#181: Pinky Cole, The Slutty Vegan, is Blowing Meat Lovin' Minds
Pinky Cole, Founder of The Slutty Vegan
Rip welcomes the mover, shaker, and influencer that is Pinky Cole - founder of The Slutty Vegan restaurant chain based in Atlanta.
In 2018, Pinky started selling her vegan burgers from her kitchen in Atlanta on Instagram. Yes, Instagram! They immediately became an enormous hit and now, just five years later, she’s gone from her apartment kitchen to nine brick-and-mortar locations in and outside of Georgia– including her newest locations in Brooklyn and Harlem.
Pinky Cole is unapologetic about her brand and you can feel that in the energy she brings to her food, her Pinky Cole Foundation, and her new book, Eat Plants, B*itch - 91 Vegan Recipes that will Blow Your Meat-Lovin Mind.
Pinky’s Book, Eat Plants, B*tch, is available now
Episode Resources
Watch the Original Episode on YouTube
Buy Pinky’s Book, Eat Plants, B*itch - 91 Vegan Recipes that will Blow Your Meat-Lovin Mind.
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Full YouTube Transcript
Rip Esselstyn:
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Pinky Cole:
There's a lot of skepticism when it comes to veganism, and it true health benefits, and its properties, and all that stuff, but I am not the person that's going out to the world that's saying, "Black people, you got to be vegan," or, "White people, you need to be vegan." I'm going out to say, "Listen, there are health benefits to being veganism, and we just going to have a good time and meet you where you are." That has always been my messaging consistently. Whatever reason people decide to want to eat vegan, it's up to them. I just want you to come into my house and eat some of my vegan food.
Rip Esselstyn:
I'm Rip Esselstyn and welcome to the PLANTSTRONG podcast. The mission at PLANTSTRONG is to further the advancement of all things within the plant-based movement. We advocate for the scientifically proven benefits of plant-based living and envision a world that universally understands, promotes, and prescribes plants as a solution to empowering your health, enhancing your performance, restoring the environment, and becoming better guardians to the animals we share this planet with. We welcome you, wherever you are on your PLANTSTRONG journey, and I hope that you enjoy the show. If you know of my father and his work at the Cleveland Clinic since 1984, then you're well aware that Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr. is unapologetic about his stance on moderation when it comes to whole food, plant-based nutrition. Well, let me tell you that, if you didn't know it, he hates, hates moderation. Now, the reason is because, in his eyes, moderation kills, and he's seen this over and over and over again.
Since 1984, he has taken an absolutely unwavering stance on whole food, plant-based nutrition as a means of preventing and reversing our number one killer, heart disease. This caused him decades of disrespect, especially in those early years. But guess what? Regardless of how unpopular his message may have been in the past, it is clearly stood the test of time and he remains as vigilant as he ever was. Well, that's why when the chance came to interview another person who was just as unapologetic came my way, I jumped at the chance. Today, I have a conversation with the vegan powerhouse that is Pinky Cole. She is the founder of Slutty. You heard that right. Slutty Vegan, the restaurant chain based in Atlanta, Georgia.
In 2018, she started selling her vegan burgers to Atlanta's underserved West End on Instagram. Yes, Instagram. They immediately became an enormous hit. Now, five years later, she's gone from her apartment kitchen to nine brick and mortar locations in and outside of Atlanta, including locations in Brooklyn and Harlem. Pinky Cole is unapologetic about her brand. You can feel that in the energy that she brings to her food, her Pinky Cole Foundation, and her new book, Eat Plants, B*tch: 91 Vegan Recipes That Will Blow Your Meat-Loving Mind. Let me tell you, she blew my mind and I can't wait for her to blow yours as well. Meet Pinky Cole. Pinky Cole, welcome to the PLANTSTRONG podcast.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here.
Rip Esselstyn:
Well, I couldn't be more excited. You're lighting the world on fire right now, and I am so absolutely, from a fellow vegan, plant-based guy, to see what you're doing, the audiences that you're bringing into this realm is just... It's awe inspiring. Thank you so much for that.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you.
Rip Esselstyn:
Pinky, tell me this, how in the world did you get your name Pinky? It seems so appropriate.
