This week, we're sitting down with Kenny Dumas. Kenny is the owner of Pour Baby in Mobile, AL. Listen to this week's episode to hear his story.
Produced by Blue Fish in Mobile, Alabama.
Transcript:
I am Kenny Dumas, I own Pour Baby Restaurant and Wine Bar, and I also own a la cork Wine Shop and Gift Store.
Marcus Neto:
Awesome, Kenny. Well, I am absolutely excited to have you on the podcast because you and I have gotten to know each other over the last year, and I absolutely love you. I think you're a phenomenal person. So,, to get you to sit in my chair and actually be able to share you with the rest of our audience, I think is just a phenomenal thing. So thank you for being here.
Kenny Dumas:
Well, I appreciate that. It may take you a while to get me out of here.
Marcus Neto:
No, it was fine. I'll just tease you with some lunch or something like that.
Kenny Dumas:
That'll be good.
Marcus Neto:
Well, to get started, and normally what we do is we just have our guests tell us the story of Kenny. So, where are you from? Where'd you go to high school? Did you go to college? Because some of our guests did not. Some of them didn't even complete high school and then just give us some of your backstory.
Kenny Dumas:
All right. I grew up in a small town in North Louisiana. It's called Sterlington. I went to school at the elementary school there and high school. I had like 33 people in my graduating class. Proudly I graduated in the top 40, went on to college at Northeast Louisiana University, at that time. I was not a really good student. So, I lasted about a year or two and was working part-time. The more worked, more money I made, and so the less time I devoted to school. They finally got to the point where they just said, Mr Dumas, we appreciate you trying, but it would probably be a good idea for you to take some time off from school. So, anyway, I went occasionally part-time and it just never panned out. So, I eventually just worked full time.
Marcus Neto:
What were you studying when you were in college?
Kenny Dumas:
When I first started, it was like, heck, elementary education actually, well that lasted just a minute, and then I changed it to business administration and marketing.
Marcus Neto:
Very good. What was it that you were doing when you were working? Were you in the food industry? Because that's what you're doing now.
Kenny Dumas:
No, I was in the banking industry. I was there and I was eventually offered a severance package or the opportunity to relocate to Baton Rouge, which I didn't want to do, because Terry had already moved here, My partner, and he had moved here the year before and we were trying to long distance and that just wasn't working out. So, the whole lay off from the bank was actually a great opportunity for me to just gather my things and moved down here to Mobile. So, that's how I got to Mobile. I went back to school at South Alabama and graduated in 1996
Marcus Neto:
I was going to say, what was your degree?
Kenny Dumas:
In marketing.
Marcus Neto:
It was in marketing.
Kenny Dumas:
Yes.
Marcus Neto:
Very good, cool.
Kenny Dumas:
So, started out. I sold greeting cards, of all thing. I had a route over the state of Alabama and I was on the road constantly. That was fun, but not fun. It was just a lot of driving and just a lot of alone time. It just wasn't that fun. But eventually we had the opportunity to get into Mail Boxes, Etc. franchise. They were very popular back then. I opened up the store over in Daphne on Highway 98 and stayed there for 11 years, from 96 to 2007. It was so much fun. I met so many wonderful people that I'm still friends with today. It was just a beautiful opportunity and a time for me to get to know myself and be around people, because obviously that's what I like to do. I like run my mouth a lot.
Marcus Neto:
You are absolutely an extrovert. There is no denying that you are an extrovert. Did you end up selling mailboxes?
Kenny Dumas:
Yeah, we got out at the right time.
Marcus Neto:
So, before you get into Pour Baby and a la cork, go back, go way, way, way, way, way, way back. What was your very first job? I'm talking, you're in high school, or you're flipping burgers, or whatever, what was your very first job?
Kenny Dumas:
My first job was, I worked at a Pizza Inn restaurant in Monroe. I worked in the kitchen to start with, and they decided at that time, because I like to talk a lot, that I shouldn't be on the floor and waiting tables. I did that for a couple of years and it was a lot of fun. So, really, that was my first experience in the restaurant industry. I never realized that I'd be back in the restaurant industry.
