Marvin and Gloria Smith are entrepreneurs, authors, and financial experts. They are the owners of Café Social House, a new restaurant in Mableton, as well as authors of the book The Psychology of Credit and the founders of DKR Group LLC. The talented couple is dedicated to serving and uplifting their community through good food and sound financial counseling. The Smiths spoke with rolling out about the new business and the new book in their expanding portfolio.
What led you to open a restaurant?
Marvin Smith: Gloria has always had a passion for cooking and entrepreneurship. This isn’t her first restaurant, but it is on target to be her most successful one. We worked together to find the best location and timing before opening Café Social House. It has an upscale look, a modern feel and our recipes have that urban touch that everyone loves.
Describe your partnership as husband and wife working together.
Gloria Smith: We became a powerhouse couple. My husband took me under his wing as a mentee and he imparted his knowledge on a daily basis. Marvin has been an entrepreneur since he was 18 years old. As he taught others, he took the time to mold me into being a strong backbone of our vision.
What prompted you to delve further into business and finance with The Psychology of Credit?
MS: I lost my first business and didn’t want to file bankruptcy. Life happened to me. I did my research and decided I wanted to remain an entrepreneur and continue to work for myself. I knew I had to make key decisions on making the right moves in order to properly fix my life. With the knowledge that I gained, I became equipped to [chart] a path to help others.
GS: After meeting my husband Marvin, I watched how he helped educate people on their finances. I watched him assist people who made a few financial mistakes, turn their situations around and I knew at that time, I wanted to be a part of giving people a second chance and to also help them understand credit which would allow them to make better choices with their finances.
What did you set out to accomplish with this book?
GS: Our mission is to give everyday Americans the keys and tools to implement them in their own lives for personal growth. Our goal is to give them the credit to fund their own dreams.
What was the hardest part of completing this project?
GS: Making sure the information was clear and simple for our readers to understand. Also, we wanted to make sure that once they read our book, they could start working on their credit and see positive results.
What advice would you give other writers?
MS: First, overcome your fear. Write an outline and hold yourself accountable to it. Then, just start writing. Put it all on paper and once you organize it at a later time, it will all come together and make sense.
