreneurs.

Speaker 2: 28:04

balance is very important also, Absolutely.

Speaker 1: 28:08

Oh, my goodness gracious. Now you are involved in a lot of farmer markets, Did you? Did you have a farmer market yourself? Did you have one that you ran?

Speaker 2: 28:18

I did. I did so. I was in a market. I was in a few markets. When I first got started, the one in our community was small and our community wasn't ready for it, you know. So I was chatting with a friend who was a civic member and I said to her I really want to get a market going. She goes what a great idea. She goes, I got perfect spot, let's do it. I will reach out to the town. Maybe we could do it as a beautification program and I thought this is great. So our conversation started in October of 2019. So she reached out to the powers and said oh, you know, we want to do a market as a civic. We got the green light. We got the green light to go with it. The town totally support, not the village. The town totally supported us. They went and did what they had to do. On their end, we got to planning. On our end, I started recruiting vendors. This very big lot grew Well.

Speaker 2: 29:20

So first let me back up 2019. We were gonna launch I think it was like April or May of 2020, so we had to postpone that because March was COVID, right, yeah, covid started, yeah, so we had to put that on hold. The markets around here didn't open. Maybe there were two or three that did. I said to them listen, I want to open it, I'll put a safety protocol together. I, I got the experience and if there's anything you want Changed on it, you know I I'll make the changes and I'll send it back to you for review, let's. They were fine with it. So we showed crowd control. We had hand sanitizer Out on every table. Nobody was allowed to touch anything on the tables, only the business owner. Like we had it. Like we had it locked up, title down, yeah, yeah. So so we wound up having 60 vendors at the height of that market.

Speaker 2: 30:17

It was amazing when COVID, when the regulations, the restrictions Dropped off, people had other places to go, vendors and visitors had other places to go. So we dwindled and I Closed the market last year and definitely I closed it. It was too much work to keep it going. Now I'm opening a new market right in the middle of our village. I met with the village of Lyndon Hurst powers a few weeks ago and they gave me the green light on it. They said, yeah, yeah. So we have an awesome farmer. Actually, we have two awesome farmers coming back, which I'm really excited about. I can't wait for the fresh veggies and produce. So yes, we'll be doing another, another market, and this one will be in Lyndon Hurst village.

Speaker 1: 31:06

Oh, that is fantastic, congratulations. Yeah, I love the farmers markets, oh my gosh. You know I didn't go too many, if any, when I was growing up, but as I got older and and now really living here in Delaware as well, just you know, I'm always learning. So the farmer markets I just absolutely love any time I can get those fresh vegetables.

Speaker 2: 31:30

Yes, you too.

Speaker 1: 31:31

That's fantastic, fantastic, that is great. And you also go to other, you're at other farmer markets, you bring your products to other so, yes, we we are.

Speaker 2: 31:40

We go to other local markets, we do other events and we also incorporate fundraising events into these markets. Sometimes, like there were a few that I did for our local parish and I I bring in, you know, you know, I bring in my rescue people any chance I get. Like right before we got on the zoom meeting, I'm texting back and forth organizing and two events that I'm getting them into, like so I never forget them and we just try to make the market the best that we can we support. During COVID there were a lot of people that did fundraising, like our firefighters, our PTA. They had no place to do fundraising. So I said, you know what, bring your fundraiser to our market. You know, look, do it outside. And why not? It became a theme like so now our farmers markets support the organizations that need a place to fundraise, that's fantastic, that's fantastic.

Speaker 1: 32:38

Oh, my gosh, oh my gosh.

Speaker 2: 32:40

You are all over woman. It wasn't my plan it happened.

Speaker 1: 32:46

It does happen. I'm so glad that it happens for you, absolutely Thank you. What's next for crazy chick?

Speaker 2: 32:53

So I'm not sure yet. You know, robert and I have got Some, some things you know, with his music that he's working on.

Speaker 1: 33:04

So at this point with please tell us who your husband is.

