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

Chelsey, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

Inherently, I think the concept of success is somewhat subjective — it can mean something quite different for different people, and I think it’s pretty amazing that on some level, we are all chasing something different. But you first have to know how you define success and what it looks like for you. For me, success looks balanced: I feel successful because I have a thriving business, but I’m not always working. People recognize and know me as much for my business as they do for being friendly, sharing other hobbies, being present in the community, etc. Being successful also means that I’m not chasing every single job or inquiry, that I am not compromising the parts of my life that I worked so hard to balance for every job that crosses my path.

But being successful takes dedication and commitment, not just to the business but to that vision of success you’ve for yourself. It’s easy to get wrapped up in work all the time, to make yourself available for every inquiry, to compromise in order to win a job under the guise of fighting for your business. But holding fast to your boundaries and value ultimately delivers so much more.

It’s funny how my idea of success and what I think it takes to achieve it has changed as I’ve gotten older. In my 20s, it was 16 hour work days, taking on anything I could. Today, it’s about value, knowing it, and translating that to my business.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I always joke that the story of Petal & Rind was accidental.

I had actually created the brand itself many years prior with the intention of a totally different business: I was making cocktail bitters and loved how the name was a nod to the botanicals that go into creating these bitters (fun fact: the slogan was “How Bitter Are You?” which I still laugh about). That venture just sort of fizzled out as my life got busier with other things but one day a couple years ago, a friend asked if I would help her plan her 40th birthday and she just wanted a giant snack table so of course I just said “yes” thinking I’ll just figure it out. It turned out really great (well, what I thought was great at the time) and from that party, someone asked to hire me for something else, and another and another. So Petal & Rind was re-born into this new charcuterie brand.

I think there’s always the undercurrent challenge of someone thinking they can just go to the store and get some meat and cheese to do it themselves, but that’s not the problem I solve. My goal is source incredible, specialty ingredients, create something stunning, and give you back all that time and energy. I try to be thoughtful in creating exceptional grazes that make a statement, capture the theme or vision, and allow my clients to fully enjoy their party or focus on other aspects. I’m truly so proud of the trust I’ve developed with my clients who give me the basics and allow me to get super creative and run with it!

It’s just so much more than meat and cheese – it’s about the communal experience in gathering and there is so much value in having something like that at your event, be it a wedding, corporate party, birthday, bridal shower, anything! The possibilities are endless and it doesn’t always have to be a traditional grazing table or platter. I can feature different cuisines, we can source special ingredients, and even design a table scape curated just for that event. That’s my hope for Petal & Rind: that clients recognize that they can dream up something special and we can make it happen!

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

I feel very fortunate that my business has grown almost exclusively by word of mouth. Since Petal & Rind is still quite small (but busy), I haven’t yet invested heavily in much marketing but even without it, I find that more and more my months are fully booked! I’ve hit a new personal record of bookings: 12 in one month and I couldn’t be more proud and grateful. Of course, I owe a lot of this growth to very supportive friends and family, but I also proudly talk about my business whenever I can!

Just recently I was hired to do a grazing table for a grand opening for a local business. Driving there, I found myself counting all the businesses I’ve done work for .. 5 other small businesses in a 1-mile stretch who have all asked me to help them celebrate something. That realization hit me like a ton of bricks, in the best possible way and it is so cool to look back and see not only how many businesses I’ve gotten to work with, but how many have become loyal clients.

My social media following is still pretty small, but I try to always post, tag, and/or collaborate with my clients so I get more visibility and I’m noticing that people are finding me more and more on Instagram, which is honestly a dream come true. I have some amazingly talented vendor partners/friends who support my business, shout me out, and refer me and the growth from that has been more tangible than I think traditional marketing could even be for me.

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

In 2018, I left the hospitality industry behind for a more balanced life and I actually found myself running the Food & Beverage program for a local tech company. But in 2020, right after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the company went through it’s very first round of layoffs and I unfortunately was part of that group. It was a really devastating time: the Pandemic was in full-swing, I was in escrow on my house, and the job market was tough. I couldn’t find a job right away and was taking on odd jobs to make money. I worked for an Estate Sale company helping with their big sales. This was actually a really fun job and I saw some beautiful homes, art, and other interesting things people have collected along the way. I found a full-time remote admin job but it was a tremendous pay-cut so I applied and began working part-time at a local boutique spin-studio. The owner became one of my closest friends, and it was her 40th that ultimately launched Petal & Rind.

It’s so cliche, but that saying “when one door closes, another opens” really was so true for me. I look back and couldn’t be more grateful for getting laid off: it was an un-fulfilling job with no flexibility and the opportunities that arose out of leaving it might not have ever happened for me if things didn’t happen the way they did.

I try to keep that sentiment going: you just never know what might happen, even when something disappointing starts the chain reaction!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @petal.and.rind