Marcus Neto:
Full circle. Now, are there any lessons that you can remember from working at that pizza restaurant? Lessons that you now still carry with you to this day? Because here's the example. I oftentimes tell people that my first real job was at a bagel bakery. I learned that there are really, really correct ways to do things. There's a correct way to wash dishes, there's a correct way to mop a floor, there's a correct way to prepare a sandwich. It's not just something that haphazardly go through. It's that whole workforce development thing, oftentimes we forget because we're older and we have more experience, we forget where it is that we started and just how much we needed to be taught about some of the basics and that we still carry those things with us to today. So, is there anything that you carry with you from that first job?
Kenny Dumas:
I think that obviously you're working for them and they've already got the business plan. They know what they're doing and it was up to me to just follow the rules. Yeah, you go in and you work, and you pay attention, and you try to do things maybe better. You don't challenge the system, but you work with it and you learn from it. I think that takes you through for wherever you go. Each time you do something different, it's a building block.
Marcus Neto:
Nice. So, fast forward to today, Pour Baby and a la cork, which one came first?
Kenny Dumas:
Pour Baby came first, it was in 2014.
Marcus Neto:
How did that come to fruition? Was it just like, hey, I'm going to start a wine bar? Because that's just recipe for disaster.
Kenny Dumas:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, it was completely by accident. There was-
Marcus Neto:
Let's establish the Kenny likes wine.
Kenny Dumas:
Yeah, yeah. Well, I didn't realize I liked it as much as I do, but no. There was a wine shop, it was Gourmet Galley, that was near where we lived and across from Providence hospital. So, it was like a quarter of a mile up the road. That's where we did all of our wine shopping and we really enjoyed it. All of a sudden, we get this email that the previous owner was going out of business and was selling her equipment and the inventory. So, as many of the people around here know, we do big parties at the house. I went up to look at her commercial coolers and was going to-
Marcus Neto:
You were going to buy commercial coolers for the house?
Kenny Dumas:
I was going to buy one, thank you.
Marcus Neto:
In case you're missing that, that was total judgment.
Kenny Dumas:
So, anyway, just went to look at them and I talked to Terry. We just decided, yeah, we'd put one in the back. We had a little shed back there. So, as I'm going through and looking around and disappointed that she was going to close, I said, well, heck I can do this. Who doesn't want to drink wine at wholesale prices? We start talking about it, and the next thing you know, we're going to reopen the shop, but as we're talking about it and things evolve, we get creative with different ideas and what we want to do. So, the next thing you know, we have a wine shop, but it's going to be more of a lunch type place and serve lunch style sandwiches, along with wines, and cheese boards, and run it from there. Then you bring in architects and designers, and the next thing you know, we're going, well, this is big. This is beyond the scope of what it formally was. So, we changed the name, and the next thing you know, we've got a restaurant and wine bar and running from there.
Marcus Neto:
I've never asked you this question, how many wines do you normally have on tap?
Kenny Dumas:
On the dispenser we've got 56, I think.
Marcus Neto:
Okay, and how many do you normally have that people can choose from?
Kenny Dumas:
Oh, well we've got over 250 in the place at any given time by the glass, it's probably one of the largest selections in the area.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah, I'm not a big wine drinker, but you all have the best old fashions that I've ever had, period, but definitely in lower Alabama. There's some folks that come close, but the old fashions, they're absolutely amazing. I will go on record as saying that Pour Baby is absolutely my favorite restaurant in all of lower Alabama. So, I don't know if I've ever said that to you, but I'm saying that in front of all these people, because I want people to know just how fantastic the food there is. It is the place that we look forward to going every week. It's only partially because you're there.
Kenny Dumas:
Oh, well, I am honored, and truth be known, you're one of my favorite people in lower Alabama.
