Check Out Ozzie Ledesma’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ozzie Ledesma.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Our Vampire Penguin journey began in December 2020 when I visited a Vampire Penguin in North Augusta, SC. I had two desserts that visit and was instantly hooked, I ended up going home and emailing the founders of the company.

I was in the process of retiring from the Army and was still uncertain what I was going to do in the next chapter in my life; Vampire Penguin seemed like a perfect fit. My ex-wife (Lisa Ledesma) and I had just reconnected, and I asked her if she wanted to join me on this journey.

After months of research and planning, we decided to be the only Vampire Penguin franchise that did not have a physical location and start with a dessert trailer. In August 2021, we opened for a business set up in the parking lot of Golden Spoke Cyclery a few days a week.

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
We have had some hurdles to work through and some we still deal with on a daily basis. Getting ourselves known is the biggest hurdle but people are starting to know who we are.

Something we deal with almost daily is getting people to understand that we do not have snow cones, nor do we have shaved ice. We are cold desserts unlike anything they have had, but once they try our desserts, they understand the difference.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
We are innovators of cold desserts pairing different snow flavors with various toppings to create delicious and decadent desserts.

What sets our desserts from ice cream, yogurt, and shaved ice is that our ice blocks are already flavored, so we don’t use sugary syrups that tend to seep to the bottom leaving you with ice on top and a syrupy mess at the bottom. Our snow is non-dairy-based, gluten-free, and contains 3-4 times fewer calories and sugar than ice cream or yogurt.

We work with other local vendors to supply us with syrups, honey, and pastries that we use to create our desserts.

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
We spoke to other Vampire Penguin owners to learn what worked for them. We also spoke to several other business owners and food truck owners to help us develop a plan and provide us with direction.

Contact Info:

• Email: lol48llc@gmail.com
• Website: www.vampirepenguinpeoria.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vampirepenguinpeoria/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vampirepenguinPeoria/
• Other: www.vampirepenguin.com