Pinky Cole:
It's funny, nobody ever asked me that. But the day that I was born, my godmother said that I was pink and she wanted to call me Pinky. My mom like, "Don't call her Pinky." Ever since then, it stuck. I literally had been Pinky all of my life, in school, middle school, high school, college, and now the world knows me as Pinky Cole so there we are.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah, they sure do.
Pinky Cole:
My real name is Aisha though.
Rip Esselstyn:
Say that again.
Pinky Cole:
My real name is Aisha, but a lot of people don't know that, so don't call me Aisha.
Rip Esselstyn:
No. I shan't. Pinky, so was there ever a time when you were like, "I don't like the name Pinky," or have you always loved it?
Pinky Cole:
Probably for one year of my life, I'm like, "Call me Aisha. My name is not Pinky." But I realized that my name is the reason why people wanted to know who I was. It's a very unique name. It stands out. It's just like, "Why would somebody name their child Pinky?" As a result of that, I think that played a part in me being super popular growing up because I had such a weird, extraordinary name that people wanted to get to know me because of. I think that that played a big role in who I am today so I'm happy about it.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Do you think that having such a unique name also allowed you to break out and help give you the strength to forge your own path?
Pinky Cole:
I think it did. I always stuck out. Listen, my mom is Jamaican, my father is Jamaican, but I grew up in America. I wasn't American enough to the Americans and I wasn't Jamaican enough to the Jamaicans, and then I had this crazy ass name. I was just different all the way around. I think it made me stick out like a sore thumb. As a result of that, it allowed me to be in positions that I would've never imagined if my name was just Aisha. That's a good question though. But now when I look over at my life, I realize when I tell people my name that don't know me, they're like, "Are you sure? Is that your name?" "Yes, it's my name." But it has helped me more than it's hurt me, so I'm happy about that.
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh, yeah. Well, you seem so incredibly authentic and forthright yet, at the same time, you make yourself vulnerable. I'm just wondering where did that come from? Did you have role models that you turned to and leaned on?
Pinky Cole:
I was always this way, and I think a part of it comes from my mom. She is very straight up in your face, "This is what it is. I'm confident every single room I walk in, you're going to know that I'm there." I got that from her. She's a Jamaican woman, so you can't have dishes in the sink. You got to make sure that you pay your bills on time. I got that very militant mindset from my mother and that level of confidence, but I also have a soft side to me that's real and authentic and very vulnerable, like you said, because I'm transparent. I believe that transparency has been a thing that has allowed me to really maneuver to this crazy thing called life because I show up as my authentic self. Ain't nothing fake about me.
I don't care who you are. I don't care how much money you got at the bank. I am me all of the time in every single room. I like to attribute a lot of that to my childhood. That, again, has really positioned me in different spaces because you don't see somebody typically who is the CEO of a multimillion-dollar company, just being raw on the tongue and just being her true, authentic self. Sometimes I may go to work with a T-shirt and some sweats and like, "Hey, what's up? We're here." But I'm showing people that you can be who you are and not have to conform to any stereotypes. You don't have to conform to society's expectation of you. You could just show up as your authentic self and be the best version of you that you could be.
Rip Esselstyn:
That is such a beautiful thing. So many of us, for whatever reason, were not following that authentic path that resonates with us. Tell me this, Pinky, do you always have something pink that that's on your person because your lips are just... They're as pink as can be.
Pinky Cole:
This was the only lip I could find actually, to tell the truth. But no, my favorite color is purple, actually.
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh, okay. Okay.
Pinky Cole:
Contrary to popular belief, my favorite color is purple. I love a good lavender, but purple and red are my colors. I just so happen to have one pink today. Pinky is a state of mind. It's a concept. It's a thought process. Not so much a color, it's a being. It's an energy. It's a frequency. I am a vibe, I'm a frequency. When you hear the name Pinky, you know that a vibe is about to enter the room. See it.
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh. I like it. I like it. You, you've started some pretty irreverent brands. For example, Eat This, Bitch, and then of course, this is your new book that came out November 15th. Absolutely crushing it with this. Congratulations.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you.
Rip Esselstyn:
I want to talk about the book, but first I want to talk about Slutty Vegan because that came before the book, correct?
Pinky Cole:
It did.
Rip Esselstyn:
Where in the world, how did you decide one day that, "You know what, I want to start this truck, this eating truck, and I want to call it Slutty Vegan"? Where does that come from?
