Twisted Eggroll with Nikkita Randle feature 33 of Together Talks

"Together Talks" feature 33: Twisted Eggroll presented by KLS, freight company

Some Background on Twisted Eggroll

Today's edition of "Together Talks" campaign, KLS had the opportunity to interview Nikkita Randle, Founder, of Twisted Eggroll. Twisted Eggroll was established in January 2015 from a love for food, a passion for cooking, and a hope to touch the lives of many!

Twisted Eggroll is a frozen packaged product that approaches the traditional egg roll with an infused spin. Their current packaged product flavors include Buffalo Chicken, Veggie Southwestern, and Cheesesteak. They currently also offer a fresh made to order catering service in the Chicago area that delivers their extended menu featuring additional flavors: chicken fajita, pizza, mac and cheese, and dessert cheesecake and sweet potato eggrolls.

FRESH despite frozen

The Woman-Owned company takes pride in the fact that despite the product being frozen, the quality will shock you. Nikkita credits this to the clean ingredients. Not using any preservatives allows Twisted Eggroll to stand behind the fact that their product is healthier than the alternative. Being a fresher, healthier eggroll is one half of the equation. The other...not being an appetizer.

In our talk with Nikkita, "Eggrolls are notoriously considered an appetizer or a filler food. But not our product. It is a full handheld meal. A full meal that provides quality, clean ingredients that are fresh, and a convenient meal." That was one demand Nikkita aimed to achieve, working parents who need a quick meal, but didn't want to sacrifice health. Being able to make frozen items quickly without compromising quality or ingredients sets Twisted Eggroll above the competition.

The frozen products are currently found regionally in Chicago at select Foxtrot, Green Grocer, and Dom's Kitchen & Market. Also, the company recently signed a deal with Kehe and will be available in select locations there as well. In addition to the frozen retail space, the company still has their catering business in Chicago as well.

Purpose

Being a Black-Owned company and creating this company was a passion project for Nikkita. Cooking was something she learned from her mother and it started by cooking pancakes when they she was 5. Her father instilled the entrepreneurial spirit in her or as she told us, "the entrepreneurial bug in my spirit." When he passed a few years back, she wanted to honor him while also challenging her desire to test entrepreneurship. The inspiration from family continued with her current company. When describing the culture she told us it has a "family like feel with a focus on community". She wants the entire company to feel like a family within the company while operating the business. As she told us, "Wherever we are producing or selling our product, we want to be a part of that community. Within that our people we don't just want to invest in them, but be connected to us. Whoever joins us on our journey, we want to celebrate. Our wins are our team's wins, are our customer's wins too. We lead by example." Being the owner she makes it an effort to try to not have the employees work the weekends. Work/life balance is an extremely important value at Twisted Eggroll.

Being a foodie at heart, Nikkita's words, enabled her to not lose sight of her goals as Covid struck a few years ago. The company was shut down for 18 months as a result. With businesses closed, the catering came to a screeching halt. As a result, Nikkita took the situation and turned it into an opportunity to focus on the expansion of the brand into the retail space. She revamped the business in order to grow it to new heights.

Future

This is how it started, this is the journey of Nikkita and Twisted Eggroll..

Going forward Nikkita has big goals for the brand. In the remainder of 2023, she is looking to build on retail relationships along with a larger reach outside of the regional Chicago scene. In 2024, she is hoping to open her own hybrid of manufacturing to produce in-house, while maintaining the fresh options for direct-to-order catering side of the business. Having a more refined supply chain will allow the company to continue to grow its partnerships strategically as well.

Nikkita was able to explain to us the most enjoyable aspect of her company and business, "When someone says how good the food was, they do the 'happy food dance' or they stare at me bewildered. That moment of gratitude is so rewarding. Started this company so people knew what they were consuming and could feel good about it, WHILE ENJOYING IT. The customer reviews, repeat customers, and overall feedback is so important and validation. Food is a huge part of our daily loves, and I love that Twisted Eggroll is able to be a part of that story."

In Closing

KLS wants to thank Nikkita for sharing the story of Twisted Eggroll for today's "Together Talks". The company has recently been featured in Black Enterprise, N'DIGO, Book Club Chicago. You can find Nikkita on her LinkedIn, here. Also follow along to their story on Facebook, here. And stay up to date with all of the tweets from Twisted Eggroll, here.

Klimson Logistics Solutions - Twisted Eggroll with Nikkita Randle feature 33 of Together Talks