# From Baltimore to Soho: The Rise of Cloudy Donuts

An episode of [Earn Your Leisure](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1450211392), 10 Feb 2026, 6:23.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/8dbc4f54-a337-4481-9ef2-b355012b0a3d/2c32ba0e-5021-4536-8191-b3ec0179eaf0/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=eac4c628-29cb-469a-b5c8-b355012b0a48

In this engaging clip, explore the entrepreneurial journey of Derrick Falcon, a visionary who traded the fast-paced restaurant scene in Baltimore for a singular focus on vegan donuts in the heart of Soho, New York. Co-host Rashad Bilal introduces Derrick's story, highlighting the shift from running Homemade in Baltimore to launching Cloudy Donuts, a venture that blends simplicity with ambition. Derrick shares his unique business philosophy—prioritizing a single product, in this case, donuts, for their scalability and efficiency. This strategic approach allows him to focus on quality and expansion rather than the complexities of a full restaurant menu. The clip delves into Derrick's past, detailing how he transitioned from a criminal lifestyle to establishing legitimate and impactful business operations. His goal? Significant financial growth and redefining success for Black entrepreneurs in affluent areas. A crucial element in this transformation is Derrick’s partnership with Zoditu. Together, they masterfully introduced Cloudy Donuts to New York, using community ties and free samples to generate buzz and build a loyal customer base. The decision to situate the business in Soho, rather than in traditionally Black neighborhoods, reflects a bold strategy to position themselves in prime retail markets and challenge existing racial economic stereotypes. Derrick’s journey is about more than making delicious vegan donuts—it's about making a statement. He aims to establish a prominent presence in commercial spaces typically dominated by others, showcasing that Black entrepreneurs can thrive in every market. This inspiring clip offers insights into Derrick's innovative mindset, highlighting his capacity to teach us about business and community impact. Join us as we uncover how one man's vision is not only transforming the donut industry but also reshaping perceptions and creating opportunities for future generations. **Hashtags:** #Entrepreneurship #BusinessJourney #VeganDonuts #Innovation #BlackExcellence #NYC #CloudyDonuts #DerrickFalcon #SohoBusiness #FoodIndustry #CommunityImpact #Scalability #BusinessStrategy See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: The last time that we spoke on the episode you
[0:02] Speaker 1: had the restaurant Homemade in Baltimore, and the reason why
[0:05] Speaker 1: the episode is so leg you know, you guys should
[0:07] Speaker 1: check it out episode eleven, is that you kind of
[0:09] Speaker 1: you broke down your business model. You broke down the
[0:12] Speaker 1: streams and it was very detailed as far as numbers
[0:15] Speaker 1: and all that, and people wasn't really familiar with. I
[0:18] Speaker 1: think it was kind of new. Yeah, like that wasn't
[0:20] Speaker 1: something that people really did before, right. I think you
[0:22] Speaker 1: kind of changed the game where you opened the door
[0:25] Speaker 1: as far as transparency. But since then a lot has changed.
[0:29] Speaker 1: You moved from Baltimore to New York. Yeah, yeah, you
[0:32] Speaker 1: switched from the restaurant to we had Cloudy Donuts. That's
[0:36] Speaker 1: your new operation that you got running. So a lot
[0:40] Speaker 1: of a lot has changed, right, So let's catch the
[0:44] Speaker 1: audience up to speak. How did you transition from Baltimore
[0:48] Speaker 1: the restaurant to SOHO the vegan donut spot.
[0:53] Speaker 2: Yeah?
[0:53] Speaker 3: You know, you know, my thing is this, I always
[0:55] Speaker 3: tell the person, when you go fast, you grow fast.
[0:58] Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying. So nothing really educate you
[1:01] Speaker 3: more than just living real life and doing it at
[1:03] Speaker 3: a fast space. So when y'all saw me in the
[1:06] Speaker 3: restaurant space, it was more about getting settled in and
[1:09] Speaker 3: coming home. I had one goal when I came home,
[1:13] Speaker 3: and that was to be legit. I had an advantage
[1:15] Speaker 3: with that because it was like I saw the world
[1:18] Speaker 3: through the lens of a criminal, somebody who was just
[1:20] Speaker 3: coming home, and like, Yo, shit, I can't believe I
[1:22] Speaker 3: got a legit spot. I got people on payroll, my
[1:26] Speaker 3: mother got come see this. You know what I'm saying,
[1:27] Speaker 3: because I grew up just straight immersed in the criminal lifestyle.
