Meet Kati Olexiewicz: Co-Owner, Event Coordinator, and Toppings Baker for Mother’s Milk Truck

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

Hi Kati, how do you define success?
Since the age of 8, the now co-owners of Mother’s Milk Truck have been brainstorming business ideas together. In a small notebook, with childish handwriting, are lofty ideas of record stores, movie theatres, restaurants, and millions of other entrepreneurial aspirations. The only common theme among these ideas was that Kati and Devan would do it together, because owning a business with your best friend is the ultimate goal, regardless of what the business would become. Success in life doesn’t mean being obsessed with your job, it means being content with your life and work balance, contributing something unique to the world that you yourself created and are proud of, and being able to have a smile on your face while you face all the hardships that go along with the insecurity of small business life. Mother’s Milk Truck’s mission statement is to use high quality ingredients with sustainability and customers in mind. Our goal is to use the best possible ingredients and materials (for us and for the earth), create a unique product that we ourselves enjoy and champion, and that ultimately provides happiness to each customer. Regardless of mood or situation, when one eats soft-serve, one’s mood or situation improves. When that soft-serve is made with care, precision, and high quality ingredients, by life-long friends who get to be their own boss, that is success.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Our business has many different facets, but the main thing we try to keep in mind when making business decisions is – is this staying true to ourselves? Is this something WE like, WE would eat, WE would listen to, WE would laugh at, etc? This is not a by-the-book cookie-cutter business model. We are an artisanal soft-serve food truck that uses all organic soft serve ingredients, sourced from the best creameries and farms for all our unique custom crafted flavors. The materials we use are all sustainable and Earth-conscience wherever possible. Our waffle cone batter is meticulously mixed and purposely cooked on a small-grid iron which we think creates the perfect buttery crunch. Our gourmet toppings are all freshly baked from custom created recipes just for the truck and made by us. The toppings and waffle cones are gluten free not than anyone could tell the difference. Our truck is completely set up for extensive DJ services including speakers, PA systems, turn-tables, and a dance stage on top. The unique murals that adorn the truck were hand-painted and designed by a local Los Angeles artist. We have local DJs and music producers create custom monthly mixes and playlists for the truck. We theme our flavors and toppings for special events. We decide what to post on social media and don’t conform to any typical “ice cream truck” mold. Being our own boss and making these decisions for ourselves, and putting 100% effort and care into each detail is what separates us from any other Soft-Serve truck, or any other food truck for that matter. The challenges that come with this, is that when we are ourselves, and not just a cold-front business structure, we inevitably curate our own customer base into those who have a similar vibe and vision. It’s not easy to grow a customer base in the first place, but we would rather do it organically, earning the trust, respect, and ardor genuinely, than just arbitrarily getting as many followers as possible. That part will come as long as we stay the course.

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.
Sadly, Covid lockdowns and closures have forced many local small businesses to close or drastically change their models to adapt to these times. Los Angeles has been our hometown and hang-out spot our entire lives, and yet I still feel like a tourist myself sometimes. If money and covid were no obstacle, we would begin the trip with a nice scenic drive down the Malibu coast. Along the way we would stop at The Country Kitchen which has the best burgers, BLTs, zucchini fries, and sweet potato fries ever! This is to be washed down with some Malibu Yogurt – I know, I know, an ice cream competitor. but isn’t that what makes our country great? All the dessert choices we could ever want! If you’re still hungry, Duke’s has the best clam chowder around. After you’re done catching the rays on the beach, it’s time to go for brunch at my favorite brunch spot in Manhattan Beach – The Strand House! Order all the cocktails, the brioche breakfast sandwich, and don’t forget the super secret off the menu donut sampler platter. For the next couple days we hang out in Hollywood and LA – we see movies at the Bruin and the Fox in Westwood (sneak in Stan’s Donuts). We eat at The Apple Pan (if you can find a spot). We splurge on lobster at The Palm. We wait in line for Sprinkles Cupcakes. We drive to the top of the Griffith Observatory to see the best view. We get drinks at the Frolic Room. We eat the best diner food at Cafe 101 (hello Mickey Fitz) and then walk down the block for tea in the tree house at the Bourgeois Pig. We avoid the scientologists.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Building a small business entirely from scratch from the ground up is not something you can do completely on your own unless you already have substantial resources at your disposal. Mother’s Milk Truck wasn’t either of our first businesses, respectively, and a lot of time, money, and effort was put to task in other ventures that helped us learn immensely. Co-owning Kneady Bakery with another best friend for 8 years before having to close due to Covid, was the most rewarding and educational experience. One that could not have been achieved without my co-owner, husband, family and friends who supported us since day 1. Making the transition to another dessert based business was made easier due to the lessons and experiences from Kneady Bakery. However, the origin of Mother’s Milk Truck, was all created by Devan before I jumped aboard. His impressive backgrounds in, and connections to, the music, art, graphics, and film world allowed him to create his vision for the perfect food truck. A truck that can combine organic soft-serve, served in sustainable materials, blast music with a dance stage on top, and also acts as a mobile art piece with custom unique murals, was not something born over night. It took a lot of help and support from family and friends to give the truck the chance it needed, and that support is the most special and important support you can possibly receive. It’s the motivation and the mentorship all in one. We have learned more from our customers and friends than we have learned from any book. However, if we had to dedicate our success to one person who deserves recognition, it would be Nick Cage.

Website: https://mothersmilktruck.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mothersmilktruck/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MomsMilkTruck
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mothersmilktruck/?view_public_for=112077123555444
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnXDTjGxZDylHtx9wA5VWoQ
Other: soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/mothersmilktruck mixcloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/mothersmilktruck/