After seeing himself in pictures from his step-daughters wedding in July of 2022, JP Clark knew something had to change. At over 340 pounds, JP’s favorite daily ritual was eating 2-3 breakfast tacos at Mex Taco House in Cypress. But as JP made changes to his lifestyle, including exercising and eating more healthily--he also gave up the daily breakfast tacos. “As I neared 100 pounds in my weight loss journey, I wanted to bring the tacos back into my life. I started making tacos at home... but I missed the red sauce from Mex Taco House.” JP recalls. “One day I went back and asked them what the sauce was called, and they told me it's an Arbol sauce." Even though he didn't really enjoy cooking he immediately began researching and experimenting.
It took numerous attempts to create the recipe he loved. Excited, he put some in his wife’s Tupperware, took it to work and shared it with his colleagues who had traditionally visited Mex Taco House with him every week. They came back the next day with glowing and excited reviews from their families.
JP made another batch, this time, putting it in the bottles he had purchased on Amazon–rather than continuing to give away his wife's Tupperware! His plan was to give it away to his co-workers again and even told his wife he had no plans to sell it. But about 15 minutes later, he posted a picture on Facebook in the Cypress Area Foodies And Fooding group; sharing how great Mex Taco House's Arbol sauce is, and how he was proud of what he’d made. That post ended up having several people asking to buy it.
“The next morning, on July 3, 2023 (exactly one year and one day after he realized he needed to lose weight), JP woke up at 4am, thinking; “Okay... I'll sell it.” With a professional background in compliance as well as being a stickler for doing things right, he formally started a business and went through the process of learning and meeting all the required regulations. Naming his LLC. Texan Heartland because; “it inspires the traditional values and essence of Texas. It creates a sentiment of home, family, and friends.” JP shares. A couple days later JP sold his first two bottles to a stranger–who is now a friend–in an HEB parking lot. “I still have that $20 bill taped to the back wall of my desk!”
Encouraged by the exceptionally positive feedback from that first customer, JP sold his sauce to friends and co-workers and would talk about it everywhere he went…at the dry cleaners, the auto shop, the grocery store. After changing jobs in August of that year, his market base suddely disappeared. Heeding the advice of his very first customer, he participated in his first farmers market–the Bridgeland Farmers Market in September 2023 where he sold his 100th bottle. “By early January of this year we sold our 1,000th bottle, and last month, we sold our 2,000th.” JP said.
Originally it was JP doing all of the cooking, and his wife helped with the farmers markets. Expanding to two booths this year, he has also been able onboard someone to share the workload amidst their growth. “Now the goal is to take the operation commercially so we can ship our products, and sell wholesale to restaurants and other vendors.” JP says.
“I think the first and most important thing I want people to know is how grateful we are for our customer's patronage thus far.” JP shares. “Our customers have many choices, both from other farmers market vendors as well as in the grocery stores. We have a good product, but so does virtually all of our competition,” JP acknowledges. “If we can honor the trust the public places in us–and treat our customers with the respect we ourselves would want to be treated–then I think we have the recipe for a successful business.”