Speaker 2: 33:09

Robert Fantella is my husband. He is a musician. He actually started sharing his music during the pandemic and I and he took it a little bit higher, to different levels that with different goals Since then and he's getting out there like today. He was on a New Zealand radio station which was really cool. He's getting out there I I kind of it's the slow time, the slow month for crazy chicks, so I'm kind of on the raw or fantella music side Helping out and, you know, doing some things there. He's got what are they called? Epk's and yep, you know I put together a website for him and like so, yes, there's a lot so crazy chick. I wanted to become a household name but you know, like Campbell's suit, you know, like right now it's just Robert Fantella music. Right now I'm working on the last couple of weeks, so I'll get back into it.

Speaker 1: 34:04

So everybody needs to Find Robert Fantella music and crazy chick on and tell us where everybody can find both of you.

Speaker 2: 34:12

So Robert Fantella music Robert Fantella music calm and for crazy chick, it's crazy chick calm. As we both have web pages. Roberts is informational and people could join his email list and they will be emailed updates as we progress and grow. The the music page and his goals progress, new things happen. He's working on a new song now, so I'm not sure what the time frame is there yet, but you know anybody that's on the email list, they'll, they'll get first in sight. Yeah, and you know the crazy chick page has our story behind it and you know some, some things there and there's the products are on that page and there's a contact information on on both of our pages.

Speaker 1: 34:59

So, and you can, you can order right from your your website, correct? Yes, okay.

Speaker 2: 35:05

Yes, yes, we ship, and then there's a lot of people that can email us also. Our email addresses are there, yeah.

Speaker 1: 35:12

Do you do you? Did you have a mentor? Did you have somebody besides Robert and family that you reached out to when you had questions? When you were starting in the beginning, going through everything you went through?

Speaker 2: 35:22

no yeah.

Speaker 2: 35:24

No only the agency is that regulated? Wow, you know, I I'm One that will say, okay, listen, I'm ready, you tell me how to do it and I'll get it done. The trademark people, the patent people, new York State to register the businesses. So I have to tell you, with the, the farmers markets a Big thing that the farmers do, and it's a new York State and Federal there's a couple of programs through New York State and the federal side of things that seniors and single moms with children, they have a nutrition program so that those that are struggling can purchase.

Speaker 2: 36:07

They're granted cards and coupons and things of that sort from the state and the federal side so that they could purchase fresh produce. So the farmers were telling me about it and I'm like, okay, well, let's get the market registered. I went to the New York State Department of Agriculture and I said, okay, we want to do this. So they told me I struggled, the requirement was you have to have two farmers. I struggled to find a second farmer. They don't want to compete against each other. Yeah right. So they helped me, the Department of Agriculture helped me locate another farmer to make it like they're totally supportive. So it's those kind of things like, if I don't know how to do it, I'm gonna find somebody that yeah yeah, I mean, and that's so detailed and technical, getting anything like that, anything that has to do with the government.

Speaker 2: 36:59

Yes, yes, so very detailed. I think the one thing that that was a little odd was like Describing your logo like they want to know. They don't want you to say like there's just two letter C's that look like a chicken. They want you to tell the color, the size, really, what direction and shape it's got like. It is Beyond detailed it was crazy and I'm saying, okay, tell me what you think, is this it? And I had to keep going back To try to figure it out.

Speaker 1: 37:34

I learned, I learned from it, so it's, it's always it's always a learning process, no matter what we're doing up. Absolutely yes, oh my gosh, is there anything else darling that I haven't touched base on, that you would like to share with everybody?

Speaker 2: 37:47

Thanks, sir. You really did a great job of putting this interview together. You made it easy, you gave it you know, and we had this conversation. Yet some Interviewers will just have you shooting from the hip. I liked how you set this up it was. It made it really easy and comfortable. I think what you're doing for the indie community is amazing, thank you. I think what you're doing for women entrepreneurs is amazing, thank you. You're an inspiration and I and I want to thank you.

Speaker 1: 38:17

Well, thank you. Yeah, I love what I do. I you know, I didn't plan on it.

Speaker 2: 38:27

I know what you're talking about there.

Speaker 1: 38:30

Oh, darling, thank you so much for being a guest tonight on R2 RB. I appreciate you. I enjoyed our conversation. Thank you so much.

Speaker 2: 38:40

Thank you. I appreciate you and the invite and it's always a pleasure speaking with you then.