Meet Beckii Morales | CEO of Ken’s Porkstickers

We had the good fortune of connecting with Beckii Morales and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Beckii, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The opportunity for my family to start our own small business came unexpectedly. Before we started Ken’s Porkstickers, my parents worked in the restaurant industry and suffered job losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we didn’t let this setback weigh us down. Instead, we started to brainstorm how we can adapt and come out even stronger during these unprecedented times. This is when the idea for Ken’s Porkstickers began. My dad Ken started curating different dumpling recipes in the kitchen. After all, it was hard to keep the chef out of the kitchen. At first, we wrapped dumplings for our close friends and family to enjoy during quarantine. After receiving an overwhelming amount of positive feedback and encouragement, we decided to share our creation with everyone else. It’s true when they say that when one door closes, another one opens. We are so grateful for our decision to pursue our food passion because we would have never imagined running our own dumpling business.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Aside from running my family’s dumpling business, I actually have a full-time job at a telecom company with a career in business strategy and legal operations. I’ve been with my company for more than 8 years. There is a lot on my plate juggling between both jobs, but I wouldn’t change a thing about it. I’ve learned to effectively manage my time and organize my schedule in a way where I can dedicate quality time to all areas of my life, including friends, family, career, snowboarding, and my marriage.

The most challenging part about running Ken’s Porkstickers is being the sole person to manage our business from developing marketing and social media strategies to planning out our weekly delivery schedule to customer service and so much more. I’ve also had to put my designing skills to the test when creating marketing collateral and social media posts. Often times I find myself being stretched thin with all my responsibilities. I basically leave the food production to my parents and help manage everything else with our small business. Despite encountering different roadblocks, I’ve learned so much from this experience so far and I’m so appreciative for the support of family and close friends.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Some of my favorite places to take friends visiting the city are the beach, Disneyland, Santa Monica Pier, Griffith Observatory, and several hiking trails around LA/OC if they feel outdoorsy. If we go hang out at the beach, grabbing an acai bowl or poke to snack on is a must! There are also so many wonderful places to dine at, but if I had to name a few, it would be Kazu Nori, Sushi Yuen, Nep Cafe, Gem Dining, and Houston’s,

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Ken’s Porkstickers would not be where we are today without the love and support from my husband, Joseph. He is truly our biggest fan and wears multiple hats in our family business. From driving for deliveries to interacting with customers during our events to helping us write thank you cards, Joseph is one of the reasons why we are motivated to keep going. I would not be able to efficiently and effectively run our business without him. He also does all the heavy lifting on setting up and breaking down for events which can be taxing at times when we do multiple events in a month. Joseph always goes above and beyond to support us and he has never given up on our journey during the most challenging times. He has been my rock throughout our small business venture and I can’t wait to see where this year takes us!

Website: https://www.kensporkstickers.com/

Instagram: kens.porkstickers

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/ken-s-porkstickers-montebello

Image Credits
William Lu Richard Huynh Frances Carmody Jenny Bacani