Today we’d like to introduce you to Landon and Jessica Summers.
Hi Landon and Jessica, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Landon and I were both performers for Walt Disney World and Disney Cruise Line for almost ten years. We were unfortunately included in the layoffs of 28,000 Cast Members due to the pandemic when Walt Disney World closed and the cruise ships couldn’t sail. We were doing anything we could to get by, including walking dogs, working as a handyman, and helping grocery shop for those who were more vulnerable to the pandemic.
News of our delivery service as laid-off Cast Members went viral on social media and soon, we were taking over 100 orders a week to deliver groceries to the resorts at Walt Disney World and Universal Studios. Landon and I completed every order ourselves and worked seven days a week for over a year. We worked 10-12 hours a day and continued to grow an incredible client base and truly connect with our Disney community. As time went on, we were able to hire ten other impacted Disney Cast Members whose jobs were lost, modified, or hours were drastically cut. We are now a team of ten incredible shoppers and we completed over 10,000 grocery orders last year!
Vacation Grocery Delivery was founded with the mission to continue to make magic and give back to others. We are proud of our small but mighty team and now are backed by a national delivery company, Dumpling, and have a successful website and app!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
This business has taught us both so much about ourselves. Neither of us ever had plans to own our own business, but we are now thrilled to be lifelong entrepreneurs. The pandemic in general caused so many struggles. We had to weigh the risk of our own safety with a booming business. We had to teach ourselves everything from bookkeeping to marketing and really utilized our customer service skills that working for Disney taught us!
One specific struggle was learning how to create a website that was user-friendly. We don’t have backgrounds in business, graphic design, or website development so while working full time we were also finding time to learn incredible skills.
Another obstacle we faced was supply issues in stores. Items like toilet paper, shelf-stable supplies, and even kid-friendly snacks would have empty shelves for weeks on end. We would drive around town trying to procure these items for our clients to ensure they got everything they needed!
We’ve been impressed with Vacation Grocery Delivery, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Landon: Vacation Grocery Delivery is a grocery delivery service for those vacationing in Orlando. We offer grocery and alcohol delivery right to your resort, but with a vastly more personalized twist. First and foremost, I love that my wife and I created something together. We make a perfectly balanced team both in life and business and we consider ourselves incredibly lucky to work so well together. I also love working with our extraordinary team. They are genuinely the most hard-working and adaptable people I know. We all come from similar backgrounds but bring something entirely different to the table. It’s a way for us to immediately empathize with and appreciate one another. Our team is truly what makes our business special. We all care deeply about our service and want each client to feel appreciated and sincerely cared for. We truly believe that our service is more than just delivering groceries, it starts someone’s vacation off with care and attentiveness that we believe sets up their entire trip to be magical.
Jessica: I am humbled and honored to now consider myself a female entrepreneur. I come from a family of successful business owners and am truly proud to follow in their footsteps. I am most proud of our business and how we make others feel. Phone calls from clients who felt as though we really made a difference in their vacation and come back because of how our team made them feel means the world to me. It’s what sets us apart as both a business and a hardworking team of individuals. I hope that our story inspires others that hard work absolutely pays off. Landon and I have never worked harder, but the payoff have been incredibly rewarding.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Sharing our story and our business on social media is the best way to show support to any small business. We LOVE working with other small businesses and connecting with our Orlando community.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.vacationgrocerydeliveryfl.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/vacationgrocerydeliveryFL
- Facebook: facebook.com/vacationgrocerydelivery
