Science of Service Episode 10: Fragile partnerships, hard pivots and data lessons with Omar Kasim

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It’s the classic startup dream: you have a vision, but no capital. Then, like a scene from a movie, an investor appears. They have the money, the experience, and the track record. It feels like the rocket fuel your business needs to blast off.

But what happens when that rocket fuel turns out to be a firestarter?

For Omar Kasim, founder of Kasim Ventures Management and the man behind the popular Con Quesos concept, this wasn’t a hypothetical scenario. It was a harsh reality that nearly cost him everything. From legal battles to back-alley quesadilla speakeasies, Omar’s journey is a masterclass in resilience.

If you’re standing at a crossroads in your business, whether you’re considering a new partner, facing a financial crisis, or wondering if you should pivot, Omar’s story offers the kind of hard-earned wisdom you won’t find in a textbook.

The promise and peril of partnerships

When you’re starting out in hospitality with no track record and no safety net, the instinct is to grab the first hand extended your way.

Omar was a college senior ready to ditch law school for tacos. He had the passion but lacked the capital. After knocking on countless doors, he found an investor in Dallas with extensive franchising experience: 150 locations worldwide. On paper, it was the perfect marriage. Omar brought the hustle and the creative vision; the partner brought the roadmap to scale.

"I saw it as a strategic partnership as much as just a way for us to be able to get capital in the business," Omar recalls. "If I really work my butt off and take this thing to the next level, this guy's going to be able to really pave the way moving forward."

And initially? It worked. The first year, the business crushed it by every metric. But success can sometimes be more dangerous than failure because it masks the cracks in the foundation.

The rush to scale

The trouble with experience is that it sometimes blinds you to the nuance of a new venture. Omar's partner saw the clean Profit & Loss (P&L) statements and immediately wanted to franchise after just one location.

What the partner didn't see was the grit holding it all together. He didn't see Omar working 80-hour weeks, filling every operational gap himself.

"It's not sustainable because we can't replicate me across the nation," Omar warned. But the partner, looking at the numbers from a distance, disagreed. The alignment shattered. The shared dream splintered into competing visions.

The unraveling

In a move that feels ripped from a corporate drama, Omar was suddenly removed as the managing member. His partner brought in his own team to run the show.

Omar didn’t fight it. He stepped away, secured a loan, and opened a juice bar, trusting that his skills were transferable. But the reality check for his former partner came fast. The remote management team, though talented, didn't understand the specific nuances of a boutique taco concept.

The business went from profiting $10,000 a month to losing $10,000 a month.

"They were in the cookie business," Omar explains. "They had no idea about the taco business."

Hitting rock bottom

Eventually, the partner realized the ship was sinking. He offered the business back to Omar. It was a "clean divorce." Omar took the house, but the house was on fire.

This was the darkest period of his career. He was juggling a new juice bar, a failing taco restaurant and massive debt. He worked from 6:30 AM to 11:00 PM every day. It was a grind that would break most entrepreneurs.

The turnaround: grit and relationships

So, how do you save a dying business? According to Omar, you don't do it alone.

The turnaround relied on relationships he had nurtured long before the crisis. Because he had always been transparent and reliable with his vendors, he was able to negotiate net-45 and net-60 payment terms. He utilized interest-free credit cards to float cash flow.

He posted a simple message to his community: "I'm back."

Loyal customers who remembered his story returned in droves. Slowly, painfully, the numbers started to turn. It took a year of relentless effort, but he eventually broke even.

"We made like $28," Omar laughs. "But we were able to turn things around."

The power of customer experience

While financial maneuvering kept the lights on, it was the customer experience that brought the business back to life.

"The number one form of marketing is a great customer experience," Omar says. "If you have a great customer experience and a long enough time horizon, it's going to work out."

This philosophy became the bedrock of his next venture, Plomo.

Listening to the data (even when it hurts)

Entrepreneurs often fall in love with their own ideas. Omar was proud of his complex, chef-driven tacos: the Chicken Tikka Masala, the Caribbean Jerk.

But the data told a different story.

Deep in his POS reports, he noticed something baffling: a "kid's quesadilla, "a simple item with just tortilla, cheese, and protein, was a top-five seller. And it wasn't kids buying them; it was college students.

"I was just blown away by that," Omar admits. "Initially, I'm very frustrated about it because I put all this heart and soul into the menu."

But successful operators don't argue with the data. He realized there was a massive, underserved market for high-quality, simple late-night food.

The back-alley pivot

Omar decided to test a quesadilla-only concept. He didn't lease a new building. He didn't raise millions. He spent $5,000 on a grill and a fridge and set up shop at the back door of his existing juice bar.

It was literally a hole-in-the-wall in a dark alley.

To get traction, he went guerrilla. He snuck into fraternity houses and stuffed mailboxes with coupons. "Buy one, get one half off." If they tagged the brand on Instagram, they got another discount.

It worked. The "speakeasy" vibe, combined with the student-friendly pricing and shareable packaging, turned PMO into a viral hit. They went from selling 50 quesadillas a weekend to 500 a night. When COVID hit and the juice bar struggled, Omar pivoted the entire location to the quesadilla concept.

Lessons for the road ahead

Omar's journey from a naive college student to a seasoned multi-concept operator offers a few critical takeaways for anyone in business:

1. Date before you marry: In partnerships, don't let the glitter of capital blind you. "You have to look at it as a marriage," Omar advises. "Am I going to enjoy spending time with this person? Does this person respect me?"
2. Lawyer up correctly: Don't use your cousin's dad who does wills. Hire a firm that specializes in your industry. A good contract is just the "rules of the game"—you need them clearly defined before the game starts.
3. Data over ego: You might love your product, but if your customers are buying the "kid's menu" item, that's your business. Use your POS data to find the truth, not just to process payments.
4. Win-win or no deal: Avoid "zero-sum" people who think they only win if you lose. The best growth comes from mutual success.

Growth is rarely a straight line. It’s a messy scribble of pivots, failures, and hard conversations. But as Omar proves, if you listen to your customers and treat your partners (and vendors) with respect, you can weather almost any storm.

Listen now to hear the full story, including the nitty-gritty of the legal battles and the marketing stunts.

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