[1:31] Speaker 3: So when I had the opportunity to come on the show,
[1:35] Speaker 3: I had built out the brunch restaurant, I had the
[1:38] Speaker 3: food trucks, and it was really about the supper club
[1:40] Speaker 3: and creating verticals within my business that would allow me
[1:43] Speaker 3: to grow. Now, what I always encourage entrepreneurs to do
[1:46] Speaker 3: is to focus on the main thing, keep the main
[1:48] Speaker 3: thing the main thing, And for me, after I got legit,
[1:51] Speaker 3: it was really about making some real money. So in
[1:54] Speaker 3: the midst of the restaurant, you deal with a lot
[1:56] Speaker 3: of nuances, whether it's dealing with staff coming in front
[1:59] Speaker 3: of the house, back the house managers and so on
[2:02] Speaker 3: and so forth. So I was like, yo, let me
[2:04] Speaker 3: do a little bit more history, because once you over
[2:06] Speaker 3: the excitement of being legal, you got to deal with
[2:09] Speaker 3: the excitement of ambition and wanting to get some money.
[2:11] Speaker 3: And I always tell people, once you get over the
[2:13] Speaker 3: good look, you get some good money. Right. So I
[2:15] Speaker 3: got to a place where where I was at was enough,
[2:19] Speaker 3: and it was like, all right, what's next for me?
[2:21] Speaker 3: So I begin to focus on one singular product, and
[2:23] Speaker 3: for me, it was a donut. And the reason why
[2:27] Speaker 3: I focused on that is because if you get a
[2:29] Speaker 3: donut right, you don't need to catch up hot sauce, mayonnaise, mustard.
[2:33] Speaker 3: You're not looking for a refill, You're not looking for
[2:35] Speaker 3: a way that they give you a check. It reminds
[2:37] Speaker 3: me of the game. It's straight product driven. If I
[2:40] Speaker 3: got a quality product, it's over the counter service. You're
[2:43] Speaker 3: coming in out the space. It reminds me of like
[2:45] Speaker 3: a trap house. I give you the product, you don't
[2:48] Speaker 3: even know who I am, you gone, and I'm able
[2:50] Speaker 3: to scale that. So it was a scalable model as
[2:52] Speaker 3: opposed to a traditional restaurant where you're dealing with so
[2:55] Speaker 3: many elements and components. And that's why I chose donuts.
[2:58] Speaker 2: So the transition because homemade everybody remembers. For that episode,
[3:03] Speaker 2: we had the supper club piece too. We left all
[3:06] Speaker 2: that we came here. What was the transition like from
[3:09] Speaker 2: a business standpoint of, all right, this is a new city.
[3:12] Speaker 2: I may not be familiar with the ins and outs,
[3:14] Speaker 2: the demographics are different. Talk about that piece.
[3:17] Speaker 3: It was all like hustling out of town. It was
[3:19] Speaker 3: all it was all about. It was so crazy because
[3:23] Speaker 3: and I'm so excited for my partner, so d two
[3:25] Speaker 3: to talk because as you as any hustler, when you
[3:28] Speaker 3: go out of town, you get through a woman and
[3:30] Speaker 3: you get to the community, right, like, for example, what
[3:33] Speaker 3: my superpower was my partner? And it was really about
[3:37] Speaker 3: us strategizing, like, all right, here's this life that we're
[3:39] Speaker 3: gonna bail, here's this brand we're gonna build, and how
[3:41] Speaker 3: are we going to be able to connect with the
[3:42] Speaker 3: people in an unconventional way. So when I came to
[3:45] Speaker 3: New York, I knew a few things. I knew that
[3:48] Speaker 3: I had to get familiar with the landscape, be respectful
[3:50] Speaker 3: of the people, and provide them with a phenomenal product.
