Get to know owner
Isaac Lee Collins
a KC local business owner with a story to tell
It starts in east KC
Isaac’s story begins in the Riverview Projects of east Kansas City. With home being a community identified by drugs, poverty, and violence, safety and stability were seemingly a reality he would never know. With his parents battling addiction, drug dealing was the closest example of entrepreneurship in sight.
The one blessing that he did have, however, was love— family, friends, and a community full of it. This is a love that will never be taken for granted, as it proved to be the guiding light for Isaac’s journey from the very start.
Resilience and new beginnings
Prior to starting school, one decision changed the entire course of being for the Collins family. Isaac’s parents fostered their desire to get clean, sought treatment, and moved to St. Joe for a fresh start. With nearly nothing to their name, they found themselves in an area similar to that of east Kansas City. This new community became a stepping stone on a journey to a better life. Isaac’s parents set the ultimate example of hard work, dedication, and grit. With sobriety and faith, his mother went to school to become a nurse and his father worked his way up from being a substance abuse counselor to the Warden of a local prison. During this time of inspired success, the family moved to a new community in the northern part of St. Joe.
Entering fourth grade, Isaac’s new school had all the opportunities he could ever want. But, going from an all black community to now being one of only four black students in his entire school introduced a level of racism unlike anything he had been exposed to before.
Popular, an academic, an athlete, a team captain— on the surface, descriptions of a student that has it all. But the feeling of not belonging, the constant name-calling and reminders of his skin color left him in a place of suffering and isolation. No matter how many students, friends, or teammates surrounded him, no matter how many years he lived in this town, he was in an environment where he would never feel that he belonged.
The vision to change the ecosystem
When Isaac entered high school and began his first job, the racism that he experienced was even worse than before. He was treated awful and feeling awful.
Whether at work, school, or out in the community, Isaac watched power be abused and started to imagine an alternate ecosystem: a space of peace, safety, and belonging. A place where the leadership was healthy and whole and every person could be themselves. A place where all could feel the love like he had felt in the community where he belonged. This is where his mission began.
Throughout his nearly 12 years of entrepreneurship, Isaac has owned 7 for-profit businesses and 1 non-profit spanning the industries of handmade chocolates, construction, real estate investing, health supplements, yoga teaching, frozen yogurt, and business coaching.
Hard work paying off
Isaac received academic and athletic scholarships to attend and play football at Missouri Western State University. While thankful for the diversity on campus, he still struggled to find his place. Feeling “too white” for some circles and “too black” for others. With these feelings still prevalent, the mission in his heart never died.
A dedicated and realistic individual, Isaac knew that with a degree and hard work, he could someday own his own business and create the ecosystem that he had imagined. What he hadn’t planned for was an opportunity that his college put forth: the chance to prove his vision, passion, and dedication through a business plan for a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. He turned down an offer for the “perfect” job in corporate America, completed the entrepreneurial program and, what do you know it, he won.
Isaac accepted the award from his university’s program and set forth to rural Iowa to run his very own chocolate store. While experiencing the highs and lows of being a new entrepreneur, he was learning lessons at an expedited rate and on a path to becoming an experienced, happy, and successful entrepreneur. But what was getting in the way of this journey? Once again, the feeling of living (and now owning a business) in a community to which he would never belong. Isaac experienced more racism during his years in Iowa than all of his childhood combined. And this racism was at a level more severe than anything he had suffered before. It was clear that Iowa was not the place for him to follow his dreams.
Personal and entrepreneurial growth
In 2015, Isaac moved back to Kansas City and purchased his first Yogurtini location, in addition to a few other businesses. While a busy entrepreneur, his first priority was his mental health. He knew that to be a good and impactful leader he needed to be healthy and whole himself.
Living in KC with personal healing underway, it was now the time and place for Isaac to grow this ecosystem both at home and in his community. During his first few years back in town, Isaac married his beautiful wife, Rachel. They have since introduced two amazing children into the world, Sage and Isaac Quinn. Together, their businesses expanded with a non-profit and two additional Yogurtini KC locations. The growth of Yogurtini KC was an easy decision as the couple turned a simple cup of FroYo into a catalyst for change. Not only was their family growing, but their impact as well.
Entrepreneurship for impact
As it did for many, the Covid-19 pandemic sparked a dark time for Isaac. Emotions from the racial injustice in our world, isolation, and the trauma from his past all came to the surface and anxiety and depression were at an all-time high. Thankfully, Isaac had the time, support, and capacity to focus on his mental health and process both the struggles of the past and plans for the future.
During this time of clarity, Isaac was reminded of his strengths as a leader. The love, respect, and sense of belonging that he instills in his businesses and with his family is what brings him the most joy and success. He soon launched his coaching platform to share this strength and teach through his journey.
Entering his twelfth year of entrepreneurship, it’s time for Isaac to share his mission to a greater audience. While continuing to grow Yogurtini KC, he is dedicated to spearheading growth and change for the Kansas City community and beyond. This is where the SERV Collective story begins. SERV Collective is Isaac’s parent company and his outlet to spark joy, do good, elevate local businesses, and create safe spaces where every person feels seen, included, and loved. A mission that was shaped from every step of his journey and one that will make an impact today, tomorrow, and for years to come.