We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Crystal DaCruz a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Crystal , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
My name is Crystal DaCruz, I’m a first-generation Cape Verdean American and a Providence, Rhode Island native. I’ve always had a passion for writing, cooking and my Cape Verdean culture. I started my blog as a creative outlet in 2019. About a year into starting my blog, I noticed that Cape Verdean recipes were seriously under-represented online and wanted to contribute to the space in an effort to document our culture’s traditions and teach people how to make the dishes that they grew up on. My mission is to bring comfort food from Cape Verde and other island cultures to the table and the overall food scene.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m a 39 year old blogger, recipe developer and food photographer from Providence Rhode Island. My family came to Providence, RI from Sao Nicolau, Cabo Verde in the 1970’s. I went to school for fashion merchandising but have always had a talent for writing. I took a corporate job shortly after college that paid very well but was not ultimately what I wanted to do with my life. After I had my second child, I felt my creative side calling me.
In 2019 I started my blog as a creative outlet and in June of 2022 I made the decision to leave my corporate job and pursue blogging full time. It was at this time that I also I launched my digital consulting agency. I help businesses owners develop digital content and pricing strategies around their premium/high ticket services. In August I landed my first client. I also started a blogging mentorship where I help other bloggers get started and avoid many of the early mistakes I made in my blog.
What motivates me and sets me apart from others is my willingness to take risks, and my relentless pursuit of happiness and dedication to creating the life that I envision. I’ve always been goal oriented but this is the first time in my life that I have allowed myself to fully step into the person that I am becoming. My work, my brand and family allows me to wake up each day with a sense of purpose. I love being a creative entrepreneur and am grateful for the technology that allows me to run my business. I have truly stepped into my calling.
Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?
As a blogger, I am very fortunate to be in an industry that involves very little start up costs. I paid around $200 to launch my blog in 2019 and had virtually no overhead in the first year. As I learned more about blogging I started to invest in courses, coaches and software for my blog.
Food has always been an expense in my business, but I would work my recipes into my meal plan/personal budget for the week. Having a corporate job was helpful in the first few years of my blog because I was able to make those initial investments in myself and in my business.
The corporate job was what paid my bills until I was able to support myself with revenue from ads, sponsorships and coaching/consulting.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
The main things that I had to unlearn to make this leap into my business were my beliefs around my earning potential and what I am capable of. I’ve learned to really trust my intuition to stay the course and veer away from shiny objects. My goals started to manifest once I really started to believed in myself and trust that I was working on the right things. This self-trust me enabled me to stay consistent in my business and continue showing up even in times when I felt like I wasn’t making progress as quickly as I should. Knowing and trusting in yourself and vision is everything.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.crumbsnatched.com
- Instagram: @crumbsnatched
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/crumbsnatched
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-da-cruz-a5257937/
Image Credits
all images are my own