January 2, 2006 at about 4 am CurrySimple.com was officially live.
Ten days prior the first container of product arrived in Atlanta from a month long journey from the other side of the world, Thailand. Admittedly, the amount of product was intimidating but there was no looking back at this point.
A day later I was spending Christmas in DC with friends and family. I was absolutely ecstatic that my business was about to launch. I was raving to my family about how I was going to change cooking Thai food at home in America. They though I was crazy of course. During our Christmas dinner I cooked up a chicken massaman curry that got their attention.
I will never forget the conversation with my mom during that dinner about the plans I had for the business. The first step was to make CurrySimple available nationwide by selling it online via my own e-commerce site. At that point I realized I needed to set up the website and get the business going immediately . I quickly decided I needed to cut my holiday trip home short. The next day I hopped in my car and drove 10 hours back to Atlanta.
I barely slept the following week working sixteen hour days and nights. I had to teach myself an e-commerce platform, build a website, take product photos and launch the website. This was my first so their was a strong learning curve understanding SSL certificates and credit card processing integrations. My goal was to launch the site on the 1st. It just sounded good. It was close. I opted out for a NYE celebration and worked through the night. At 4 am I successfully completed my first credit card transaction test. The site worked. It was not beautiful but it worked.
It was not until two weeks later when I received an order from a non-family member or friend. A woman in California decided to order the red curry sauce. I was grateful. Maybe shed a tear. It was a moment in my life I will never forget. My first real sale.
Often I forget what I have done. People still recognize me as “The Curry Guy” in grocery stores from the media blitz CurrySimple has received. It has been the greatest accomplishment of my life. CurrySimple became the FIRST packaged Thai curry sauce in a Whole Foods store. I still receive thousands of orders online yearly. Just weeks ago I got a report that we are CRUSHING IT in Earth Fare stores. Unfortunately, the weak dollar of the past few years knocked me down. I promise you it has not knocked me out.
I love you CurrySimple. You have taught me so much about international business, marketing, distribution, success, failure and have given me confidence to do anything I put my effort into.
The story continues…
