Latest / GlowInto / The Story of Meggan Sandusky
Transcript
- Jen: Welcome to the Glow'2 Podcast. I'm Jen, and these are the women of Glowin' Two. In honor of Women Owned Small Business Month, we're revisiting Megan Sandusky, co-owner of Beastcraft Barbecue. When we support a small business, we don't always know the people or the decisions behind it. Sharing their stories gives us a chance to look a little closer. Today I'm telling Megan's story, Building Something That Lasts. With four children, fourteen, seven, five, and three, and a business that has been part of her world for over a decade, her days are full in a way that doesn't separate neatly. Everything overlaps. Home, work, responsibility, growth, it all exists at the same time, constantly asking her to shift where she's needed most. Beastcraft Barbecue, the restaurant she and her husband David opened in 2014, is part of that story, but it is only one part. What defines Megan's path is not just what they built, but how she grew into the roles that came with it. For Megan, adulthood didn't begin with marriage, and it didn't begin with motherhood. When she had her first child at 28, her experience didn't immediately match the version of motherhood she had imagined. There was love, of course, but there was also something lighter about it. Her relationship with her first child felt more like companionship in those early years, like having a constant sidekick beside her as she moved through life. She was my child, but she was also kind of like my friend, my buddy, she says. It wasn't that the responsibility wasn't there, it just hadn't fully settled in yet. That understanding came later, gradually and then all at once, as more was added into her life. Up until opening the restaurant, she had begun doing all the things that look like adulthood from the outside. Working, building a life, raising her first child, but creating the restaurant shifted something internally. The responsibility was no longer contained to her own life. It extended outward to employees, to customers, to something that depended on her ability to show up, whether she felt ready or not. They didn't have the luxury of hesitation. The opportunity came together quickly. A space, a conversation, a decision. Somewhere along the way, Megan found a smoker on Facebook Marketplace, and what had been undefined suddenly had direction. They invested what they had, did the work themselves, and opened before they felt fully prepared. We weren't ready to open, but we had to, she says. It wasn't positioned as a grand moment. It was simple. Let's do it. And they did. And what they had wasn't certain. It was an opportunity and a willingness to move on it. As Beastcraft Barbecue grew, so did the expectations around it. Jennifer Joyner: If your business serves Women 40 and beyond, Glow In2 is now offering introductory media packages designed to help you do more than advertise. We want to help you tell your story, share your expertise, and build a stronger connection with the women you want to reach. Our media packages can include a feature story about you, your business, opportunities to contribute your expertise through articles and educational content, a dedicated podcast episode. Where we tell your story, ongoing podcast advertising, social media promotion, newsletter exposure, and additional visibility throughout the GlowinTwo platform. The goal is to give your business more than a single mention. It is about creating repeated, meaningful opportunities for people to get to know who you are, what you do, and why your work matters. If you'd like to learn more about becoming a Glowin Two media partner, Reach out to Jennifer Joyner at glowin2.com or simply use the contact button at glowin2.com. GlowinTwo is for real women, real stories, and wisdom for what's next. Jen: A turning point came when a wildly talked about Riverfront Times article brought a surge of attention, pushing the restaurant into a new level of visibility. That's when I was like, okay, we've got a lot of work to do. What started as a single restaurant in Belleville quickly became something that required more time, more energy, and more of both of them than they could have anticipated. In the early years there was no separation between life and work. It was all intertwined, long hours, constant problem solving, and the kind of pressure that forces you to figure things out as you go. As Beastcraft Barbecue grew, so did the scope of what they were building. The restaurant gained traction and with that came new opportunities along with new challenges. They expanded into additional spaces, including locations connected to St. Louis City Soccer and Washington University, finding ways to grow the brand beyond a single storefront. There was also the expansion into the grove, an ambitious move that reflected both confidence and momentum at the time, but like many decisions in business, it came with lessons that only become clearer in hindsight. We learned a lot, probably more than we expected to, she says. When COVID hit, it forced decisions they hadn't planned on making so soon. Stepping away from that location wasn't easy, but it became part of the larger reality of owning something that doesn't always move in a straight line. Those experiences didn't stop them, but they changed them. They became more aware, more intentional, and more focused on how to build something that could last beyond constant effort. But while the business expanded outward, Megan found her place behind the scenes. Megan's role in all of this has never been defined by visibility. She is not the one in front of the camera, not the one most people immediately associate with the business, but her presence is embedded in ways that are just as important. She understands how things should feel, how a brand connects, how it is experienced, how it extends beyond what's right in front of someone, from packaging ideas for their sauces. To thinking about how the business shows up in the community. Her perspective shapes the parts of the business people don't always see. I don't like to be front and center, but I do like knowing I have a part in what's going on, she says. She is not drawn to the spotlight, but understands exactly