Marcus Neto:
Very good, yeah, likewise, likewise. Well, so do you remember, because I know starting a restaurant is, if you're going to choose a way to drive yourself mad, starting a restaurant is probably the quickest way to do that. But do you remember the first, maybe, day you opened, or the first night where it really kicked off, or maybe the first interaction with a customer where you thought, hey man, there's really something to this, this is a good idea?
Kenny Dumas:
Oh yeah. Yeah, when we did our soft opening, if you will, and we invited the people that helped us with the build-out, and the design, and friends of theirs, and all the people that were involved in this whole conception. It was phenomenal. It was just the positive energy, and the positive vibes, and it is a beautiful place. It is stunning. Lee Vernel was our architect on that, and with the design, and I just couldn't envision, when we'd meet, and he would have the drawings out, I was going, this is crazy. I just can't picture it. You're the professional, you do you. Just tell me when it's over. But it worked out wonderful. I didn't realize how hungry this area was for something like that. After we opened, there were people calling for reservations, and we had started out in just one of the suites, one small suite. I believe it was maybe 1200 square feet, if I recall.
Marcus Neto:
And that includes the kitchen.
Kenny Dumas:
Yes, yes.
Marcus Neto:
Right, and bathrooms, and a bar, and stuff like that. So, that area was not terribly big.
Kenny Dumas:
No, no. We had five total tables, but we had two love seats with a little table and a couple of chairs around there. There may have been 30 seats in the whole place. It was incredible. People were in constantly. So, the next thing you know, we're asking the people next to us that had the suite next to us if we could build them out a spot a couple of doors down, which was originally where we were going to be in that shopping center. So, we got that additional suite next to it, knocked the door down, and with doing that, we were able to offer private parties to come in because it's more for dining and really nice. So, it just worked out beautifully.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah, then we had our Christmas party there, not this past year, but the year before. I was great. Both my girlfriend, Christine and I, had both of our teams together. It was a wonderful experience sound. Now, if you were talking to someone that wanted to get started in running their own business, what's the one bit of wisdom that you would impart to them?
Kenny Dumas:
Surround yourself with wonderful people and you'll be successful. It's the key. I guess maybe if there is, I don't know if it's luck or my gift, but everything I've done, I've always been able to have wonderful people around me that are very supportive and that are honest, and it's always a team effort. Because for me, I'm not this micromanager, or I'm not doing any of this, because we're all in it together. If you make this work, then we make this work.
Marcus Neto:
Well, and also you take, what would normally be just locked up in your brain, and you spread that out across many brains, and who knows who comes up with an idea for how something can be improved. It's almost going back to, and maybe there's what you learned from working at the pizza place, another lesson that you learned, is that while there are rules or there's a business plan, that somebody can have some input and make something better. By spreading that responsibility across your team, and believe me, when people walk in there, they get it, whether it's Ricky or any of the other team members, it's almost like they take a certain personal responsibility for the success and the experience that those people are having as they're dining. So, I think what you've done is, because you trust your team, you've spread that ability to make improvements across the team, or to care across the team, and it just makes it all that much better because you don't have to think of everything, they're thinking of things as well.
Kenny Dumas:
Oh. So, because I don't need to be involved in every decision. You know what it takes to make this right and successful-
Marcus Neto:
Just do it.
Kenny Dumas:
Yeah.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah, I think so oftentimes though, business owners think that they have to dictate everything that happens to their business. I learned, not a long time ago, but even just a few years ago, that the more that I can rely on my team, the more that I can delegate to them, the easier it makes my life, because I have my area of responsibility that the things that I'm either good at, that I should be working on, or things that I just can't hand off to somebody because we don't have the person to do that, that has to be done anyway. But I can focus on those things, and they can focus on the things that they're really good at, and magically everything gets done, and it gets done better than if I tried to dictate everything. Tell me, what's a typical day look like for you?
