EggRollDiva

Belinda Beard started making egg rolls to carry on her mother’s culinary legacy, earning her the nickname “Egg Roll Diva.” Years – and countless private catering gigs – later, the namesake became her full-time job as a small business owner.

Beard started EggRollDiva shortly before the pandemic as a catering business. Despite the many obstacles 2020 presented to the food industry, EggRollDiva thrived and evolved into a food truck business, becoming one of Metro Detroit’s most beloved mobile eateries. With EggRollDiva’s rapid business growth came an urgency to secure its financial footing to meet customer demand.

Beard participated in Michigan Good Food Fund’s Food Finance Essentials, a multi-week intensive training course designed to equip food entrepreneurs with accounting tools and financial know-how to tune up their business plans and prepare for financing. Beard went on to receive business assistance to solidify EggRollDiva’s accounting structure. Fair Food Fund provided a working capital line of credit, allowing Beard to pay down high-interest debt, cover fees to attend summer festivals in her food truck, and hire additional staff.

“Fair Food Network has been instrumental in providing me with information to assist in furthering the growth of my small business. I have gained so much knowledge in the logistics of running a better business.”
—Belinda Beard, Owner of EggRollDiva.

“Belinda showed us a willingness to grow and with her dedicated spirit is determined to make her dreams work. She is a prime example of the business owners we value working with – individuals whose success has a positive ripple effect on their team, and their communities.” —Carlos Santacruz, Impact Investment Manager at Fair Food Network