Community Highlights: Meet Christaveon Gaines of The Flava Traphouse ,LLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christaveon Gaines.

Hi Christaveon, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My name is Christaveon Gaines and I aspire to be what I call a serial entrepreneur. My path has led me through barbering, filmmaking, building my food brand, and always finding ways to pour back into my community.

I grew up having to make something out of nothing. I remember living with my grandmother in a small house where there were always at least ten or fifteen of us sharing two or three bedrooms. We often didn’t have much, and I think that’s where my creativity and drive to innovate began. When you learn to iron your school clothes with a pot of hot water or heat your home by turning on the oven, you develop a resourcefulness that never leaves you.

That spirit carried into everything I’ve done. With film, I asked myself how I could take the stories in my head and bring them to life so people could see them, feel them, and carry something away from them. With food, I wanted to create something purposeful and deeply connected to my roots. The Flava Traphouse, which I started with my partner Anthony Phelps, is a reflection of our culture, our upbringing, and the food that filled our tables. It represents the love and the hustle that shaped us.

At the core of it all is innovation. I continue to ask myself how I can create, how I can build, and how I can take what I have and turn it into something meaningful. That has been my story from the beginning, and it is the same mindset that keeps pushing me forward today.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. A lot of my journey has been about learning how to push forward even when the odds weren’t in my favor. Coming from a background where money was always short, I had to figure out how to turn limitations into creativity. That’s where my drive came from, but it also meant facing setbacks and times where resources just weren’t there.

Even as I grew into my different ventures—whether it was film, barbering, or food—there were challenges like lack of funding, lack of connections, and sometimes just not having a clear blueprint to follow. I had to teach myself, make mistakes, and keep going anyway. What’s kept me moving is my ability to stay innovative and trust that every obstacle is just another chance to figure out a new way.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
The name “The Flava Traphouse” often catches people by surprise, because many only associate a traphouse with drugs or negativity. What most people don’t know is that a lot of those early houses that police labeled as trap houses were actually safe spaces in the community. They were homes where mothers and grandmothers sold plates of food to survive in an economy that was stacked against them. They created a way to provide for their families when opportunities were scarce, and those houses became a form of protection and resilience under oppression and police brutality.

That history is part of why we chose the name. We want to reclaim it and remind people that there is strength, culture, and survival tied to the word traphouse. For us, it’s about flipping the narrative. The Flava Traphouse stands firmly against drug abuse, and we’re committed to playing our part in fighting the drug crisis right here in Phoenix. Our slogan is simple but powerful: No drugs, just flavor that’s addictive.

We’re not just serving food—we’re continuing a legacy of community, resilience, and creativity, and doing it in a way that speaks to our community.

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
There are a lot of ways people can connect with us and with The Flava Traphouse. On the business side, we’re always open to partnerships, whether that’s collaborating with other local businesses, nonprofits, or creatives who want to do purposeful work in the community. For The Flava Traphouse specifically, people can support us by booking us for events, pulling up to our pop-ups, or even just spreading the word about what we’re building.

On a bigger level, I also want to work with people who care about impact. Through our Operation Clean Plate initiative, we’re pushing to fight food insecurity and give back to neighborhoods that need it most. Support can come in many forms—donations, volunteering, or simply standing with us in our mission.

At the end of the day, support doesn’t always have to be financial. Sharing our story, showing up, and connecting us with new opportunities all help us grow and continue to make a difference.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theflavatraphouse?igsh=N29xczQ5NWxuODdo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BAgWTpJzH/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Image Credits
Ronald McBean (RJ)