Maya Taylor, owner of Black Diamond nutrition. Facebook
BETHEL — Black Diamond Nutrition, a small tea shop, is undergoing some changes in management. The major change is the business’s new owner – Maya Taylor. She has taken over the business at just 20 years old, and has become the sole owner and manager of the store. Despite not being able to legally drink for another week, Taylor is still well equipped to prepare protein shakes for her customers.
All of the ingredients are sourced through Herbalife, and there are extensive menu options for various flavors. Another addition are protein cake-pops, which are made by Taylor and her mother.
This is not Taylor’s only experience with business. She is also co-owner of Groan and McGurn screen printing alongside her mother. On top of that, she is a constant worker, waitressing at the Brew Pub and coaching field hockey at Telstar Middle School.
Taylor became the owner of the business roughly a month ago, when she was offered the chance to buy it by the previous owner, Sara Martin.
“This kind of fell into my lap,” said Taylor. Martin was selling the business, and when asked if she might be interested in it, Taylor responded, “why not?” Sara has provided small amounts of advice and assistance since then, but running the business is a responsibility that has fallen to Taylor entirely. She took a few classes on business at Telstar, but when it came to business running she said, “They don’t really teach you that in school. You kind of have to figure it out on your own.”
She did not attend college, choosing instead to take a couple years off, then join the business world. “It (college) wasn’t really for me,” she said. “I wanted to be in the real world for a little bit.”
When it comes to managing a business, she has found it, “harder than I thought it was going to be.” The current greatest challenge came from a malfunction in the register, which caused issues for the business. With the register repaired, however, now the business has moved from cash only to both cash and card. Taylor had a sense of the business beforehand, as she worked at Black Diamond before becoming the owner.
“It still hasn’t kicked in that it’s really mine yet,” she said. “It’s just going to work.”
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