Column: Midlothian juice business focuses on expansion and moving past pandemic - Chicago Tribune

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For nearly six years, I’ve spotlighted several south suburban small-business owners in this column. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve checked in with those businesses to see how they’ve been affected. This is an update from one in this intermittent column series.

A year ago, Antonio Barnes and his wife, Syntyche Barnes, shared with me how the COVID-19 pandemic had thrown a wrench into their entrepreneurial expansion plans.

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But the owners of Midlothian-based Juiced By Shic!, a fresh juice and sandwich business, say the brakes are off. The couple is in a partnership to open a vegan restaurant, Meek’s Vegan Kitchen, at 12778 S. Harlem Ave., Palos Heights, this month that will offer a variety of vegan meals and sandwiches along with their beverage products. They also will open a juice bar in Forest Park in the first quarter and at the Healthy Lifestyle Hub at 839 W. 79th St., Chicago, in the second quarter, said Antonio Barnes.

“We’re at a point now where we have opportunities to grow and expand the brand, and we’re going to put our efforts into doing so,” said Antonio Barnes.

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Early last year, the pandemic caused them to be “much more timid because of how quickly things can change,” said Syntyche Barnes. “But coming out of the pandemic, the attitude is more so if it’s going to work, it’s going to work, and if it doesn’t, it won’t be because we didn’t try.”

The entrepreneurs have persevered through some challenging times. They initially launched the juice business as a carryout enterprise out of Syntyche Barnes’ nail salon, SHIC! An Upscale Nail Boutique, in Midlothian in 2018. They expanded to include a second juice location in Palos Heights. That second site offered tables for seating and an expanded menu with sandwiches and smoothies.

But that opening took place in March 2020, just as the pandemic began to rage. The nail salon had to temporarily close for several months due to the mandatory shutdowns put in place. But the couple continued offering their juice products along with smoothies, sandwiches, wraps, oatmeal and other items out of both locations via pickup service and delivery apps.

Last November, the couple closed the Palos Heights location after deciding to partner with friends to open the vegan restaurant at a larger site directly across the street. They saw opportunity knocking.

“My buddy has a vegan pizza restaurant in Houston and he’s getting a lot of traction,” said Antonio Barnes.

It made sense to shut down the Palos Heights juice location and move it inside the new restaurant, he said.

Last year, the couple dealt with supply chain issues and inflation — repercussions of the continuing pandemic. Those problems persist.

“There are some improvements for sure, but the effects haven’t diminished completely,” said Syntyche Barnes. “Our plastic cup inventory, that’s really the hardest thing. Sometimes different sizes won’t be in. Certain types of spoons are hard to find.”

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Pre-pandemic, the couple paid $50 a case for cups, she said.

“Now we’re paying $100 a case. Prices are up and staying there,” she said. “You have to adjust your prices so that you can still walk away with a profit.”

But the couple is treading carefully there, not wanting to raise prices too high to turn off customers.

“We try to be price conscious for our customers,” Syntyche Barnes said. “Raising prices is always a last option.”

For some items, they opted to switch to comparable lower price brand names, she shared.

As for her expectations on pricing issues this year, “I’m not anticipating them coming back down, but I don’t think they’re going to go up much higher, hopefully,” she said.

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But their concerns about the pandemic remain.

“I’m really looking to see what this winter brings,” said Antonio Barnes. “That’s when it sprouts up. You get comfortable. It gets cold, and things spread around. I don’t think there will be any issues with closures, but time will tell.”

Revenues last year were up slightly from 2021, but 2020 remains their strongest year for sales, the couple said. The pandemic helped grow revenues about 25% in 2020 over 2019 as customers focused on being more health conscious and looked for ways to boost their immune systems, they noted. Their customer base today consists of people who are more consistent and who are trying to implement a healthier lifestyle change, Syntyche Barnes said. The entrepreneurs forecast sales growth in 2023.

“We’re definitely expecting sales to go up with new menu items and the addition of other locations,” said Syntyche Barnes. “That will help spread awareness of the brand.”

The couple hope to one day franchise the business and said the pandemic has continued to teach them valuable lessons.

“Life is unpredictable,” said Antonio Barnes. “You can think you know something. The pandemic kind of shows nothing is promised. Nothing is guaranteed and, in the blink of an eye, things can change. Just try to do the best you can while you have the time to do so.”

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Syntyche Barnes said she’s learned, “not being afraid to try things, of taking calculated risks, if you feel something else will work out better, if what you’re doing doesn’t work. Not being afraid to try something else.”

Francine Knowles is a freelance columnist for the Daily Southtown

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