We were lucky to catch up with Leurisa Watson recently and have shared our conversation below.

Leurisa, appreciate you joining us today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

I fell in love with cooking as a freshman in high school. I wanted to venture into the culinary world post graduation. However, it didn’t appear to be a profitable decision at the time. Instead, I went to a 4-year college and pursued a career in Corporate Accounting. Similar to everyone else, I moved through life. I got married and had children. I always felt unhappy and unfulfilled in my career. In 2016, I suffered a traumatic loss and began to view life differently. While on maternity leave in 2018, I started researching culinary school as a transitive option. The universe aligned when I returned to my corporate job to discover my company had been purchased and I was being laid off. I started culinary school within the week and haven’t looked back. I officially started my business, J Rose Events, in January of 2018.

To answer the question, I do wish I would have started my business earlier in life. I think that starting earlier, I would experience the growing pains in a different light. I would have been more flexible with my time and attention, as I did not have a family yet, I could have gone to culinary school right out of high school and spent time immersed in the profession, taking advantage of more opportunities and soaking in the knowledge. Although, I still like to think I seize opportunities and continue to grow and learn, I do believe the process would have been easier had I started when I was younger.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am Chef Watts. I was always the kid in the kitchen wanting to help my mom cook. I loved watching her put meals together for our family. As I got older, my interest in food grew. Eventually, I took the leap and went to culinary school and started my business as a private chef and caterer.

I provide private chef services for the busy family. I prepare meals at my customer’s homes so they can enjoy home cooked meals at their leisure instead of eating unhealthy take out all the time. I also provide event chef services for special occassions, such as date nights, anniversaries, birthdays, or anything you feel like celebrating. In addition to the private chef services, I offer catering, family meals, and scratch-made desserts.

I think that my attention to detail and the personality I incorporate into my food sets me apart from others. I really do make everything with love and leave a little part of me with the client experience. I don’t just cook food, I create experiences and take my clients on a culinary journey,

I am most proud of my relaiblility and my creativity. I have never not shown up for a client and I always give them more than they expected. I have outstanding customer service, as I patiently curate customized experiences to fit any occassion.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

I mostly market via social media, but word of mouth has definitely been the most effective way for me to gain clientele. I create word of mouth through outstanding service, which encourages previous clients to refer me to others. I also network and partner with a variety of small business owners around the city to help gain clientele.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

My favorite marketing story is hands down my first professional promo video. Even though we enlisted a family friend to shoot the footage, I was so nervous. I hate how I sound in video and speaking on camera gives me major anxiety. The crew came in all professional and put me at ease. They advised me to just do my thing and they will make it work. I ended up having a good time showing off in the kitchen and doing what I was the most comfortable with. The added bonus was we chose to not have a speaking part in the video and put it to music instead. I really enjoyed the experience and the video was a hit amongst my followers.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jroseevents.com
• Phone: 361-265-8864
• Instagram: JRoseEvents
• Facebook: J Rose Events