Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Danielle Mattocks. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Danielle, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How do you feel about asking friends and family to support your business? What’s appropriate, what’s not? Where do you draw the line?
I have a very large family, and I am grateful, that they have been supportive of my small business since its formation. Upon, presenting my idea of “The Brunch Lady”, I explained my purpose and mission of sharing my hobby of cooking with the public, which brought much motivation and encouragement. Luckily, I haven’t had to ask my friends and family to support my business, as it has been instinctive. A large aspect of my business thrives from social media, therefore many of my friends and family participate in making others aware of the services I provide by sharing my business pages with their friends and family, or through “word of mouth”.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Danielle Mattocks, and I am the owner and founder, of Bon TRAPpetit, LLC, a thriving catering company within the Charlotte, NC/Upstate, SC area. Bon TRAPpetit (Tasty Recipes and Presentations) began in August 2020, however my passion for cooking was established within my earlier years. Shockingly, cooking was not a beginning career for me, as my first love within the corporate field was social work. During the rise of COVID, the ideal aspect of gatherings were no more, and many of us found hobbies to entertain ourselves. One of my hobbies including delving myself into creating recipes and sharing them with the public. As the presence of social media increased as a form of entertainment, I began sharing my daily dinner meals via Instagram and Facebook. A co-worker of mine, raved of the breakfast cuisine that I made for my family, and asked if I could prepare a breakfast spread for her daughter who was graduating that year. At the time, restaurant gatherings were still at a minimum. I agreed, and prepared a beautiful spread for her and her family, and transported the items to them. After introducing this beautiful breakfast spread to social media, I can literally say that the demand for this presentation increased tremendously. Ironically, I had only completed this breakfast spread for fun, and had no interest in commercially preparing any food.
This began Bon TRAPpetit, LLC. Soon after, I began catering brunch style cuisine on a weekly basis, while also working within my career of social work. Currently, I have graduated to preparing not only brunch style cuisines, but also creating and completing a myriad of events to include: baby showers, dinner parties, corporate luncheons, private dinners, picnics, etc. One of the most important elements of this business is presentation, in which I pride myself heavily on. We all can agree that food is an essential to our being, and everyone loves “good food”. However, before tasting, we always “eat” with our eyes, as this is the first catches our attention. My mother instilled in me the importance of detail and neatness, therefore, catering has to not only be satisfactory in taste but presentation as well. I believe that this also sets me apart from others as well. There is nothing that I cannot complete.
I can say that I am the most proud of my perseverance and confidence within the catering industry. What also sets me apart from many caterers is also my background. I am the definition of the term, “self-taught” in reference to this industry, as I do not possess a culinary background or degree. Much of my experience derives from observing my family: father, mother, and grandmothers within the kitchen for many years, studying recipes, and trial and error within my own experiences. Since Bon TRAPpetit has existed, I have completed over 300 catering events, within over 200 being brunch-style events. As time has progressed, I have been coined, “The Brunch Lady” by the community. As a caterer, I not only want to provide my clients, with food, (as this just “gets them by”, but an experience! I would like the public to know that Bon TRAPpetit cares about the most about three things regarding their experience; taste, satisfaction, and presentation.
What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?
The best source of new clients for me is within “word of mouth”. At this time, I have huge following on social media within both Facebook and Instagram, in which social media also plays a source for clientele. However, numerous clientele often tell me that they were referred by previous clientele that I have serviced. I am appreciative of this form of referral, as it not put new clientele “at ease” with reviews, it also warms my heart to know that I provided clientele with satisfaction, and that they are willing to “share me” with other individuals.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
Being a small business owner is not easy. At the time, Bon TRAPpetit, LLC was formed, I worked two full-time positions as a social worker. I recycled one income of my full-time position in order to fund my inventory, marketing, and catering equipment. This allowed me to double my revenue and income. I continued this cycle for almost an year, until I felt prepared to leave both full-time positions and develop my catering business into a full-time position within self-employment.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @bon_trappetitllc
- Facebook: Dani B Folarin