We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ty’ya Goldsmith. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ty’ya below.

Ty’ya, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear from you about what you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry and why it matters.

I think many products are often advertised as “healthy” or “natural” while containing harmful ingredients or excessive calories, that creates confusion and distrust among consumers.

On top of that, nutrition labels often show data based on unrealistic serving sizes to make calories, sugar, or fat appear lower.

If you look at a front of a cereal box for example, it might say it is high in protein but the back will reveal high sugar and artificial flavors and preservatives – that’s really details many consumers don’t even closely examine.

This kind of marketing fosters a false sense of healthfulness which contributes to poor dietary decisions and rises obesity rates.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a Licensed Chef with the State of Michigan and I am 18 years old. I started when I was 14. It all started as a joke actually. You see, I love to cook. I use to cook with my great grandmother before she passed away. Some of my desserts that I prepare are her recipes. She taught me so much and cooking with her always put a smile on my face. I never considered it work but a joyous occasion in the kitchen.

I asked my mom would it be fun one day to cook and sell dinners. She told me to prepare a dish so she could taste it. I prepared Chicken Alfredo and she loved it. She took a picture and posted it on social media. I said “it would be so cool if I got just 5 orders”! My mom said to my surprise, “Well we have over 30 orders so you better get to cooking”! The rest is history. I have been getting orders ever since. I had a website and I have catered graduation parties, I have cooked for weddings, and family brunches.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

When I started cooking I was only 13. I did not have any funds of course and relied on my mom to assist me. We both learned the business together. However I was passionate enough in what I wanted to do and she could see that so we made a deal. I promise to prepare dishes that would taste wonderful and my mom said she would start paying for what we need to get started. We honestly had no idea what was in store and with any business you learn lessons along the way.

My mom invested in business cards, equipment, food, commerical kitchen, etc, and eventually my business started paying for itself. I did no idea Tasty Ty’ya would turn into what it is today but over the years I have had the pleasure of being on Fox 2 Detroit News several times, I’ve had my business mentioned on the radio Hot 107.5 in Michigan and several interviews at the radio station Mix 92.3 with Bushman. I’ve also had the honor of being in 4 magazines.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Social Media can be a wonderful tool if you use it properly. I host allot of popup shops and have been able to meet several vendors this way. I even collaborated with others in the past to see if we can make the events more memorable.

My upcoming popups are March 25, 2025, July6, 2025 and the one I am most excited about is August 3rd. Last year my Back-to-School Popup had 589 in attendance. This year for every $10 you spend you can receive a book bag and the first 125 kids also get FREE school supplies. I have done this for the past 4 years. I have had trains, I’ve had the fire station come out and the kids have been able to get on the truck and take photos. It is always a wonderful time when you assist others. I have given back to may charities also.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tasty-tyya.com
• Instagram: tasty_tyya
• Facebook: Taste Tyya

Image Credits

Pictures taken by my mom and I and at the Fox 2 News Studio.