Hustles
Henry Smith launched Smashers burgers from a small trailer
Henry Smith made his first burger at 17 after a tutorial. He tells Upflip his parents backed a trailer so he and friends could open Smashers.
Henry Smith says a burger changed the plan. At 17 he cooked his first one after a tutorial online. It was not perfect. His dad's rare praise is what he remembers.
He spent about six months on buns, patties and fries. School had already gone sideways by ninth grade. He describes himself as the kid who stopped doing the work.
At 18 he and childhood friends opened Smashers from a small trailer. His parents took a $40,000 loan from their savings because they believed him. He is careful about a second loan figure: $150,000, not the larger number that has floated around the story.
A trailer as the classroom
The Upflip episode stays on the trailer shifts that taught him a workday. He talks about what the first summer actually looked like, not a finished restaurant group.
The loan numbers are his correction and his account. The business is a burger trailer started before he was out of his teens.