what it takes to build something people remember. She admits David is the brand, a role she is passionate about supporting. Over time, she has begun to recognize what she brings, structure, creativity, and the ability to see both the details and the bigger picture. It's not secondary. It's foundational. Beastcraft barbecue was never just about the food. It was about what they were creating around it, something that brought people together, something felt consistent, something people returned to, not just for a meal, but for the experience of it. And at its core, it's partnership. David brings the culinary vision, the systems, the discipline of the kitchen. Megan brings the structure behind the scenes, the branding, the presentation, the way the business connects beyond what's on the plate. Neither works the same without the other. Motherhood too continued to evolve. Seven years passed between her first and second child, with the business growing rapidly in between. Then came more children. Closer together, each adding a new layer to a life. That was already full. By the time she had her fourth, just days before turning 40, everything had shifted. Motherhood no longer felt like companionship. It required structure, presence, and constant decision making. There was less space to ease into things, and more need to simply show up and handle what was in front of her. Santa Anna Ct 3: Big ideas are exciting, but turning them into something real? Hey, that's where the magic happens. I'm Shannon Shores, founder of Bertie Mae Consulting. I help business owners and women in leadership turn big ideas into bold moves through clarity, confidence, and actual strategy. Because having a dream is one thing, but having the courage and a plan to chase it, that's everything. Stop playing small. Bet on yourself. Birdie Mae Consulting. Big ideas, bold moves, real growth. Jen: And then came a period that tested everything at once. COVID reshaped daily life. School moved into the home. She began to recognize that her daughter needed more support than she had previously realized. At the time, the business required attention in entirely new ways. There were stretches where something had to give. And for Megan, that meant stepping back from the business, not because she wanted to, but because her family needed her to. Those years weren't about moving forward. They were about holding everything together. At 40, Megan received an ADHD diagnosis, something that in hindsight made sense of much of what she experienced for years. For the first time, my brain wasn't going in ten different directions, she says. What had once felt like constant mental noise began to settle. The ability to focus, to organize thoughts, to follow through in a more structured way, it all shifted. It didn't change who she was. But it changed how she moved through her life. And in many ways, it marked the beginning of a new level of clarity. And now at 43, she is stepping back into the business with a different perspective. Not from the beginning, but experience. Her role is becoming more defined, moving into operations, organization, and the kind of behind-the-scenes structure that allows everything else to function more smoothly. At the same time, she and David are making decisions, not just about growth, but about sustainability. The goal is no longer just to build something successful. It's to build something that doesn't require everything from them all the time. Working on the business, not just in it. That shift has extended beyond the business as well. And for the first time in years, there is a space to focus on their health, their routines, and the life they're creating outside of what they built. It's not about doing more. It's about doing things differently. Megan reflects that earlier in life there's a tendency to look outward, to measure, to compare, to wonder if you're doing enough or doing it all the right way. Over time, that noise quiets. When asked what she would tell her younger self, her answer is simple, but it carries weight. Make time for the things you want to try, not later. Not when everything settles down now. Because the things that continue to pull you, the ideas, the interests, the curiosity, don't go away. They wait, and too often they get pushed aside in favor of what feels more urgent. There's more opportunities out there than you think. If you're going to do it, do it, she says. Megan's story reflects something seen across many of the women of Glow and Two. There is rarely a single defining moment. Where everything becomes clear. More often it's a series of decisions made in real time, stepping into responsibility before feeling fully ready, building alongside a partner, adjusting when life shifts unexpectedly, and continuing forward with the perfect plan. The paths are different, but the pattern is familiar, because sometimes the most meaningful parts of life aren't the ones that draw attention first. They are the ones that quietly hold everything together, steady, dependable, and essential in ways that don't always get named, but are always felt. October brings four more stories from four incredible women, each with her own experiences, turning points, and possibilities ahead. We begin with Regina Dawkins, who reminds us: don't be so afraid, be okay with who you are. Then Janine Lang, who stepped into a new chapter as an author. If I can see it, I can be it. Coming up, Marianne Moore shares a perspective worth remembering. I'm not done, not even close to being done. And we'll finish the month with Jamie Petty who says I know that whatever situation I go into, I'm going to be okay because I'm going to figure it out. So discover their stories throughout October at glow and two dot com for real women, real stories, and real wisdom for what's next. Thank you for listening to the Glow'2 Podcast. You can read Megan's story and discover more stories of the women of Glowin' Two at glowin' two.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for all the latest Glowin' Two updates and sign up for our newsletter, Glow Notes. It arrives mid-month, every month, with the next issue coming out this Saturday, October 17th. And until next time, keep glowing into who you were always meant to be.