By: Jordan DeMars and Dan Klevorn
For the podcasting series “In Your Business”, UMSL Business interviewed Jason Bockman – one of the founders, and now the owner of Strange Donuts, who graduated from UMSL. During the interview, Jason talked about his entrepreneur career and how it has led to the creation of his current business.
Jason Bockman began his career by owning a hot dog cart downtown and then switched to a furniture business. When asked about his greatest challenge when starting Strange Donuts, he replied: “I didn’t know how to make donuts”. Now he can describe himself as being able to make the best donuts in the world because he gained the skills he needed by working hard. “I don’t like to lose, I just want to win”, says Jason.
Like any entrepreneur, Jason has always had a fear inside of him that he will not be able to succeed. This fear has forced him to plan ahead so he is never behind. He explains that if you are planning well, there will be fewer unexpected situations.
To make it more understandable what it means to be a business owner, Jason compares owning a business to having a baby. He talks about how you can put a baby on a schedule of when it needs to eat and sleep, but when it cries you have to respond to it. Just like a baby, a business requires all your attention: even if you could have all the proper precautions in place, you cannot prepare for every single situation that comes your way, and you have to deal with it.
In the interview, Jason also speaks about how he and his team come up with new donut flavors, what they do to stay creative, and why business partnerships are important. There is so much more to hear from the podcast itself.