Pinky Cole:
It's interesting because it happened by "mistake". When I started Slutty Vegan, I had already had my dream job. I was a casting director for a TV show, so I worked in TV for 10 years. That was my expertise. I thought that I was just going to sit in TV and become this super executive producer and life was going to be great. I was going to go to Malibu on the weekends and like, "We cool." But then I realized that the universe had something so much bigger for me, because while I was working on the show, just randomly in my bedroom coming up with ideas and Slutty Vegan hit me like a light bulb. Obviously, those two things aren't supposed to go together. You got veganism and you got slutty. They aren't even supposed to be in the same sentence.
For me, to be able to merge those worlds in a way where people can appreciate it and not feel like it's derogatory, not feel like it's too provocative, that was the TV side of me working. I'm like, "Okay, cool." This will make people reimagine food in a different way because I'm doing something that's never been done. Yeah, vegan burgers and fries have been done before, but to make the experience stand out while you're serving vegan food to people, it's next level. When I was in my bedroom coming up with the idea, I did not expect Slutty Vegan to grow in the way that it did that fast. Here I am, I'm going on my fifth year in business. If you know anything about the restaurant industry, you know that businesses don't even last past three years. Here I am, I'm up year to year, business is booming.
I'm opening up sister concepts and really showing people around the world whether you are vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian, a meat eater, that you can literally see food a different way even if you don't want to go vegan. It's really been a cool opportunity to be at the helm of all of the hype. Slutty Vegan has now become a household name all from a bedroom idea. I am literally the walking testament for people who are entrepreneurs and big dreamers to show them, "Listen, come as you are. Dream as you dream. All the things that you dream about, you can manifest." Slutty Vegan really opened the door for all the other things that I like to do, and that's Eat Plants, B*tch.
Rip Esselstyn:
All right. Pinky, yes. Some of your solidified fans include Snoop Dogg, Queen Latifah, Justin Timberlake, Tyler Perry. I mean, it's quite a growing list of celebrities as well. It just started out with just one little food truck, correct?
Pinky Cole:
We started out as a ghost kitchen. You know how everybody has the cloud kitchens now. I was ahead of the curve. It wasn't many people doing it. I'm like, "Oh, let me try this." I actually found out about doing a cloud kitchen in L.A. When I got to Atlanta, I'm like, "Okay, let me do it here because nobody's doing it." When I tried it, not only did it work, it was overwhelmingly working so much that I got kicked out of the facility because there were too many people coming to support me. It was a great problem because what it did is it forced me to get a food truck. Now, I didn't know the first thing about a food truck. I didn't know how to work one. I probably ate at a food truck once in my life up until this point.
But it allowed me to be a chameleon and that's what entrepreneurs do. You got to learn how to move and shake with the times. I did that and I got a food truck, and now I sparked the food truck movement. I've inspired so many people to get a food truck to start their concept versus going to a brick and mortar first. Everything just started continuing to rise. Literally, we've consistently been growing every single week since 2018, which is unheard of for a lot of businesses. But we came in at the right time, and now here we are. I have nine locations and counting and the cookbook. I have big partnership deals, so many great things happening that I'm just so excited that we get to do exactly what we do and just change the world one burger at a time.
Rip Esselstyn:
One slutty burger at a time.
Pinky Cole:
One slutty burger at a time.
Rip Esselstyn:
In reading your book, you talked about how your first restaurant you had had a grease fire. I guess, in hindsight, you're glad that it happened. Is that fair to say?
Pinky Cole:
It was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Rip Esselstyn:
Explain that because how in the world could that be a good thing?
Pinky Cole:
It's funny because we associate loss with bad things. We associate failure with tribulation, but now I associate failure with it being an opportunity to rise above challenges. I didn't know that when I was in my restaurant running it day to day. This part sounds good, but in the moment, when I had the grease fire and I lost everything, I'm like, "Shit. What am I going to do?" I lost my car. I lost my apartment that I was living in. I went flat broke. It happened really fast. It showed me that you can get it really fast and you can lose it really, really fast so you always got to be humble in the middle of the process. I realized that doing that, I walked away from that situation without a hair of smoke on my body. I'm metaphorically speaking because it literally positioned me to rise above and be an expert when it came to opening up Slutty Vegan.