Kenny Dumas:
Well, right now, I go to the wine shop and Melissa, who is just the greatest person ever, she's been my best friend. She's one of the first people when I returned to school down when I moved to Mobile. So, she and I were in a class or two together and just became friends then. We've actually been lifelong friends ever since. She and I worked together at a la cork, just taking care of things, ordering wines, tasting wines, and getting ready for events there that we host. That's a lot of fun. Once again, people love the feel of the small intimacy of wine tastings and pairings.
Kenny Dumas:
Lavonne, who is our event coordinator and cook, she's the cook down there for most of the events, I met her when I owned the UPS store in Daphne. It was her first day to move to Daphne, I believe it was in late nineties, and she came in the store and we developed a relationship at that point and became good friends from that. So, she is now my event coordinator and consultant. She had opened up the Winfrey Hotel, I believe in Birmingham, and a country club in North Alabama. So, she had the experience and all of that.
Marcus Neto:
So, you go to a la cork and work for a bit and then make your way over to Pour Baby and have dinner and shake hands and kiss babies and-
Kenny Dumas:
And wait for you to come in.
Marcus Neto:
And wait for me to come in. I hear that. That is on a regular basis. Now, if you were to look to the business world, is there one person that motivates you or that you look to and think, man, that person, they have it going on, and I'm not talking about Mobile, I'm thinking, you see a magazine, like Wire magazine or Ink or whatever, and you're like, well, I'll pick that up because I'm interested in what they have to say.
Kenny Dumas:
Well, honestly, and I don't want to get emotional, but Terry Aucoin, my partner of 32 years, his work ethic was beyond belief. It was to the point where it was too much on so many levels, but he was so dedicated. I can't tell you how many times, there were 14 hour days that he spent. I just learned so much from him. He was kind, he was fair, he was fair to everyone, and just his work ethic was just beyond belief, and everyone around here knows that.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah, he's very well regarded in the business community, for sure. So, for those of you that don't know, he was the CFO at Pilot, and so he had a lot of interactions, not only through that, but also through Pour Baby, and just in general, through the business. But all right, we're going to pull it together. Are there any books, podcasts, people, or organizations that have been very helpful in moving you forward?
Kenny Dumas:
Well, I think it's just community driven. You're in a position to listen to what people have to say, their suggestions, their ideas, and their wants, and you just try to implement based on what you feel that you're hearing. That's important being in any type of business environment, you've got to listen to learn.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah, for sure. Well, I guess that might be the answer to the next question, because the next question is, what's the most important thing that you've learned about running a business?
Kenny Dumas:
I guess the most important thing I've learned is to be dedicated and to not freak out. Although, I freak out daily about some things, and most of the times, it's minor things that, it just hits you, and it's at the wrong time. It's almost the perfect storm, but you just got to sit and take a deep breath.
Marcus Neto:
It's funny, because I had one of those moments yesterday morning. I sent my MacBook Pro to be repaired last week. Now, this is my work MacBook Pro, keep in mind. Also, keep in mind that the problem that I was having meant that I was not able to get into the MacBook Pro to lock anything down or anything like that. It was constantly rebooting. It would get to the Apple logo on the reboot and it would just, boom, go right into rebooting again.
Marcus Neto:
So, I get the box from Apple, I ship it off, I get the notification on Friday that it's been shipped again. I'm thinking, great, because I was shipping it here and we're not open on Saturday or Sunday, which means it's going to be sitting around. So, I was like crap. I come in on Monday, the UPS guy comes in, hands me a box, and I'm like, I shake the box, there's nothing in the box. Somebody had sliced open the side of the box, or ripped it open, taken the laptop out and have haphazardly taped the box back closed, and then it continued on its merry way.
Marcus Neto:
So ,there was that, and my financial advisor called me to tell me that there was nothing he could do about the 30% penalty that I paid to close one of the accounts that I had. So, I lost thousands of dollars in that transaction. Then immediately, got an email from somebody that we were hoping to work for here locally, and this happens, we didn't get the deal. It was immediately, even before lunch, within a time span of like an hour and a half, these three things happen.
