As a teen, Derrick Hayes, 35, was once told by a church reverend that he was going to be a pastor when he grew up. Affronted, Hayes rebuffed the label—he had his sights set elsewhere. Namely, making money fast to get himself out of his tough West Philadelphia neighborhood as quickly as possible. Ironically enough though, nearly two decades later he’s leading a flock of people (more than 300k on social media) to have faith for a better tomorrow through his testimony.
His story begins at home, as a child, learning about cooking by watching his grandfather prepare tasty dishes that brought his family together. Although this early introduction sparked a culinary passion, Hayes grew up to have one foot in the kitchen and one in the streets.
Due to involvement in criminal activity as a young man, he found himself facing a potential jail sentence for drug trafficking. But as luck would have it, instead of serving time behind bars he was given another chance to turn his life around. And as crazy as it may sound, he says a cheesesteak was his savior.
“I look at myself like as a second chance person,” he told ESSENCE. He’s referring to his decision to launch his business Big Dave’s Cheesesteaks—named after his family’s patriarch—one of the recipes passed down to him and a staple in Philadelphian culture. The flavorful blend of cheese, meat, peppers and onions is a favorite, but Hayes his grandfathers’ version was a standout people would love, so he took an entrepreneurial leap of faith.
“I spent the little bit of money I had to start it.”
He built the brand out of a Shell gas station in 2014 and was struggling to make his sales goals until a Philly legend placed an order.
“In 2015, the rapper Eve came in and she told me she said she wanted to try the cheesesteak, and she brought people with her, and she said they weren’t going to try it unless it was official,” Hayes told ESSENCE. “And when she bit into it, she went crazy.”
He continued: “She’s such a good person. At that time, I blew all of my money, so I was literally making a cheesesteak for my life. That’s how I felt. I’m like, ‘this is all I got. I don’t know how I’m going to pay my rent next week.’ This is literally all I have to be able to scale this business, is for her to love it and to post it. And when I was making that chicken cheesesteak, I really made it like my life depended on it, and I didn’t choke. She loved it. And from there, it was off to the races.”
In 2018, Big Dave’s Cheesesteak was voted the top ten sandwiches in the world by The World Food Championship, and continued receiving recognition from there. Now, he operates two restaurants and a food truck in Georgia. And as Forbes pointed out, Covid was a boon for the business, prompting his sales to grow by $1.5 million. In 2021, he was named recognized by the outlet as one of The Next 1000 entrepreneurs to look out for.
Now, with more than 90 employees, Hayes is purposed to inspire others —particularly others in underrepresented communities—to reach for the stars.
For example, he fed more than 40 hospital workers during the height of the pandemic, provided free food to thousands of local customers, and raised $26,000 for Black-owned businesses in Atlanta to stay operational.
“There was a time when I was passive in life,” he said. “Now, I’m spreading a message. My grandfather gave me the gift of cooking and brought the best out of me and I want to do that for others. I’m not on the pulpit, but every day I got people around the world listening to my story, the way I talk, and they’re actually believing in themselves more.”