When I opened up Slutty Vegan, I'm like, "Okay, all right. I know I need to have fire insurance. Okay, I know I need to make sure that I pay my sales and use tax. All right, I need to make sure that I pay all my bills on time," or, "I don't want to get a sticker on the door." It showed me how to run business from what may look like a loss. It wasn't a loss, it was just very expensive school. I like to say I went to the Harvard of restaurants, because now as I grow my business, I look back at those experiences and say, "Okay, all right. This is what I'm going to do different because I've been at that place before." Furthermore, I get to teach and educate people on what to do and what not to do when they're running a business.
Rip Esselstyn:
Pinky, you are also doing some really amazing philanthropic causes. Your giving back. Can you let everybody know about your foundation?
Pinky Cole:
I do a lot with the foundation. I have the Pinky Cole Foundation, and I started it in 2019. That was really a way to formalize me wanting to help everybody I really like. When I tell you it brings me a certain level of joy to be able to know that my resources can help somebody be better, that is the most rewarding feeling. That's what I work hard for. This foundation is really designed to help bridge the generational wealth gap. I've done so much, continuing to do so much. I'll just run down a list of the things that we've done. We've given out fruits and vegetables. We've supported teachers in their salaries. We've paid the rents of local businesses so that they didn't close. We've turned on lights for families. We've paid the balances of college students so that they can graduate.
We've provided life insurance to Black men who made $30,000 or less because life insurance is such a big deal that people really don't talk about. We've provided mental health services for people in the community. I can go on and on and on. The Department of Juvenile Justice, we've partnered with them to provide second chance opportunities for ex-offenders, but we really do the work. This is not just one of those things like, "Okay, we got a 501(c)(3), let's just do something nice." No, we really get in there and make sure that we provide opportunities for people to be great.
What I just did recently, I was a commencement speaker of my alma mater at Clark Atlanta University, and I provided LLCs to the entire class with the help of our old bank. That was such a big deal, because to provide a pathway to entrepreneurship to graduating seniors, who's doing that? Whether they decide to work a nine-to-five, it really is putting them in position to start their pathway to freedom. Freedom is all we seek. Whether it's financial freedom, emotional freedom, spiritual freedom, I want it to be the person to really support them in that way. I think that it resonated with a lot of them, because of the 820 students who graduated, at least 750 got the LLCs. That's a big deal. I pray that more entrepreneurs pay it forward in that way and do the same thing that we do at the Pinky Cole Foundation.
Rip Esselstyn:
Wow. Pinky, the more I'm learning, the more I'm realizing you are just so beautiful through and through and through.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you. I appreciate that. You know what? I am my mother's child. When I look at my mom, my mom has been the person that would give the shirt off her bed to help people. She wants to see others win, and she will sacrifice herself to make sure that other people are in a better position. I've turned into my mother.
Rip Esselstyn:
Well, that's a good thing, it sounds like. It also, in doing my research, I saw that you, very kindly, paid off your mother's house in full.
Pinky Cole:
I did. I did.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Yeah. She looked like she was over.
Pinky Cole:
That was big for me. Every child's dream is to be able to support their parents while they are living on earth and to be able to do that. She had no idea. She's happy, she's proud to come from where she comes from. We come from humble beginnings and to know that one of your children are able to create financial freedom for you, that's every child's dream, and I'm glad I get to fulfill that.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Her jaw must be on the ground, or maybe not, thinking about all the successes that you've had. She must be so proud of you.
Pinky Cole:
She's very proud. Now she's here with us. She lives with us and is helping us to raise kids. I'm proud that she's here to help me.
Rip Esselstyn:
That's great. Pinky, is your father in your life at all these days?
Pinky Cole:
He is, but my dad got deported, so he lives in Jamaica. Unfortunately, he is not allowed to come on American soil, but I love and respect my dad for what he represents. He represents the idea that no matter what you go through, you never give up. My dad just found out that he had cancer. Him dealing with that and still being the hustler and entrepreneur that he is, and still having a positive mindset just reminds me that no matter what I go through, it could be worse. I got to keep going. I cannot give up. That's what my father represents. Especially after doing 22 years in prison, I couldn't imagine. Yeah, I did the prison with him outside of the prison walls, but he was actually physically in it. I commend my dad for being resilient through all of that and still trying to make a life for himself no matter what.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. 22 years. When did he get out? How many years ago?
