We recently connected with Leslie Chernila and have shared our conversation below.
Leslie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One deeply underappreciated facet of entrepreneurship is the kind of crazy stuff we have to deal with as business owners. Sometimes it’s crazy positive sometimes it’s crazy negative, but crazy experiences unite entrepreneurs regardless of industry. Can you share a crazy story with our readers?
I don’t think the birth of my business is exactly “crazy” but it is pretty cool. While living in Central Mexico in 2017, my kids and i discovered a Chimichurri sauce served with pizza and it was addictive. The spicy sauce came in packets and i found myself grabbing handfuls each time we ordered pizza. We started putting it on everything! Steak, seafood, chicken-you name it! Then we moved 5 hours away to another town in Mexico and naturally believed we could still find the sauce but alas, it was nowhere. When we returned t the US in 2020, i lamented to a friend how much I missed the delicious, creamy condiment and she kindly sent me her family recipe from Aguascalientes. The day I made it for myself and kids, we were ecstatic! It tasted exactly how we remembered it. A month later I took it to a Super Bowl party and served it with tacos. One friend adamantly suggested i sell it because it’s just that good. The idea seemed enticing but i knew nothing about having a food business and sat on the dream for about 10 months. My youngest son signed up for the Young Americans Bank Youth Marketplace and decided to sell the sauce. It was such a hit that once I heard about RMMFI, i took a chance and applied for their Bootcamp.
Leslie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’ve always loved sauces and dips. Hollandaise, Béarnaise, creamy beef stroganoff, hummus, artichoke and spinach and tzatziki are just a few but the sauce we now call Chimi Caliente is something i add to my daily meals. The original recipe is HOT so I’ve created 3 spice levels to suit everyone. 1 kick, 2 kicks and 3 kicks gives folks a variety from mild to super spicy.
My dream is to one day have Chimi Caliente in restaurants and in major grocery stores. As a single mom, i have to keep a roof over our heads and work full-time as a teacher. It is often challenging and feels hard t obtain my goals at times but I’ll get there!
Conversations about M&A are often focused on multibillion dollar transactions – but M&A can be an important part of a small or medium business owner’s journey. We’d love to hear about your experience with selling businesses.
In 2009 I decided that i needed a break from education. I’d made the mistake of going into administration which took me out of the classroom. I opted to start my own dog walking and pet sitting business to exchange an office building for an outdoor office. I loved it because animals show love and appreciation when people don’t always do so. I successfully ran Denver Dog Nanny until 2017 when I sold it to one of my employees and moved to Mexico. It was hard. During those years, i worked holidays, took my young boys along with me to clients’ homes, had them out walking dogs in the cold and the heat. One Christmas i could only spend 30 minutes with them before I had to leave to take care of 30+ pets. But I fulfilled another dream by all of that hard work-taking my boys to live in a different country.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
I’m not a cook. I do okay and we are well fed in my home but the kitchen has never been a place I stay in for too long. But my passion and joy for Chimi Caliente is what drives me to succeed. The look on people’s faces when they try it for the first time is priceless. I want to share this sauce with people everywhere and i have to continue to work on my business to make this deal come true.
Contact Info:
- Website: saucesllc.com
- Instagram: saucesllc
- Other: Tik Tok @saucesllc