![\"Molly](\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/files\/2015\/09\/molly-eaton-16232_003-508x295.jpg\")
<\/a>Molly Eaton, a 2008 Wright State graduate, brings a vacation state of mind wherever she goes in her Tropical Kona Shaved Ice truck. Eaton and her husband, Brad, started operating the food truck this summer. (Photos by Erin Pence)<\/p><\/div>\n
The Kona shaved-ice experience includes the Flavorwave, a self-serve fountain of syrups such as Lemon-Lime-a-licious, Wild Watermelon, Blue Raspberry, Groovy Grape, Very Cherry and Pina Colada.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can mix whatever flavors you want, and I\u2019ve seen it all,\u201d said Eaton. \u201cI have a 4-year-old who loves putting every single flavor in hers. So she gets this brown, soupy mess of shaved ice.\u201d<\/p>\n
The most popular flavors are the blues \u2014 blue raspberry and Godzilla, which is a blue tropical fruit flavor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what it is about the color blue, but everyone just wants to pour all that blue concoction onto their shaved ice,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
When Eaton takes the Kona truck to nursing homes, she takes extra pina colada syrup.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey all love pina colada. Go figure, right?\u201d she said. \u201cThey just think the Kona truck is the best thing ever because it\u2019s like a vacation, it\u2019s coming to them, and they don\u2019t get out very often.\u201d<\/p>\n
The use of social media is a huge aspect of the business. Eaton started a Kona Facebook page, connecting with her large reservoir of friends and acquaintances.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt kind of exploded from there,\u201d she said. \u201cI get three to six calls a day requesting us to come out to their event. It can be anything from a church picnic to a 3-year-old\u2019s birthday party to a festival that brings in 100,000 people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eaton grew up in Kettering, the oldest of four children and daughter of a father who works in information technology and mother who is a nurse. As a girl, Eaton was active in softball, volleyball and cheerleading.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was always very involved in my community growing up,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
After graduating from Fairmont High School, Eaton enrolled at the University of Cincinnati, but left to return home and take evening classes at Sinclair Community College. Her goal at the time was to get into sports marketing, and in 1999 she got a job in the box office with the Dayton Dragons minor league baseball team.<\/p>\n
![\"Molly](\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/files\/2015\/09\/molly-eaton-16232_019-508x340.jpg\")
<\/a>The Eatons always wanted to be small-business owners and hope to buy more trucks and expand their business.<\/p><\/div>\n
That led to a marketing job with the Downtown Dayton Partnership, where she helped raise money for the Dayton Holiday Festival and Urban Nights, an event that showcased downtown businesses. In the evenings she took classes at Wright State.<\/p>\n
\u201cWright State will always be a special place for me,\u201d she said. \u201cIt took me so long to get my college degree because of the way I went about it, but I feel like all of my professors and counselors were all so encouraging.\u201d<\/p>\n
After graduating, Eaton became a stay-at-home mother for several years to raise her two young daughters.<\/p>\n
But Eaton wanted to be the owner of a small business that would offer a flexible schedule and be fun. So she and her husband bought a KEV \u2014 a Kona Entertainment Vehicle \u2014 and the rights to operate a Kona franchise in the Dayton area.<\/p>\n
Eaton attended Kona Kollege, a three-day crash course at company headquarters in Florence, Kentucky. The course gave her the tools to market the business, information on where to buy supplies and how the equipment worked. It is nearly the 700th Kona truck operating in the United States.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe toughest part for me is transitioning from being a full-time stay-at-home mom to a small business owner,\u201d she said. \u201cI feel like my experience at Wright State has really helped me know how to adapt and be more flexible with the scheduling.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the reasons Eaton and her husband were drawn to Kona is because the company\u2019s business model encourages giving back to the community.<\/p>\n
One Kona owner near Cincinnati who has been operating for about four years has given $190,000 in proceeds back to the businesses and organizations where he has sold shaved ice. After working at a recent Fairmont football game, Eaton was able to give $400 to the school\u2019s booster club.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was something that appealed to us because we want to be involved in the community,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The goal of Eaton and her husband is to buy more trucks and expand the business.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have always wanted to be small-business owners,\u201d she said. \u201cMy experience at Wright State definitely encouraged me to see it as a possibility, something I could make happen. And here I am today.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Molly Eaton, a 2008 Wright State graduate, brings a vacation state of mind wherever she goes in her Tropical Kona Shaved Ice truck. Continue reading