Pinky Cole:
My dad got out in 2009.
Rip Esselstyn:
Okay. All right.
Pinky Cole:
Yeah. He got out in 2009. He's been there. He's been in Jamaica for quite some time. We're actually getting married in Jamaica so that my dad can walk us down the aisle, myself and my fiancé.
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh, that's really nice.
Pinky Cole:
Unless one of the senators are watching this and grant him a temporary come-to-America stay so I could get married in America.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah, that would be great.
Well, I saw you had a nice photo with the senator not too long ago, I think, right?
Pinky Cole:
Mm-hmm.
Rip Esselstyn:
Maybe ask him.
Pinky Cole:
I got a lot of nice photos with a couple people. Listen, Slutty Vegan has allowed me to get in some rooms. When I get in those rooms, I start building my own table in the room, so it just works.
Rip Esselstyn:
You mentioned your fiancé. This must be a very special man. How did you meet him?
Pinky Cole:
We are both restaurateurs and I'm sure that you have done your research. He is not vegan, he is far from it. He's more pescatarian, but he has a restaurant as well in the city. We are two community pioneers that are in alignment in a lot of ways. Not so much the dietary side, but for how we contribute to the community. We just had a whole bunch of different synergies and we connected just as friends. Listen, I was the person... I'm like, "I will never date somebody that eats meat, not doing it ever. Don't even bring it to me," and then I met him and I realized that we can still coexist even though our mindsets are different in certain areas, but we are the same in a lot of ways. I admire him and I respect him, and he's my baby daddy. We have two beautiful children together and I can't wait to get married so I'm excited.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Well, I've seen some photos of your children. Can you tell me their ages and their names?
Pinky Cole:
Six months and about to be eight. Well, 18 months already yesterday. I'm sorry. 18 months, yesterday. Six months and 18 months.
Rip Esselstyn:
Wow. How's your sleep? You get any sleep?
Pinky Cole:
Barely, but we got help. Listen, I tell anybody, if you don't have that village, you have nothing because there's no way that I could do this on my own. Between my mom and his mom, we got a lot of help. I'm so appreciative of that help because it allows us to still follow our dreams. We're still kids just trying to be great and change the world. I don't ever want to feel like I have to compromise either one, not my children, not what I love to do. I get to do both of them equally because we had that village to help us and that feels good.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Pinky, when I wrote my first book called The Engine 2 Diet in 2009, and I was a firefighter, I was met with a fair amount of resistance, even hostility around a bunch of white males, for the most part, eating this way. I'm wondering, what's been the response from the Black community of your veganism? Or have they embraced it? Have they been resistant? Have they given you a lot of shit?
Pinky Cole:
All people have embraced it. When I first started Slutty Vegan, my core audience were... It was Black people. I'm a Black woman, so they see a Black woman doing something great. But that as I evolved as a business, I realized that veganism is not a Black or white thing. Veganism is something that... There's so many people that are ignorant to veganism, not because they want to, it's because they don't have access to information. I get the opportunity to really change the mindset of humankind, and that feels good to me. Have I been faced resistance on the food side? No.
There's a lot of skepticism when it comes to veganism, and it true health benefits, and its properties, and all that stuff, but I am not the person that's going out to the world that's saying, "Black people, you got to be vegan," or, "White people, you need to be vegan." I'm going out to say, "Listen, there are health benefits to being veganism, and we just going to have a good time and meet you where you are." That has always been my messaging consistently. Whatever reason people decide to want to eat vegan, it's up to them. I just want you to come into my house and eat some of my vegan food. It's really changing lives in real time. It's funny because I get asked that question a lot. I like to say Slutty Vegan is the biggest form of silent protest. It's such a beautiful feeling to see so many people from all racist, creeds, cultural backgrounds coming...
I'm talking about old young Muslim, Christian, atheist. It don't matter who you are. People like coming to Slutty Vegan in the name of love, in the name of food, and they don't get no better than that. That is a real form of silent protest and togetherness and community. That feels good to me. I'm on a mission to really make a difference in the world. I want when I leave this earth, people say, "Damn. Pinky really enacted change through her platform and through her resources. Not just for Black people, not just for Black women, not just for minorities, but for white women who trying to get it, for white men, for Asian women, African men, everybody." Which is why I believe that Slutty Vegan will be around for a long time. I'm confident about that.
