"Together Talks" feature #26: Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn presented by KLS, freight company
Some Background on Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn
Today's edition of "Together Talks" campaign, KLS is joined by Magita Barbee aka Jetta, owner of Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn. Big City, Big Flavor - Jetta’s “D” mixes are as distinct as the Detroit communities they represent. The "D" Eastside Mix® is a spicy combination of caramel, white cheddar, cheddar cheese, and hot cheddar, while The "D" Westside Mix® is a laid back mix of caramel, white cheddar, cheddar cheese, and barbee "Q". Her business continues to evolve to meet the needs of an ever changing, ever growing cityscape. As a lifelong Detroiter, there’s no place she’d rather be sharing her handcrafted recipes.
Passion in cooking
Magita has enjoyed cooking all of her life. She obtained a college degree in marketing. Her passion has always been what she calls "fun foods". To her it is foods you get at concessions or can eat walking around. Your nachos, sausage, chili dogs, and around 2010 popcorn was added to the mix. She had always made popcorn at home and the idea came from that. She began selling her homemade popcorn (which was just original butter flavored) for $1 in sandwich bags. Her son then created the first flavor, "Sweet 'N' Salty". Nearly 14 years later her business continues to grow!
Started in 1997
To understand the growth of Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn at this moment we have to go all the way back to 1997. That was the start of Magita's journey into entrepreneurship. She purchased a GMC Chevy Step Van the size of a UPS Truck, formerly used by a linen delivery service and built it out to sell ice cream. Breezin' Concessions was born. On top of hand-dipped ice cream, she also served her "fun foods". As mentioned, almost 13 years later the popcorn was first introduced. Three short years later, it was evident that popcorn was to become the focus. The product was ordered year-round. She retired the truck operations and moved the focus to the popcorn.
Fast forward to 2023 and Jetta's is growing! The product is sold on their website, they also have a stand located inside of Huntington Place (formerly Cobo Center) in Downtown Detroit, which is open during larger events. The product is also found in 4 retail establishments, and they often participate in pop ups as well.
You can find them here!
She also said that one of the goals for this year is to get expand concessions into a larger type of venues. They also recently attended "All Things Detroit" hosted by Jennyfer Crawford which features 250 small business. Jetta's has attended 9 years straight!
Partner with KLS
KLS offers LTL and FTL for both dry and reefer transportation.
Our nationwide coverage provides companies a reliable, consistent, and dependable logistics partner to handle your trucking needs.
For more information on how we can help call our office today 708-980-0920 or reach us via our email quote request here!
Perseverance
When we asked Magita her favorite moment so far she gave us an interesting reflection. It wasn't a big sale, getting into a new establishment, instead it was her thinking back to those early days on the truck. "We would be driving around and this was before we had the proper shelves in the truck and countless times if we drove too fast or turned too hard we'd end up with nacho cheese on the floor, or the jalapeno jar tipped over and wondered why it smelled so spicy! It was these moments that challenged us early on that I can look back at now and laugh and appreciate how far we have come." It is what she calls "The Breezin' Spirit", from her humble beginnings that represents the values of the business which Magita embodies to the fullest. They are the representation of the community and the people who are roots in their community. She told us how up until now she had been hesitant to tell her story, but she is relishing in the fact to do so lately. "To just see how far I have come and give people motivation to chase their dreams means a lot. It makes me happy to see how far I've come and how far I still want to take this company. Everyone has something in them, a passion, follow your dreams and it can possibly make you money!"
It is why she is selective in the hiring process to make sure she is bringing on the correct people to help grow the company. Everything about Jetta's is bringing joy to the consumers.
"Customers can just feel the spirit of our company. Our products are made with love. I believe you can taste that joy we put into every product. There is a passion in our process, we are entangled with our community and it shows in our flavors where we have created a story. We are a representation of the people, roots in our community."
