Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amber Williams. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Amber, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

The biggest risk I’ve taken had to be starting my business on a whim of faith – no savings, no clientele and nothing but a Facebook business page and an email address.

In 2014, I had been working in Corporate America for about 3 years now, my culinary school dreams had been deferred due to facing the cost of tuition coupled with the pile of student loan debt accumulated from college and I was, honestly, drifting into a depressed state. By now, I had been catering and building my eventual business in the little free time I had while working a full time corporate job, but balancing my focus between a job I hated that was paying my bills and the future business I’ve always wanted started to take a toll on my output in both spaces. At this point, I had not other place or person to turn to but God, so I asked Him, “what do I do” and I heard the most calmest voice say, “Jump”. With assurance and fear, I sealed my resignation letter with a final date addressed to my managers and I gave my 2-week notice and started my Full time entrepreneur journey as a Chef in Aug of 2015. It was the scariest thing I had ever done but one of my best friends told me something I’d never forget “Friend, you’re going to be the brokest you’ve ever been and the happiest you’ve ever been” Lol And while that probably didn’t seem like much encouragement back then; today, I fully understand, appreciate and am completely grateful for the validity and power behind that sentence. This journey has indeed brought some of the roughest and “brokest” moments I’ve ever experienced, but it has also brought me the most remarkable and life-changing joy I’ve ever felt. So I’d say that “jump” was a risk well taken!

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

Well, my name is Amber Williams, affectionately known as “Chef Amber”! I’m a proud Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas native , born and raised in a Food desert. As a Texas born foodie with Southern Louisiana roots so I like to say that I’m “Texas bread & Louisiana Fed”! I’ve had an obsession with food since I was a child and always wanted to recreate the same dining experiences I had with my family and friends as a child and share them with others. So at the age of 8, I set my eyes on becoming a Chef and making great food for people who loved food just as much as I did.

Currently, I am the Owner & Head Chef of Le Rouge Cuisine Food company based in Dallas, Tx. We are an elevated Creole Fusion Catering brand specializing in providing professional, customizable & unique Catering solutions for our Corporate, Private/Exclusive & Special Event clientele. Since 2014, my company has been serving the entire DFW metroplex with full service catering, Private Chef Experiences, and our new feature, Event dining rentals. The main function of my company is to SERVE WELL! Whether it’s creating a fabulous display of gourmet bites or teaching healthy cooking tips to students and adults, me and my team aim to serve the community and our clients well. My internal focus for my company is to create and maintain a sterling reputation for innovative offerings and experiences in the dining and hospitality world, while creating sustainable jobs and careers. The external focus is set on aiding food disparaged communities by bringing access and education to food deserts, much like the one I grew up in.

After being in business for nearly 8 years, I’m super proud of the work and impact that has been accomplished through this vision God gave to me. This grassroots business has grown and matured into a viable company steady on the journey to much more impact and tons of growth. – and i’m blessed because it wasn’t just me, it was the clients who entrusted their vision to me, my team and other vendors who banned together with me to serve our amazing clients and every person who sent a gentle word of encouragement while on this treacherous entrepreneurial path!

Le Rouge Cuisine is a place where everyone is the VIP guest! Plan for your guests to be swooned, your tastebuds to be astounded and your foodie dreams to become a reality. We bring a freshness, unique and elevated appeal to your most important events and gatherings and we look forward to serving you and yours WELL!

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

“Your Network is your Net Worth” is not just a catchy phrase but a necessary pillar for every successful entrepreneur. What helped me build my reputation is I made time to work ON my business, work IN my business and BE my business. You are your business – although the entity is separate, the brand exudes from who you are and people love to invest and build relationships with the person/people behind the brand, not just the brand itself. People want to do business with those they trust, this rapport also supports a higher chance of repeat business as well.

Now, I’m naturally an extrovert, so Introverts – don’t roll your eyes, but I love meeting new people so networking came somewhat easy for me, however, it can be a draining process but you have to put your best foot forward in this process. I make sure my clients know they matter so I support their businesses and endeavors so they know I care. On my social platforms, I make sure I’m appealing to my target audience, ensuring to give them quality content that entices them to become curious about the experience I’m selling. Also, I took advantage of City and Non-profit sponsored accelerator programs and Business education courses – a lot of these programs not only give your network an instant boost through peers and mentors, they sometimes come with potential grant/loan funds as well as continual business assistance and support systems as your business continues to grow. Pre-pandemic, I had a networking goal of 2 networking events per month – most of these events are free, your food and beverage tab can be written off as a business expense, this helps you iron out your sales pitch and you get to meet other great business owners just like you. So make sure you make time to BE your business and don’t just work IN your business.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

During the pandemic, ironically and surprisingly, my business grew tremendously during this time. And with growth came the pressure, stress and realization that I can’t handle this on my own. Spending 5+ years as a solo-entrepreneur, you learn to grow additional limbs when the demand gets high and some of you may know that sometimes things can move so fast that it’s hard to keep up – I definitely reached a point where it felt like business and life had left me in the dust and I desperately needed extra hands to propel me forward to catch up.

Thanks to receiving a few business grants awarded through city programs and accelerator courses, I was able to get a Virtual Assistant and my first Sous Chef to help me with production in the kitchen since I’d been acting as the chef team, sales team, marketing team and all for the last 5 years – it was long overdue! But with the presence of help, also came the struggle of accepting and utilizing my help since being accustomed to doing everything MY WAY. I quickly had to unlearn being a Team of 1 and start operating as the Leader/Manager/Head Chef of Le Rouge. This unlearning came with uncovering trust issues, “Control freak” tendencies, uprooting pride and opening my arms and heart to allowing others to help me with my vision and trusting they have my best interest at heart. I still struggle with this today but the only way I get through it and chomp away at those barriers to trust is taking it one day at a time, make one step at a time and learn to trust and lean on others one moment at a time.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.enterlerouge.com
• Instagram: @Lerougecuisine
• Facebook: Le Rouge Cuisine Food Company
• Linkedin: Chef Amber Williams
• Twitter: N/A
• Youtube: N/A
• Yelp: Le Rouge Cuisine Food Company

Image Credits
Jaren Collins Tim Plummer