We recently connected with LaToya Wilson and have shared our conversation below.

LaToya, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

In 2017, I left a comfortable, 20-year career to pursue purpose (full-time). I’d always thought of cooking as a passion, so for the last 10 years of my corporate career, I catered events and cooked for clients on weekends (and while taking vacation days from my job). When I first starting cooking for pay, it was a fun means of making extra money. However, around 2015, I began to dread going to work each day, turned into that person I usually avoided… the complainer. At the time, I couldn’t figure out why I disliked my job so much, just had no motivation to go in each day. I was thinking I just needed to change positions, but soon after doing that, the feelings resurfaced again. As I began to take off work more to cook for clients, I realized that my passion was more than just a passion- I began to feel a shift that it was a gift that was leading me towards my purpose. So I began to craft a plan to pursue my purpose full-time. Of course, I tried talking myself out of giving up that “guaranteed”, bi-weekly paycheck because I had grow up responsibilities, a son about to go to college and a daughter still in high school. But to the contrary, my son and daughter were the main reasons I decided to take the risk. I had preached to them, all of their lives, the importance of recognizing the talent God had gifted them with and our responsibility of living in our purpose. While the journey has been painful and met with much loss and very expensive lessons (running a ghost kitchen for a while and realizing, after investing my savings, that it was not conducive to my overall purpose plan), taking that risk of leaving a comfortable, yet unrewarding career to follow purpose has been the best decision I’ve made.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I fell into the catering and personal chef industries by happenstance. I learned how to cook while in college, couldn’t cook more than a burger and fries prior to college. I often say that I learned to cook out of survival! Aside from calling my mom and grandma every day to ask them how to make my favorite dishes, I became a Food Network binge watcher. Mind you, this was early 90s, no TikTok or IG chefs to teach me. I would watch Emeril Lagasse, every chance I got and began to make his dishes. Friends would come over to eat and at that point, the love and passion for cooking was born. Over the years, I would continue to work on my craft, and was eventually introduced to someone who loved to cook as much as I did and we formed a catering business together in Birmingham, AL. On weekends, we’d cater concert concessions, worked our way to cooking for the artists and crews backstage, and soon began to cater weddings and corporate meetings. I would take vacation days from my 9-5 to meet the growing obligations of our catering business.

After years of catering, customers began asking if I would cater events at their homes or meal prep for them and soon I began to offer personal chef services. I immediately fell in love with the more intimate events, because it was a way to connect to my customer on a more personal level. Not only was I doing what I loved, but I was also solving a problem that many people have each day… I’m giving them back their time. Many individuals and families are strapped for time, but still want to eat well during the week and entertain in their homes on weekends. The pivot into personal chef services has also been very rewarding. I’m also currently partnering with a Sports Management company, offering meal prep to their clients.

What sets me apart from others in my field is that my goal is to feed my clients just as I feed my family, with love. Cooking for others is not a game for me, it’s my purpose. Every bite taken is crafted with the freshest ingredients, down to my homemade sauces and dressings. I love remixing dishes that we grew up on, making them just as delicious- but a little better for us. I know that I can’t always control how food was grown, but I CAN control what I add to it when it touches my hands.

While my college degree is not in Culinary, it served its purpose in allowing me to work in a field that introduced me to some of my biggest supporters and clients to this day. I’m most proud of having the guts (Faith) to walk away from what was comfortable in order to walk in purpose- a purpose that it now paying off because I get to wake up and do what I love each and every day.

I want potential clients and followers to know that they don’t just get a meal from me, they get an experience. My services consist of Intimate Date Nights for individuals (self-care) and couples- where I come to the clients home and prepare a curated meal while they get to relax, indulge, and enjoy each other (or self) and treat themselves to an experience many feel they don’t deserve. I have cooked for young couples, older, and in-between and they all end the evening with a feeling of bliss. I also provide meal prep services to athletes and busy families. Again, many feel they don’t deserve to treat themselves to a personal chef that prepares their weekly meals, they feel they can’t afford it. I disagree and stress that eating well is not a luxury, but a necessity. Being able to just warm a delicious meal up, after a stressful day, is the essence of selfcare. I also offer dinner party service to parties of 20 or less, where I come into the clients’ homes and prepare the ultimate dinner party for them and their guests. From girls’ night in, to philanthropic dinners, my clients and their guests are left with an amazing experience with only lifting fingers to eat and enjoy a nice glass of wine.

Cooking, for me, is my happy place. I can be stressed to the max, but when I step into the kitchen, all cares of life melt away. Seeing smiles on my clients’ faces and getting text messages and emails asking for more of my homemade Cider Vinaigrette Dressing makes my heart smile.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Soon after making the decision to leave corporate America to cook full-time, I was involved in a car accident that left me unable to use both hands for six months! Yes, my hands are my gift, yet I couldn’t use them. Losing the use of my hands left me confused about what I thought I was supposed to be doing and in a mental state that I thought I would never recover from.

However, during that time, my previous volunteer connections led me to being asked by a local school principal to teach cooking classes in an after school program. After explaining about the accident and the inability to use my hands, she provided an assistant for the classes who could help with the physical aspects. It was there, that I found another layer of serving in my purpose. And while it was a slight detour in my plans, it allowed me to, again, connect with others who would shape my path into purpose.

Sure, I lost material things, but essentially gained a new following in busy parents that needed meals prepared for them each week.

But the most rewarding part of what I thought was a major setback- was that I was also able to connect with students who couldn’t find their path in sports and other popular activities. Through my classes, they had found something that they finally connected with. And while it sounds like I was there for them, they were actually there to teach me lessons that I would need on this journey… prior to the accident, I was focused on me, and me only. Each day, I would get up and ask myself how I would get what I needed out of the day- how can I assure I can survive and pay bills with my talents. Time with those students taught me that my gifts are about service to others, and serving others is what brings me great joy! They gave me the strength to buckle up and jump back in the saddle.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I made a slight mention earlier about operating a ghost kitchen. After researching and saving for many years, I launched a ghost kitchen in February 2022. For those unfamiliar with the concept, it’s a delivery and carryout only restaurant business where you depend on delivery apps and walk-ups to thrive. And while the brand was catching on and growing with support from the community, I had to make the harsh decision to pivot and close after less than six months in business. Although the venture was only supposed to be a short term incubator into a brick and mortar anyways, it didn’t hurt any less to make that decision to close.

To potentially save face and continue to operate in a facility that could harm my brand, I was almost willing to keep at it, just to say I would finish what I started. So for me, it was important to first pivot mentally, and then everything began to make sense.

Often times, as entrepreneurs, we think that walking away from situations, and even business partners that no longer serve us as failure. However, to the contrary, in my case. walking away allowed my business to grow and attract customers that I was previously geographically inaccessible to.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.cheftoyaandco.com/
• Instagram: @cheftoyaandco

Image Credits
Headshot Taken by photographer, Miles Wilson