Commitment
On top of being an entrepreneur for nearly 30 years, the most remarkable feat may be that Magita is still a full-time High School teacher! She has been an educator while trying to create a new company on the side. Just a remarkable achievement. It just goes to show how important passion is and why it is easy to see how Magita remains undeterred. She also told us that this year she had the food truck remodeled. That's right, she never sold it! She is excited to have it back out on the streets this year being rebranded as "Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn and Fun Foods!"
Interested in being featured with "Together Talks"?
KLS is booking our upcoming schedule now!
Contact us as we would love to learn your story and share it amongst our audience.
Weekly we provide 2 companies our platform to expand their reach courtesy of our campaign. Let's collaborate!!!
In Closing
Just an amazing individual and story and we are grateful to have been introduced to Magita and learn about Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn. A well-deserved edition for today's "Together Talks". Keep up to date with Jetta's from their social media below:
Jetta's has also been featured on Fox 2 twice and Channel 4 in Michigan.
She has also been featured in a number of publications including:
Thank you Magita and Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn for sharing with KLS for this edition of "Together Talks".
Klimson Logistics Solutions - Jetta's Gourmet Popcorn with Magita "Jetta" Barbee feature #26 of Together Talks
*Klimson Logistics Solutions is an Industry Leading Customer Service 3PL. Our focus and commitment to our clients has us striving to be the BEST customer service 3PL for LTL, FTL, Reefer, and Drayage in the country. KLS, freight company, is a 3PL providing nationwide logistics solutions. KLS shipping services include: LTL freight, FTL freight, Reefer LTL freight, Reefer FTL freight, and Drayage. Klimson Logistics Solutions thanks you for viewing our marketing campaign "Together Talks" if you have any interest in being featured or questions regarding your freight operations please contact us today!
Why KLS?
Our precise and reliable effort.
We handle every shipment with the exact same process. It does not matter if you move one shipment a year or ten per day, you will receive the same level of customer service from us. When we started this company, we had one goal in mind, treat every shipment like it was our own. With our vast knowledge of the industry, we understood what a customer would want from a communication standpoint. We applied that process to be the standard here at KLS. Our reliability and being able to depend on our consistency is why we have such long-standing relationships with our clients.
Our Process?
Every shipment in our industry starts with a quote. We are firm believers that time is money, thus we strive to have quotes back in a 5-10 minute reply time for LTL and FTL, any FCL quotes are at the mercy of the carriers getting back to us. For LTL we have the flexibility to quote both off of NMFC and also Density depending on the carrier. Utilizing our services, you’re allowing us to use our expertise to class your freight accordingly to ensure we are providing the best rate we possibly can.
Once a quote has been submitted and a client chooses to proceed with KLS handling the arrangement of the shipment our full process begins. We create the BOL that will be used for the shipment. If it is a new location for our system, we will obtain all the important/special details (reference numbers, contact details, shipping hours, closed for lunch, dock/doors, etc.). We meticulously build every detail into our software for all future shipments involving that location. After we have both locations built and necessary reference numbers have been applied we will tender the shipment to the carrier. We use this method because it provides us a real time pickup number from the carrier to obtain updates prior to pickup. Our staff will either email the BOL directly to you or to the shipper (at your request) the minute after the tender has been accepted by the carrier. LTL carriers require a 2 hour window prior to close time in order to schedule it for a same-day pickup attempt.
The following morning you’ll receive an email from us. It will either provide the reason the pickup was missed (driver’s trailer filled up, driver missed the close time, truck broke down, shipper said no freight, etc.) or if the pickup was successful you will receive the PRO (tracking) number from us, along with the eta for delivery. Our staff will track it throughout the duration of transit and advise if anything happens that will alter the estimated delivery date. The day the shipment delivers we will email you with confirmation and the POD (Proof of Delivery), should you require it.
Your shipment has been quoted, scheduled, picked up, and delivered. The next step is waiting for the carrier to invoice us and make sure the rate matches up. If it does, we close out the invoice from the carrier in our system and automatically your invoice is created and sent to the requested party at your company. In the event the carrier has an additional charge on their invoice “Variance”, we will never send you an invoice with an additional charge without first identifying you of the charge.
Let us repeat, NEVER WILL WE JUST BILL OUT AN EXTRA CHARGE WITHOUT YOU BEING NOTIFIED.
