Most people think buying a franchise means stepping into an established system and letting the business run itself. Judy’s experience as the “Fruit Queen” tells a very different story. In this episode of the Padernacht Podcast, Steven sits down with entrepreneur and longtime Edible Arrangements franchise owner Judy to talk about growing up inside her family’s restaurant, building multiple franchise locations, developing her own personal brand, navigating failure, and eventually becoming #1 in New York. Judy explains how the lessons she learned at her family’s restaurant, Umberto’s, shaped the way she runs her business today. Customer service came first, everyone had to know how to do every job, and when something needed to get done, the owner stepped in. She eventually brought that same mentality into the franchise world, describing how she turned an Edible Arrangements location into something that felt more like a mom-and-pop business. They also break down how the “Fruit Queen” brand started almost by accident and eventually became one of the smartest marketing decisions she made. Instead of only promoting the franchise, Judy built an identity around herself that helped her stand out among other franchise owners and create a stronger connection with customers. Judy shares the reality of rapid business growth, including opening three stores within one year, managing multiple payrolls, insurance policies, teams, and locations, and eventually operating four stores at once. But some of the most important decisions came when she started closing locations. At the time, closing stores felt like failure. Looking back, Judy explains why those failures became some of the most important moments in her career. Consolidating the business ultimately helped her become #1 in New York and reinforced one of the biggest lessons she has learned as an entrepreneur: everything is fixable. They also discuss why everyone should work in hospitality at some point, what business owners can learn from serving customers, the realities of franchise ownership, learning to use social media after years of avoiding the camera, and the unexpected TikTok video that generated more than 2.1 million views only a month into creating content. Judy also shares what she would tell her 17-year-old self, why entrepreneurs cannot be afraid of failure, and why she hopes her legacy is not simply being remembered as someone who worked hard, but as someone who fell down, got back up, and helped other people do the same. Support the show
