We were lucky to catch up with Jennifer Gillespie recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jennifer, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

I initially was a sweets and dessert maker, so the name was “Chocolate Dipped Treats”! As I grew into full service catering, I condensed the name to CDT and MORE Catering Services. About a year ago, I had an epiphany and the MEANING was revealed to me…”Christian and Carter Deserve This…AND MORE!! Those are my children’s names..I look at how this all started and where I am today…with me, through God, being their sole provider….they’ve seen us STRUGGLE…hard and they deserve to see the growth! It helps increase our faith as a family and it helps us stay humble as God continues to elevate us!

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

Hello, to all!!! I am Jennifer Gillespie, professionally known as Chef J Rae’Chel! I’m the Owner and Lead Culinary Artist for a fresh, up and coming company…CDT and MORE Catering Services! Our team provides a Healthy Twist on Feel Good Food! At a young age, my grandmother (who I got most of my cooking skills from) was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure and my mom totally changed the trajectory of our eating habits!! Back then, I didn’t have a desire to delve into the food industry..but LIFE started “LIFING” and it was what God showed me to get me to the next level!! We offer full service catering for private and public events!! We pride ourselves in HIGH QUALITY presentation, both edible and aesthetically!! I’m most proud of the fact that I allowed God to lead me in the way that He wanted me to go, as I went to cosmetology school! I never asked for this!! It was just what God intended!! I’m super proud of the evolution of my brand and that my children get to see their mother rise from the ruins of what was meant to kill her!! It’s taken a while to be able to enjoy some of the finer things in life and I couldn’t be more grateful for those, also!!! It also feels really good to be acknowledged for the work I’m doing!! It feels even better to know that both of my kids are gifted in their own right and are blossoming entrepreneurs! Yet, they both have interest in learning the ropes of the culinary industry, too!!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Well, quite frankly, the gestation of CDT and MORE was the point of pivot for me…in LIFE AND BUSINESS!! I had done the “side hustle” thing with my treats for a few years and when my marriage took a turn for the worst.. it caused me to have to take a step back and ask God “what are WE going to do now?!” I heard Him audibly say “you already have it in your hands” and He starts giving me a recipe at a time to start familiarizing people with my food…and it just kept growing!! I had no idea that it would EVER come to this point, but I’m sooo glad I didn’t allow the distractions of my emotions to keep me from aligning with God’s PLAN.

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

Everybody’s not your friend, but everybody’s not enemy.

This tainted era that we’re living in will blur the lines, tremendously, if you’re not careful! It’ll show you the ones that you’d EXPECT to support your endeavors, really don’t….and the total strangers will come in and blow your business all the way up!!!

When I started out on this journey, I made the mistake of sharing it with ones who I THOUGHT would help build me up and give me sound advice on my way, but they actually taught me a different type of lesson that I hadn’t bargained for. Where I come from, when you’re in the same industry; you’ve got foundation to start collaborating with your “friends” but there were a few that saw it as competition. I wasn’t on that type of time, so it was a bit overwhelming and disheartening for me! It took time and prayer for my understanding to set in and the ones who were meant to come back around..did! As for the others, God bless them in all their individual endeavors but our season has ended. And that’s ok, too!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.cdtandmore.com
• Instagram: @chefjraechel @cdtandmore
• Facebook: Chef J Rae’Chel and CDT and MORE Catering Services
• Other: TikTok: @chefjraechel1

Image Credits
DeMarris Manns Photography Nia Ray Photography