[3:53] Speaker 3: So when we used to sell dope, we call it
[3:55] Speaker 3: dropping teas. I don't know if they're seeing it in
[3:57] Speaker 3: no wire, but like dropping t's is basically like if
[3:59] Speaker 3: you get a couple ounces of dope, you get some grams,
[4:02] Speaker 3: you put them together with some quinin benita, and then
[4:05] Speaker 3: you pass out test us. So like on the why
[4:08] Speaker 3: they would say dropping teas because now all the dough
[4:09] Speaker 3: things will congregate to that because it's like, oh, all right,
[4:12] Speaker 3: they're giving out these teas. So my teas was complimentary donuts.
[4:15] Speaker 3: It was like, yo, I believe in my product is phenomenal,
[4:18] Speaker 3: let's just give it away. And that created word of
[4:21] Speaker 3: mouth along with her being behind me and in most
[4:24] Speaker 3: cases beside me, but also behind me doing additional work
[4:27] Speaker 3: or like yo, I'm gonna make sure that I get
[4:29] Speaker 3: your product to everybody who don't know you, and trying
[4:32] Speaker 3: to sensor a global phenomenon. So it was really about
[4:35] Speaker 3: the work that she put in were connected with community
[4:37] Speaker 3: and me just being in the lab making sure we
[4:39] Speaker 3: had the best shit going out.
[4:40] Speaker 1: So Soho, how'd you end up in Soho? Because most
[4:44] Speaker 1: of the time, and you start thinking it was in
[4:45] Speaker 1: Brooklyn at first, even that was a different type of area.
[4:48] Speaker 1: But you know, you as a black entrepreneur, they would
[4:52] Speaker 1: probably expect you to be in hall on MM or
[4:55] Speaker 1: you know best, or a black neighborhood. Why why did
[4:59] Speaker 1: you grab towards soho?
[5:02] Speaker 3: Yeah, everything that I do relates directly back to who
[5:04] Speaker 3: I am as a man. I don't it's no gimmicks, No,
[5:08] Speaker 3: nothing is fatty over here or trendy, right. So, like
[5:11] Speaker 3: when I was trapping, I had some real money and
[5:13] Speaker 3: I was living in good neighborhoods, but I always felt
[5:16] Speaker 3: there wasn't a true place for me in the midst
[5:18] Speaker 3: of white afflaunce. I mean, like, think about it. We
[5:21] Speaker 3: drive down Rodeo Drive, we got our phone out, we
[5:23] Speaker 3: take a bunch of pictures, but black people don't own nothing.
[5:25] Speaker 3: Then we go on Madison Avenue, we got our phone out,
[5:28] Speaker 3: We buy a bunch of pocket a bunch of purses
[5:29] Speaker 3: and jackets, but black people don't own nothing. And I
[5:32] Speaker 3: always lived in these particular spaces, and I felt like, Yo,
[5:35] Speaker 3: where's the space for us, Where's the space for the
[5:37] Speaker 3: black man who's successful? Everything doesn't have to be like
[5:40] Speaker 3: a charity case, right, So I was like, Yo, I'm
[5:43] Speaker 3: gonna put the donut shops in areas that I was
[5:45] Speaker 3: specifically living, and it was the same thing in Baltimore,
[5:47] Speaker 3: and Baltimore we in white neighborhoods. That's the flowing as
[5:50] Speaker 3: well too. It's not intentionally trying lane in the white folks,
[5:53] Speaker 3: but it's just really just following my own path of
[5:55] Speaker 3: where I would live. And I felt like from what
[5:59] Speaker 3: I've seen other brands, whether it was Kissed or Ald
[6:02] Speaker 3: or Supreme, I felt like that for black people to
[6:05] Speaker 3: get seen in a different light and to be global phenomenas,
[6:08] Speaker 3: you needed global retail positioning. So it's like the only
[6:12] Speaker 3: way I'm going to become successful is to position myself
[6:14] Speaker 3: next to the other people. So I was never comfortable
[6:16] Speaker 3: being like the biggest lion on my block. I want
[6:19] Speaker 3: to get in a den with the other lions and
[6:20] Speaker 3: show you what I got. We're here now,

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