Marcus Neto:
I had a choice to make. I was like, man, I can either go back home and crawl into bed and try to go to sleep or drink myself into a stupor or something, or I can try and dig myself out of this and make the best of this day. Actually, Monday ended up being a really good day. I know Apple's going to buy me a new laptop if they can't find this one, because this is their deal. I'm sure this isn't the first time this has happened. Okay, so I lost a couple thousand bucks. Yes, that's a lot of money, people. Don't get it twisted. I'm going to miss that money, but there's nothing I can do about it. You know what? We didn't win that client, but maybe they weren't the client for us. Maybe I find somebody else that's even better.
Marcus Neto:
You know what I mean? It's just one of those things. I think as business owners, we're oftentimes thrown these monkey wrenches, it just gets into the system and breaks some wheels, breaks some cogs and stuff like that. But it's our ability to refocus on the things that need to be done and get there quickly instead of letting it just blow us over. That is the difference between success and not success.
Kenny Dumas:
Right.
Marcus Neto:
I'm going to ask this question, but I have an idea of what this answer is, but how do you like to unwind?
Kenny Dumas:
Other than what you think...
Marcus Neto:
Well, let me tell you what I think. I think showing up around seven o'clock and having a glass of wine, maybe eating some dinner at Pour Baby and having some social time with the people, because Pour Baby is one of those places where there are regulars. We walk in, we have five or 10 minutes, at least, of saying hi to all the people that we know there because we see them on a regular basis. So, that was my answer. Now what's your answer?
Kenny Dumas:
First and foremost, yes. I love it, I love it. I love seeing people that are already in there when I come in and they're smiling and happy, or when they come in the door and I'm already there, it's great to see them smile. Not that they see me and smile, but it's light and I'm thinking it's the best thing behind a door at a strip center you'll ever find. But I do love that. I love visiting, talking with people, and enjoying the wine, of course. But lately, I am addicted to British humor. I'm going home and YouTubing all these comedians and all these game shows that are from England. That's what I went to bed with last night, was I fell asleep watching, let's see, what is it? 8 Out of 10 Cats Countdown is one, and The Big Fat Quiz Show.
Marcus Neto:
There was a comedian, and I can't remember his name. I was just looking on YouTube to see if I could remember, but there's a comedian, he's British, and he basically insults the audience. But it's this British humor, and I can't remember his name.
Kenny Dumas:
Is it Jimmy Carr?
Marcus Neto:
It is Jimmy Carr, because I was looking at Brian Carr, so it's Jimmy Carr. Have you watched his stuff?
Kenny Dumas:
Oh, he's the one, he's got me started on this. Graham Norton has the best talk show, but yeah, no, Jimmy Carr is hilarious. He normally has comedians on his panel on these different little-
Marcus Neto:
I know the show that you're talking about, yeah, it's on Netflix. It's really good. It's like his game show where they ask questions and they have to come up with these answers and stuff like that.
Kenny Dumas:
Exactly, and so all these comedians, I'm constantly watching it, and as there's a new one on, I'm Googling them and that I'm starting to follow them. So, that's all that comes up on my feed on Facebook. I'll just catch myself just laughing. Gary Delaney is another one you need to check out, he is all one-liners.
Marcus Neto:
So, that's actually one thing that I probably haven't mentioned in the past, because sometimes I interject my ways of unwinding. I actually, my favorite thing, is to watch comedies or stupid stuff, like Ridiculousness, before I go to bed. The reason being, is because as a business owner, we get inundated with serious stuff all day long, things that matter to people's livelihoods, things that matter to the livelihood of our business, and so on and so forth. I just want to not remember that stuff for a little bit. So, that's why I do that. But yeah, that's interesting, I'll have to check him out.
Kenny Dumas:
Yeah. I'm not a movie guy, I don't deal with sappy movies. I'm not that guy. Give me a Deadpool, and I'm good to go.