You are our customer, we represent you. Should the carrier provide an extra charge on an invoice, “Lift gate, additional weight, reclass, detention, etc.) We notify you of the charge via email first. Second, within that email we identify what is required should you choose to dispute the charge. Again our goal is to honor your request, if you want to dispute, we will dispute. During a dispute we will provide you updates every step along the way. Once a dispute is closed out, whether it is approved or rejected, then we will invoice you as the invoice has been resolved.
For reference, our company only had 6.2% of all shipments go to dispute in 2022 and we successfully won 91% of those disputes on behalf of our customers.
This is our process for every single shipment you move with us. We don’t cut corners, we don’t hide from difficult situations. We believe in being available, honest, and transparent. We don’t ever want to tell you that a shipment is lost, damaged, misrouted, but it is our duty to notify you the second we find out something has gone wrong. We hate to present bad news, but it is part of the job. What you can guarantee is that we will work a shipment all the way through and turn over every stone until we get a resolution for our clients.
Services offered?
Our core business is LTL and FTL. Within these options we have options for both dry and refrigerated/frozen. We also offer FCL/Drayage options. Our company as a 3PL has nationwide options and services clients across the US.
Let’s breakdown our services more in-depth
LTL:
Standard and Guaranteed
CFS (Imports & Exports)
Tradeshows
Hazmat
Anything that is on a pallet can be moved LTL. Typically LTL is up to 10 pallets, but the sweet spot for a carrier is 6-8 pallets at most for an individual shipment. LTL quotes are good between 5-30 days depending on the carrier. LTL can be quoted either via NMFC or density to determine the class (we do this for you).
Volume:
Anything over 10-12’ of space in the truck is the technical rule for a volume shipment. When we run a quote for you we will determine if it qualifies for volume and provide you a rate if available. Volume moves allow you to get a reduced rate for larger shipments. The caveat to volume shipments it the quotes are only valid for 3-7 days and they move on capacity between terminals. If a terminal is backed up they will move their LTL freight first before the volume freight, which can lead to longer transit times for volume moves.
FTL/Dedicated/Expedited: 53’ Dry and Reefer 26’ Box trucks with lift gate Sprinter Van The main difference for FTL vs LTL is space and transit time. For standard pallets you can fit either 26 or 30 pallets in a 53’ dry van. The other main difference is transit time, for FTL each day counts in the transit time, whereas LTL does not count the day of pickup, weekends, or holidays in their transit time.
Reefer/Frozen:
LTL and FTL
We specialize working in the CPG space with food manufacturers. We regularly deliver to
the following locations:
Kehe
UNFI
Core Mark
DPI
Wegmans
Cugini
H.T. Hackney
Netrition
HEB
ALDI
Chambers and Owens
EBY Brown
Nassau Candy
Harris Teeter
Wakefern
NU INC
Long Distribution
What makes KLS different?
There are thousands for freight brokers and 3PL in our industry. Barrier to entry is rather easy and agents or owners will often hire sales people without any intention of properly training them. It results in high turnover for many freight companies and a forgettable experience for the client. We choose to operate differently through our consistency. We truly care about doing right by our clients and prospects too. While we would love to help provide our services to every company we speak with, that just isn’t realistic. We won’t always be the right fit for every company that moves freight and that is ok. Our authenticity as a shipping company sets us apart from the competition and that is backed up by our testimonials. We also run a marketing campaign bi-weekly called “Together Talks”. We interview, highlight, and promote two businesses every week. Our goal is to grow our network, make new connections, and learn something new with each collaboration. Check it out on our website and if you’re interested in being featured reach out.
Our company also runs a year long charity promotion. Book your first shipment through KLS and we donate to the charity of your choice in your name. Our way of thanking you for giving us an opportunity to show you the KLS way and what makes us one of a kind. This entire package is what we offer to every prospect and every client. Our goal is to help provide answers that customers may have when it comes to shipping. We want to always be available as a resource and will always offer a lending hand whenever we can.
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