Aug 28 2024 15 mins 3
In this Food Truck Empire exclusive, Linda Jo Kushner of Linda’s Luncheonette opens up about how she successfully raised $20,265 on Kickstarter to bring her dream of owning a food truck to life. Linda’s story is a testament to the power of personal connection and grassroots marketing.
For those unfamiliar with the website, KickStarter is a crowdsourcing website that allows users to vote with their pocket books on creative projects they feel could be worthwhile or personally connect with. Funding for numerous food trucks have already been raised through KickStarter along with thousands of other projects that range from comic books to cookbooks.

Linda’s Luncheonette Food Truck.
The Backstory
Linda wasn’t your typical food truck entrepreneur. She had spent years working as an interior designer, building a solid network of clients, friends, and family along the way. When she decided it was time for a midlife career change, she turned to this network for support. Linda wrote a heartfelt email detailing her vision of launching a food truck and candidly shared her journey of wanting to change careers to pursue her passion for cooking. “I just put it all out there,” Linda says. “I told them about my dream and how much it would mean to me. I was honest about being scared, but I was even more excited about finally doing something I loved.”
Linda asked everyone she knew to not only consider donating to her Kickstarter campaign but also to help spread the word by forwarding her email to ten more people. This simple yet effective strategy expanded her reach far beyond her immediate circle. To further connect with potential backers, Linda created a video that showcased her personality and enthusiasm. She offered unique rewards like Linda’s Luncheonette t-shirts, branded lunch boxes, and coupons for a free lunch in the future—small tokens of appreciation that added a personal touch.

Linda included a mockup of her food truck design on her crowdfunding page.
The Fundraising Process
What You’ll Learn in this Episode:
- Why KickStarter is such an incredible opportunity for aspiring food cart entrepreneurs.
- How Linda Jo Kushner acquired over $20,000 in funding in less than 30 days.
- How to generate awareness for a campaign.
- Advice for launching your own crowdfunding initiative.
- The simple email strategy you can use to gain more supporters.
Mentioned During the Show
Linda’s KickStarter Profile – Take a look at Linda Jo Kushner’s submission to KickStarter. This is the campaign that raised $20,265 for Linda’s truck. You can also watch Linda’s video here as well.
How KickStarter Works – Learn more about this platform for fundraising. Thank you so much for your continued support. See you next time for another new episode!
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