NEW YORK, United States — The Jamaican Patty Company in Springfield, Missouri, which was spooked by a case of mistaken identity during last year’s US presidential election campaign, appears to have put the incident behind it and is expanding into a franchise operation.

Co-owner and manager of the company Du’Sean Howard was reportedly confronted on September 15 by an angry supporter of then Republican candidate Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance, insisting to know why the company was suing now-President Trump.

It subsequently turned out that the female supporter had mistaken Howard for a Haitian and the location of Springfield, Missouri for Springfield, Ohio, where Trump and Vance had famously accused Haitians of “eating the cats, they’re eating the dogs” of their neighbours.

Howard said at the time that he instantly realised that he was being mistaken for a Haitian. He said that as soon as he was able to satisfy his Caucasian accuser that he was not Haitian, or from Springfield, Ohio, the verbal assault ended.

The incident resulted in both Trump and Vance being sued by the Haitian Brigade Alliance, a Springfield, Ohio non-profit organisation.

“While I cannot speak to the incident being racial in tone, I take it seriously as it shows the measure of what can happen with false information and misunderstanding,” Howard said, noting that since the opening of the business in 2018, the company has had no issues with the community.

He told the Jamaica Observer that the Jamaican Patty Company had since moved on and was busy finalising the necessary paperwork to offer franchises for what he described as “a company with a bright future”.

“We have registered our trademark with the United States Patent Office (US – PTO) and the company is now fully patented. It was always our intention to go the franchise route. It took a little while, as getting to this point was quite tedious, but we are happy with the achievement,” Howard beamed.

“We are still evolving, but all the heavy lifting has already been done. It is now about employing a strategic marketing programme and customer service that will ensure that we succeed as a viable company.”

He said that while the company was yet to sign any contract with a franchisee, reaction to the latest move is generally positive.

“We already have a few prospects with whom we are currently working, and we do feel confident that we will be able to sign our first franchisee some time later this year. Plans to engage the services of a franchise broker or brokers are also in the pipeline,” he added.

Howard said that the franchise will offer two models — a brick and mortar model which will attract a fee of US$35,000 and a food truck model for which franchisees will pay US$12,500. Royalty is set at 5.5 per cent in both cases.

Candidates for the food truck model will be required to own their own vehicle while operating under company rules and its logo.

Howard said that in all cases “franchisees can expect hands-on guidance and training, which is critical to ensure the success of each franchise, as well as our own success going forward”.

Despite the bright outlook, Howard said he is also “cognizant of the current business environment as it relates to the matter of tariffs. It is something we will definitely be paying attention to”. He said, however, that “with the power of Brand Jamaica behind us… we should do well”.

Jamaican Patty Company is transitioning to franchising operations.