Rip Esselstyn:
That was awesome. Tell me, the Slutty Vegans, how many do you have and are they just in Atlanta or are you moving beyond Atlanta?
Pinky Cole:
I have nine now and the bulk of them are in Atlanta. I have one in Birmingham, Alabama. I got another one in Brooklyn. I'm about to open up my Harlem location. I got a couple other locations. I just purchased my D.C. property, so I'm moving and shaking. Listen, the time is now. I'm the type of person, you'll hear me say this if you follow my social media, I'm a grizzly bear. It's giving grizzly bear energy all 2023. With that grizzly bear energy, I'm opening up locations, I'm doing TV shows, I'm writing movie scripts. I am starting sister concepts from the Slutty Vegan brand. I'm doing everything under this Slutty Vegan tentacle umbrella that I can to be able to expand this narrative about veganism. It's working and we're hitting it out the park. I just pray that the universe continues to align my energy and my imagination so that I can continue to do the things that I love to do in this space.
Rip Esselstyn:
I think it will. Can you give me a sneak peek into some of the sister brands, or what are their names? Are they as irreverent?
Pinky Cole:
I'll tell you this, I just did a tasting at Slutty Vegan for a vegan breakfast concept that I'm working on. You do the math. I'm excited about that because as a... Listen, I remember when I first started, well, before I was vegan, I was vegetarian. My mother's a Rastafarian, so I grew up in a vegetarian household. I grew up eating at Boca Burgers, the MorningStar Burger. I've been at this for a long time. This is who I am. There were not a lot of options for us to eat except for the Boca Burgers and the MorningStars and the basics.
Now, in 2023, there is so much innovation around plant-based food that you can literally have everything that's not vegan and make it vegan. One thing that I realized lacks in Atlanta especially is that there are not a lot of good vegan options. They exist, but not in a way that I'm about to put it together. I'm excited to be able to jumpstart that concept. I can't tell you the name right now, but you will have a laugh.
Rip Esselstyn:
Okay. [inaudible 00:29:37].
Pinky Cole:
You know I'm good for a good name so I'm excited about that. I know that as long as I can dominate the vegan breakfast movement, we going to be doing some big things.
Rip Esselstyn:
Well, breakfast is probably my favorite meal of the day. I noticed in your cookbook, or I should say your book, you've got zucchini pancakes that I'm like, "Okay, I want some of those right now." You've got these roasted purple sweet potatoes that look absolutely incredible. I tend to go for stuff a little bit cleaner. Look at this, spicy garlic eggplant. Oh my gosh. Did you have black-eyed peas for New Year's this year?
Pinky Cole:
You know what, this year, I didn't. Usually I do, but this year I didn't because we were... I went to go see Dave Chappelle, so we were traveling. But listen, that recipe is amazing. Let me tell you, there is something for everybody. I have my moments where I just want to be alkaline vegan, and then some days I want to be the junk food vegan. But there is something for everybody in this book. If you want to eat super clean, you can do that. You can have the mushroom scallops. Yes, there's so many things for everybody in this book, and you don't have to compromise the flavor or the things that you like.
Do you know how many meat eaters come to me and like, "Pinky, that book is damn good. I made a couple of recipes out of it and that shit is amazing." I'm like, "I'm doing something right." I'm excited about it and I know that people can take this book and not just stuff it in their kitchen cabinet. This is really the place where you can learn about veganism and a way where it's cool and it's not forcing an agenda on you.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Pinky, look at this stuff, the butternut squash. You've also asked some of your vegan entrepreneur restaurant buddies to contribute to some recipes here. They've done it?
Pinky Cole:
Yeah, I did.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Yeah.
Pinky Cole:
They had no idea that I did that either.
Rip Esselstyn:
Wow.
Pinky Cole:
They submitted, but I didn't tell the people that I picked. I'm a woman of many surprises, so I like to surprise people all the time. The shock factor just gets me. But to do that, to do that was like, "Damn. It's giving them a platform to expose themselves." They were very happy. Everybody who was a part of the cookbook cried. I'm just happy that I got to be able to do that.
Rip Esselstyn:
You have 91 recipes. Is there a particular reason, 91? Is that just where you landed?
