We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mike Pimentel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Mike, appreciate you joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

One of the biggest decisions to make when starting a food business is where to base your operations. Ideally it should be in the right location and have the necessary equipment with room to adapt and expand. This past year I risked moving my operations from a shared kitchen to my own kitchen space, and fortunately it’s allowed me more scheduling flexibility and enough room to grow.

When I first started my business, without knowing how busy I would get or what equipment I would need, I figured a shared kitchen would allow me to use and pay for only what I needed. It was sufficient for me at the time, but as I got busier and needed more time in the kitchen, it became difficult to secure a station at the times that I needed, Then in 2020 the shared kitchen closed its doors permanently. If I wanted to continue pursuing my business, I had to find a new space. During that time I was approached by a food consultant who was looking for tenants for a new commercial kitchen, however this would be a dedicated space that I would lease on my own. It could offer me a fully equipment space with more flexibility, but at a much higher cost compared to a shared kitchen. It was a financial and business risk for me to take this on, especially without knowing what could change in the future. To help me decide what to do, I had decide how much time I wanted to dedicate to my business, and then determine if that time would allow me to make enough revenue to cover the added expenses. I worked out backup plans for extended construction delays or other unexpected changes that could impact the business and my ability to cover the least. I also came up with some new revenue-generating ideas that could also help cover expenses. After putting much thought into it, I finally decided to take the risk and sign the lease.

It’s been about 9 months since I’ve moved in, and while it hasn’t been completely smooth journey, I am definitely pleased that I took the risk to move my business. The kitchen offers me the flexibility for my operations as well as for my time, and it’s inspired me to keep pushing myself and my business to grow. With this space I am continually finding new ways to serve Filipino dishes and hospitality to my customers. The most important thing to me is to maintain a healthy balance between the work, personal, and social aspects of my life, and despite its challenges, this risk to move to this kitchen was worth it.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve always loved Filipino food and cooking, but I did not know where to start with my business. I decided to set up a social media page first to post dishes I’ve made and find others in that space, then look for volunteering opportunities to cook in a more commercial setting and get exposure to that industry. From there I started to gain confidence in launching my own business.

I started Adobo in June 2019 as a pop-up and catering business. I believe my company offers products that are unique but can also be attractive to a wide audience. I prepare for and operate my pop-ups with the customer in mind and am always looking for ways to create a positive experience for them.

Through my business I hope that the community feels welcomed and connected to Filipino-American culture. We continue to get positive feedback and are inspired and driven by our customers to keep it up!

Have you ever had to pivot?

The 2020 pandemic affected all businesses, and ours had a mix of challenges and opportunities. Since our regular income stream of hosting pop-ups were essentially shut down, we had to pivot to find new ways to keep the business going and stay in touch with our customers. We decided to offer lunch deliveries during the week, which was a new revenue stream for us. We promoted our menu on social media and simplified our offerings so that we only offered one type of meal per day. This allowed us to focus on how to operate during this time without getting too overwhelmed.

Once other businesses started opening back up we decided to pivot back to pop-ups and private catering. While deliveries brought in a decent amount of revenue and regular customer base, it took a lot more logistics and time to fulfill, and at the time we were not in a position to add the labor and resources needed to meet our customers’ needs. Nonetheless, lunch deliveries gave us great insight and perspective despite the challenges that caused us to pivot.

How did you build your audience on social media?

These days, having a social media presence is important for almost any business. I started building my social media presence before I decided to officially launch my business. Starting on Instagram, I was able to find other Filipino-American foodies who were either cooking or looking for Filipino food in the area. I found other pop-up chefs and events that I could attend and volunteer at. This gave me a wealth of knowledge that inspired and ultimately drove me to start my own business.

One downside of social media is that it is a constant task that needs to be attended to on a regular basis. I try not to dwell too much on other social media pages as there are always going to be ones that have more followers, likes, posts, etc. Just focus on your followers and building your content organically. It is better to be consistent and authentic with your posts, and your reputation will build naturally.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.adoboatl.com
• Instagram: @adobo.atl
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adobofb
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/adobo-atlanta