Marcus Neto:
That's great, man. Well, tell people where they can find you.
Kenny Dumas:
The address is 6808 Airport Boulevard. It's across from Providence Hospital. Both Pour Baby and a la Cork are there. From anywhere from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM, you can probably find me there.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah, and so Pour Baby has a website?
Kenny Dumas:
Yes, Pour Baby has a website, yes.
Marcus Neto:
Is it pourbaby.com? I don't remember
Kenny Dumas:
Yes, it's pourbaby.com.
Marcus Neto:
Obviously you have a Facebook page and an Instagram page, and I'm imagining a la cork does as well. So, if you need information about where they're located, or phone numbers, or whatever, if you want to see what's on the menu, because the menu does change.
Kenny Dumas:
Oh yeah, the menu changes seasonally, and Derek, the chef there, he is doing just incredible work. He does weekly specials that are awesome. I'm so proud of him. Everybody says they have the best staff, but between Ricky running the front of the house and Derek in the back of the house, Melissa at a la cork, Lavonne with events, I have, undoubtedly, the best people surrounding me that I could ever imagine.
Marcus Neto:
So, quick, and then I'll ask you one of my final questions, but is Melissa at a la cork, right?
Kenny Dumas:
Yeah.
Marcus Neto:
I'll tell you a little story about why we've come to love Pour Baby so much, because it's actually one of the interactions that we had early on, was because of her. I think I had maybe been to Pour Baby once, and very much enjoyed it, but I was trying to cook a special dinner for Chrissy. I don't remember what the occasion was, but I just remember, and I very clearly remember that her favorite wine is Dornfelder. well, if you've never had Dornfelder before, it's a fantastic wine. It's low alcohol content, so it's a little bit easier to drink. I like it. If I'm going to have a glass of wine, that would be what I would prefer.
Marcus Neto:
I thought, well, I can just go to one of the regular places like Publix, or whatever, and get this wine. No, it doesn't exist in those locations. So, I think it was like 5:05 PM or it was right after your closing time. But I called anyway, she answered the phone and I explained the situation to her, and she's like, oh, no problem. I'll be here, just come on down. I went there and I think I bought like seven or eight bottles of Dornfelder. She was the most pleasant person to deal with. I knew that the two businesses were linked, and so it was one of those things where the service that we got earned a customer for life.
Marcus Neto:
Now, we're not big wine drinkers, as I mentioned before, but if I need wine, I'm getting it from a la cork. If I need to take somebody out for a special occasion, I'm going to Pour Baby because of the same thing with Ricky. Every time I go in there, makes us feel like we're special guests. Oftentimes, we've made reservations, so the table was there and waiting. Immediately upon walking in, we get served two old fashions, which is our drink of choice when we go there. You know what I mean? It's just that kind of service is just unparalleled.
Kenny Dumas:
Well, when he sees your tail lights, he's already making the drink.
Marcus Neto:
Yeah. He knows what's coming. Well, I want to thank you again for coming on the podcast. To wrap up, any final thoughts or comments you'd like to share?
Kenny Dumas:
No, I just want to thank the community for supporting us, because I really had no idea what my expectations would be going into it, but we really are blessed to be here. All the wonderful people that come in, the regulars, and the not regulars, but still they know us, it has been a joy. We didn't realize that that location would be the location that we needed to be at. We're proud to be there.
Marcus Neto:
Very good. Well, my only hesitation on having you on, is that I may not be able to get in any more. So, just remember my name. I think when people hear the story and they hear about how good it is, I think that word of mouth is just going to spread even more and that hopefully you're going to see some people coming in. Anyway, Kenny, I appreciate your willingness to sit with me and share your journey as a business owner and entrepreneur. It's been great talking with you.
Kenny Dumas:
It has been a pleasure to be here with you, as nervous as I was coming in, now I'm getting to the point where I'm comfortable.
Marcus Neto:
There you go, just as we're ending. Anyway, thank you very much.
Kenny Dumas:
Thank you.