Pinky Cole:
It just where I landed. I wish I had an explanation for why 91, but 91 sounded good in my spirit. Nine is my sorority number. I pledged Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. I was the nine, but it just felt right. I'm an energy person. 91 just felt right.
Rip Esselstyn:
What did you think of the whole writing process going through book publishers?
Pinky Cole:
Hard.
Rip Esselstyn:
I'm sure you had-
Pinky Cole:
Hard, hard. I'm not going to lie to you, it was not easy at all. It's very time-consuming. You got to make sure that the recipes are right and as right as possible. The testing, and the tasting, and the emails back and forth, and the writing the... It was not a fun process, I'm not going to lie to you. But when you see the final product, it's like, "Okay, this is what all the work came to be." I'm so happy that we finally got to a finished product. Do you know that the book is doing so well? People are supporting it and they're buying it, and that just tells me that this is something that people want, so I can't wait to do more.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Who'd you go with for your book publisher.
Pinky Cole:
Simon & Schuster.
Rip Esselstyn:
Congrats on that.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you.
Rip Esselstyn:
I think, the other day, I saw you wearing a dress with this same kind of pattern and logo. It looked remarkable on you.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you. I like to be consistent in those things because when people... It's the art of repetition. When people continue to see it, they'll remember it. It'll be stuck in their brain. I get super creative. I wore that to an award show. I shocked everybody. They're like, "Oh, wow. She literally wore her brand." Yes, I did. Okay. Because I am the Slutty Vegan, so I'm going to be the walking brand every opportunity that I get.
Rip Esselstyn:
Do you foresee any more books in your future?
Pinky Cole:
Yes.
Rip Esselstyn:
Is it too early? Too early for me to ask you that question?
Pinky Cole:
Ask me in about three months, and I'll give you a hard answer.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah, yeah. I know I-
Pinky Cole:
Books are coming, just know that. A lot of really good things are coming.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Well, listen, I think I saw that... Was it Target just bought 10,000 copies? I'm sure that Simon & Schuster's doing backflips right now because of the success of your book.
Pinky Cole:
Yes.
Rip Esselstyn:
That's nothing to sneeze at. It seems to be in perfect alignment with everything else that you're doing. Pinky, it's just having wild success. Again, I think it's because of you. As we said at the very beginning, just your authenticity and the way you speak your mind. You're a bit of a grizzly bear, but a grizzly bear that we all want to hug.
Pinky Cole:
Yes. I'm soft once you get to know me. But thank you, I appreciate that.
Rip Esselstyn:
Do you have brothers and sisters?
Pinky Cole:
I do. I'm the youngest of eight.
Rip Esselstyn:
Oh, wow. Are they thrilled for your success?
Pinky Cole:
That's a whole nother podcast now. That's a whole nother show.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah, I understand. I understand.
Pinky Cole:
I'm sure they're happy.
Rip Esselstyn:
Yeah. Great, great, great. Well, Pinky, I appreciate your time today. I wish you all the best. I hope that our paths cross in the not too distant future, and really appreciate you coming on the PLANTSTRONG podcast.
Pinky Cole:
Thank you. I appreciate you for having me. We will see each other soon.
Rip Esselstyn:
Keep it PLANTSTRONG. Boom. Pinky is turning the vegan movement on its head and ushering in a new wave of enthusiasm and passion for bringing plant-based food to as many people as possible in a fun, irreverent, and flavorful way, especially for those who may have never had the opportunity or desire to try it. You can learn more about Pinky, her work, and her foundation at pinkygivesback.com. I'll be sure to link to that along with links to her new book in the show notes. Thanks so much for listening, spreading the word, and as always, keeping it PLANTSTRONG.
Thank you for listening to the PLANTSTRONG podcast. You can support the show by taking a quick minute to follow us wherever you listen to your favorite podcast. Leaving us a positive review and sharing the show with your network is another great way to help us reach as many people as possible with the exciting news about plants. Thank you in advance for your support. It means everything. The PLANTSTRONG podcast team includes Carrie Barrett, Laurie Kortowich, Ami Mackey, Patrick Gavin, and Wade Clark. This season is dedicated to all of those courageous, true seekers who weren't afraid to look through the lens with clear vision and hold firm to a higher truth. Most notably, my parents, Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn Jr and Ann Crile Esselstyn. Thanks for listening.
