Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Latricia Gaston. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Latricia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. 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 got my first client by attending as many vendor events as I could find. My first event was at Rabbit Box and my friend Cheri G. introduced me to, Raquel D., the director at the time, and I was approved to be a vendor. This was my first event ever and I was so nervous and proud of myself. At this event, I met Rashe with Rashe’s Cuisine, a great Jamaican restaurant with wonderful customer service. Rashe introduced me to Moye’s Wedding & Events, her work, and her daughter’s work are amazing, and I started signing up for her events to sell my products.

My first dollar was earned on October 19th, 2021 at the VFW with the Rabbit Box event, around 6:30 pm. My sweets were selling left and right and so many people were telling me that they can’t believe everything is vegan. My husband, father, and oldest daughter were with me that night, and to see their faces light up, brought so much joy to my heart and I remember thinking, I might be on to something. Shortly after I was able to provide pictures of my work on my website and on social media, business started to thrive.

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?

First, all glory goes to The Most High. Tricia’s Office is an online vegan bakery with gluten-free options. I provide donuts, cupcakes, pound cakes, mini bundt cakes, cookies, pies, cookie cakes, custom cakes, wedding cakes, and much more to come. Right now I am working on cake pops and can’t wait to launch them soon.

Tricia’s Office came to life because I was too poor to open a vegan restaurant. I spoke with a business consultant at the University of Georgia and he suggested the vegan bakery. At first, I wasn’t excited because this is not what I wanted to do. After speaking with my husband, Kodi Gaston, he helped me see the bigger picture. He advised that since there aren’t any bakeries in this area that only serve vegan baked goods, this could be a starting point leading to a restaurant.

Kodi let The Most High guide him so he could lead me in the right direction. I quickly did what I needed to do to get legal and started playing around with different recipes. The first items on my menu were a chocolate cake and chocolate chip cookies. What sets me apart from others is I only bake vegan goods.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele is social media and attending as many vendor events. Of course we all know social media is probably the number one strategy for getting people to notice your business. While social media is a must, you want to find customers the old fashion way, get out there, and be seen. It is one thing to post pictures of your product but it is most effective when you are able to engage personally with your potential customer. Let’s not forget about word of mouth. Most of my customers are a referral from another customer or they read the reviews online.

The vendor events helped me gain non-vegan customers. Most of the time people would see my table and the presentation would bring them over. I am big on colors and would often include pink and gold to attract people. For my non-vegans I would have them come over to my table and taste one sample of their choice, about 95% of them will return and purchase and get my card to contact me for holidays, birthdays etc. I traveled around the surrounding counties and gave out my business card to gain more clients. Signing up with farmers market is a must and take advantage of your Chamber of Commerce. I’ve learned that you will have to do more than just post pictures, you will need to get out there and network. Being seen and word of mouth is powerful!

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I think what helped me build my reputation within my market is consistency and honesty. Have you ever had some food from a restaurant and you go back a month later for that same meal and it doesn’t taste the same? Personally, I will not go back. I make sure this doesn’t happen. My product may look better but the taste will be the same.

Honestly is a must. No one is perfect but I have never given a product to a customer without informing the customer of the issue and providing a solution. The solution could be half off, a refund, or a free product. People like honesty. When a customer requests something that is not on my menu, I will do a trial run and let them know how it went but it gives them the option and time to find another bakery, and most of the time, it adds another product to my menu. For example, the cookie cake was added because a frequent shopper asked for one. I have had to turn down a request because I didn’t have time for a trial and I do not want the reputation of being a “one-hit wonder”, I plan to be here for a long time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.triciasoffice.com/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/people/Tricias-Office/100076271317041/