We had the good fortune of connecting with Stephon Black and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Stephon, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
One piece of conventional advice that I disagree with is “hard work pays off”. That’s not to discourage anyone from working hard, you should always work hard, but understand that just because you work hard it doesn’t mean you or a business you start will be successful. Realistically the average millionaire has seven streams of income and roughly 1 in 9 startups make it. With those numbers a person has to try 63 times to create 7 streams of income. In everything I have started I have definitely worked hard, but there are so many factors that contribute to longevity even hard work might not pay off. I have also come to realize that the harder I work and the more experience I have the 1 in 9 has diminished to 1 in 2.
Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I started working in the restaurant/hospitality industry when I was 15 and really enjoyed it. One position I had when I was 18 really set me up for a future in restaurants. As the assistant GM of a large amusement center I was overseeing 2 full service restaurants, 2 limited service food outlets, a night club and a catering department. At the age of 21 I moved on to manage night clubs and then back to restaurants just before moving to Hawaii. Hawaii was great, I was able to help open two more restaurants and worked as a restaurant manager for one of Oahu’s premier resorts. After five years I decided to move back because I missed my family and all that Colorado has to offer. During the time I was moving back to Colorado the housing market was booming! As someone who has always been interested in investing and home construction, I decided to get my real estate license. After working hard in real estate I was able to fund Slingers Smokehouse and Saloon. The construction wasn’t super difficult, but made for some very long days. Soon after we opened the Covid-19 Pandemic and mandates started closing/limiting restaurant services. This was a very tough time in most industries and the struggle was real, but in the chaos of it all Mountain High Solutions was born. Knowing that I had to expand from the restaurant industry I invested in an irrigation boom installation company. Mountain High Solutions is hot and labor intensive work, but it is also something I like doing. As restaurants were opening back up two friends and I had the Idea to open up another restaurant. Samich Shack has two locations in Colorado Springs now and we are looking at opening one in Gulf Breeze Florida and one in Haleiwa Hawaii within the next six months. I am excited about everything I am doing right now, I am no where where I want to be, but the late nights and early mornings are part of having businesses. In looking back it wasn’t easy and some of the hard work was futile, but the more I learned the more fluid starting a business became and every time I did fail it made the success just that much sweeter. With all of my work in different industries I definitely have a better grasp of what a business owners wants and needs are in a real estate transaction and because of this I feel it sets me apart from most commercial agents. Ultimately my goal is to be successful in all of my businesses so that eventually I can start a nonprofit that helps our community.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my best friend was coming into town I would probably start day 1 at Bon Ton’s Cafe spend some time in Old Colorado City looking at all of the local shops, hit Paravicini’s for lunch then off to Manito for more local shopping, the penny arcade for some fun then the Mona Lisa for fondue followed by Escape Mantiou. Day 2: Brunch at the Broadmoor then we would probably stop by Star Kempfs Sculpture Garden. The house is amazing and the sculptures inside and out are remarkable, plus it’s where I live so I assume my house would naturally be on the list. For lunch we would have to stop by the Samich Shack inside Coati and then up the street to the Pioneers Museum, followed by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum. Staying downtown I would show them the VIP Real Estate office on Tejon then back down to Mackenzie’s Chop House for dinner and back up Tejon to Mood and District 11 after dinner. Day 3 Western Omelette to start then a morning hike in Garden of the Gods, my mother lives right there so we would stop by my childhood home then we all would go to Slingers Smokehouse and Saloon. Definitely have to go to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and dinner at the Tavern after with the Golden Bee to end the night. Day 4 depending on the time of the year we would either be going up to Keystone to board or down to Pueblo Reservoir to wake surf, before leaving we would go to the Omelette Parlor and pack Samich Shack for lunch, Bojo’s Pizza on the way back and 365 Club hot tub at the end of the night. Day 5 we would probably take it easy and play golf at Patty Jewitt get lunch at El Taco Rey and catch a movie at Kimball’s Peak Theater. Day 6 a sunrise hot air balloon ride would be on the to do list Edelweiss for some German food, would have to go to a Switchbacks game and finish at Coati brcause its great at night and is right by Weidner Field. Day 7 we would do the Cog Railroad and get donuts on the top of Pikes Peak, stop by my grams to play Scrabble and then to the Hatch Cover to watch football all day. After all that I would probably need to sleep for a week!
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people in my life that have helped me to where I am today. When I was young my Grandmother started her own business and I really look up to her in every possible way because of how she worked, treated people and created something that is still in the family today. I would also say that my mother and her mom have been great influences in my life, with my grandmother running the family farm and my mom running her own business, (Care Planners) I have learned dedication and work ethic. Teachers have also helped me along the way, one in particular is Laura Eurich from UCCS. In her business communication class an assignment was to create a business plan and it opened a door for me. The business plan Joe Saliba and I did as our project actually turned into a business, Collegecorkboard.com. Joe went on to start Wine Punts, Pikes Peak Energy and a few other businesses and I went on to start Slingers, Samich Shack, Mountain High Solutions, and a few other businesses as well. I also think a shout out is in order for all of my family and friends, they have always been supportive and helped me on the way to achieving my goals.
Website: Samichshack.com
Instagram: instagram.com/samichshack
Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/stephon-black-799b8a12
Facebook: Stephon Black Realtor, Samich Shack, Slingers Smokehouse and Saloon