We recently connected with Bidisha and have shared our conversation below.

Bidisha , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?

I was new in town and did not know many people. I had just learnt about Nextdoor app where I was looking for plumbers and electricians and thought of adding my classes there! To my surprise, I had neighbors signing up for my classes! I expanded the classes and created my business ‘Create Your Curry’!

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?

As an immigrant woman with a PhD in Human and Cultural Geography I was always interested in sharing my culture and stories. And food seemed to be the best medium to do that. We gather around the table, exchange ideas and talk about food and culture while preparing a delicious home cooked meal of 4-5 items

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

Covid was a major setback but to stay afloat I took the opportunity to rebuild my website and started a food exchange program where we would drop off home cooked food at friends’ doorsteps. Post Covid, my business turned a corner. Many people realized that they did not want material gifts, instead they wanted experience with friends and family. Also, the prices of grocery went up , so cooking became more of a life skill than just a hobby or fun. Currently I also teach cooking classed to young college students enrolled in nutrition classes. This year I have been invited to teach kindergarten students!

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Word of mouth and Google reviews seems to have worked best. Someone who had attended a class often sent other friends or family members or came back with a different group.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://createyourcurry.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/createyourcurry/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/createyourcurry/