How One Order Expanded My Small Chops Business

Did I Actually Deliver on 400 Small Chops?

Hello hello hello.

If you’re new here, welcome to Business Wednesday, the place where I share the real strategy, lessons, and chaos behind building OZ Eats.

And this week?

I was forced to expand.

And honestly… I loved every second of it.

Read this first for context, I Took a Deposit for a Service I Didn’t Know How to Deliver – The Reality of Growing a business

The Client Call That Changed Everything

A client called and asked a very simple question.

“I heard you do pies. Is that the only thing you offer?”

Now at this point, the honest answer was… almost yes.

I could make meat pies and puff puff very confidently. Puff puff is something we eat regularly at home, so that one was easy. Meat pie was something I learned from my brother.

But the client continued.

She said she wanted:

• Meat pies

• Samosa

• Spring rolls

• Puff puff

And then she said the number.

100 of each.

That’s 400 chops.

Now here’s the funny part.

I had never made or had samosa and spring roll before.

But instead of saying “I can’t do that.”

I said something else.

“Of course, I offer that.”

Then I sent the quote.

She paid upfront immediately.

And just like that…

I had to figure it out.

A Lesson for Business Owners

There is something I always say when it comes to building a business.

Sometimes clients push your expansion.

Many business owners are too quick to say:

“Sorry, I don’t offer that.”

But if the event is weeks away, you actually have something very powerful.

Time to learn.

If you want to build something bigger, you must sometimes grow into the demand.

Let inquiries stretch you.

Let client requirements push you.

That’s how businesses expand.

The Part I Do NOT Recommend

Now let me tell you the part I absolutely do not recommend.

I had planned to practice a week before the event.

But life happened.

My 9-5 job, school activities for the kids, other responsibilities, everything stacked up.

Before I knew it…

The delivery weekend arrived.

And I had never practiced.

Now I only got away with this because I cook and bake regularly, so I understand ingredients, fillings, dough, and temperature quite well.

But generally?

Practice before production.

Always.

The Night Before Delivery

Saturday arrived and production started.

My brother and sister-in-law were on the phone with me while I was working.

At some point my brother asked:

“Are you sure you’ll finish this?”

I said yes.

Because once I start something…

I finish it.

By 2:30am, I had a headache and could barely focus.

So I made a decision.

Sleep for two hours.

I woke up around 4:30am and continued.

And slowly…

Tray by tray…

Batch by batch…

Everything came together.

Delivery Day

And in the end?

I delivered.

All 400 chops.

On time.

Fresh.

Properly packaged.

The Best Part: The Client Feedback

Later that day the client called.

She said the chops were lovely.

They loved it.

They appreciated the presentation.

And the best part?

She already has another client for me.

But that’s not even the biggest win.

The Unexpected Marketing Effect

As soon as I posted pictures of the trays…

People started messaging me.

And almost every message sounded like this:

“Wait… I thought you only sold meat pies?”

Suddenly people were seeing:

• spring rolls

• samosa

• puff puff

• mixed trays

And immediately the questions started.

“Do you do party trays?”

“Do you do small boxes?”

“Can I order mini trays?”

So I did something spontaneous.

The WhatsApp Strategy

I went into my WhatsApp groups and announced:

Limited mini trays available next weekend.

£5 per box.

Collection only.

No delivery.

And the orders started coming in.

Fast.

So fast that I’m already considering closing orders early.

Because the truth is…

I haven’t even recovered from the 400 chops weekend yet.

The Business Lesson

Sometimes growth doesn’t come from planning.

Sometimes it comes from saying yes first and figuring it out later.

That one order forced me to:

• expand my menu

• learn new products

• showcase variety

• attract new customers

And just like that…

OZ Eats became bigger than meat pies.

Final Thoughts

So did I deliver on the 400 chops?

Yes.

And that single order has already opened the door to many more.

That’s the Business Wednesday lesson for today.

Sometimes the opportunity that scares you the most…

Is the one that grows your business the fastest.

With love,

A Business Owner (Ayo)