Last spring, two Texas State sophomores turned a shared craving for better crawfish into a bold business venture. Jagger Lechler, agricultural business and management sophomore, and Riley Mella, finance sophomore, took a risk and pulled their combined finances to found Bobcat Crawfish Co.
The crawfish company was costly to start between equipment, gas and travel the pair were uncertain if their business would break even. Though the company quickly gained popularity Jagger said they never intended for the business to be a financial venture but rather a fun passion project.
“We were both very broke college students… we realized that the crawfish around us is either very expensive or not very good,” Lechler said.
This realization sparked a conversation between him and Mella about providing the San Marcos community with quality, affordable crawfish in the area. Their personal connections to the culinary world fueled their desire to provide locals with better seafood.
“My family’s from Louisiana, [Lechler’s] family’s in the restaurant business as well and has a lot of ties to seafood… so we already kind of knew what we were getting ourselves into,” Mella said.
The company quickly began making waves in the San Marcos community, with Bobcat Crawfish Co. becoming a go-to choice for crawfish boils. The pair catered graduation parties, sorority events and boat parties.
Both Mella and Lechler’s fathers have played a significant role in their success, offering advice based on their own experiences. Although the pair has other jobs, they do everything possible to reinvest their earnings into the business, hoping to grow in success.
“Crawfish is just one season out of the year… so it can be really hectic trying to get everything in order just because you never know how much it’s really gonna cost until a few days before the week of,” Mella said.
Lechler and Mella involve their fraternity brothers from Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE), giving them the opportunity to earn some extra money and learn valuable business skills. Although Greek Life helped the business grow, many of the brothers volunteered to help out without pay to be involved and have a good time.
“The goal was never just to sell food — it was to create a space where people could come together, share a meal and feel like part of a family,” Lechler said.
The SAE brothers’ plan is to expand Bobcat Crawfish Co. and affiliate it with Texas State with aspirations of eventually franchising to other schools.
“I think it’s gonna actually be insane,” Lechler said. “Like the amount of money that we’ve already made and we haven’t even started. Like it’s pretty crazy.”
Carson Geis, construction science sophomore, started his journey with the business as a freshman when he rushed SAE and became the go-to guy for corn and potatoes at crawfish boils. He said the upcoming season will be bigger and better, with a chance to grow it outside of San Marcos. To promote the business, Geis’ built connections with local organizations, including Texas State’s sports teams like Texas State baseball.
“No matter what, we will take care of you… We will take the benefit of the doubt and just do whatever is best to our abilities just to see smiles on faces,” Geis said.
To learn more about Bobcat Crawfish Co., visit its Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/p/Bobcat-Crawfish-Co-61557997601441/ or its Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/bobcatcrawfish/.
