Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Erica Robinson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Erica, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?
How we came up with the name “No Meat No Cheese” was very simple lol. When someone ask what is Vegan? Most vegans say It’s no meat no cheese, honey, eggs, etc.
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 started out making vegan meals and selling them at Vegan pop-up festivals throughout Central Florida. Our “Lollipop Wangz”, Meatless Meatballs, & Vegan Cutlets are what we are known for. When Covid hit, business came to a halt so I decided to perfect my craft more, and started dropping off samples to anyone & everyone that was willing to meet with me from the food industry. I then started to package my meatless items in hopes of getting into local stores. After months of searching & hearing the word “No!” The Villages Grown welcomed me and my products into their retail store and family.
My products are; Lollipop Wangz, Meatless Meatballs, Pepperoni, Chorizo/Mexican Italian Sausage Crumbles & Slices.
What sets No Meat No Cheese apart from others is, I listen to customer feedback and personally take the time out to communicate with all my of them. Also I run every part of the company; from website/SEO, social media marketing, shopping, paper work, cooking, production, delivery, and more.
I am proud that I have the support & love of my community, that pushes me to not give up no matter all of the daily challenges that I face.
I want everyone to know that I am still going until I see my manifestations come to fruition. Which is that great, healthy, vegan food should be affordable and available to every household.
Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?
I personally manufacture my products. Omg I had no clue where to start after I got my LLC. I called so many people, asked Siri, called Florida Department of Revenue, Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, commissary kitchens. And finally Pro Kitchen assisted with pointing me in the right direction. I have learned so much about the importance of food safety such as: time temperature control, viruses that can be transmitted through food, shelf life, and I was so lucky to have such a helpful and attentive inspector.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
I believe that my reputation of affordable pricing helped to build my reputation. Too, my food is good and created from scratch with love. I never copied any of my colleagues ideas, I worked hard on perfecting my recipes and craft.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nomeatnocheese.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nomeatnocheese1/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nomeatandnocheese/?ref=pages_you_manage
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erica-robinson-414b58185/
Image Credits
Julian photographed the “Chkun & Waffles’ and Meatball Sub Erica Robinson photographed all the rest