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

Hi Stephanie, thanks for joining us today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

Hindsight is always 20/20, but knowing what I do now, I should’ve taken the step to create my own business sooner. In 2021, I chose to walk away from leading the kitchen at a very established, successful, restaurant. At that point in my career, I had positioned myself to buy into a part ownership (and eventual sole ownership) of the restaurant. Salary was good, bonuses & benefits were admirable for our industry, but it wasn’t enough. Honestly, if the pandemic didn’t completely rock the foundation of everything we knew, I might have not taken the leap to branch out on my own. I have always been a risk averse person… I like to know where my next paycheck is coming from and I never wanted to shake up a well-oiled machine too much in case it broke! I was privileged enough to grow up in a middle class household, however, at a certain age (younger than most) it was expected that you fend for yourself. There was no safety net, monetary or other. If things fell apart, forget about running home to crash on the couch until you got your feet back in the game. So, even though I had all of these ideas on how to make a business of my own, the fear of it failing, with nowhere to land, kept me at a stable & safe job. I figured that once I was part owner of an already successful business, that could be my fall back, and I could then branch out. However, when the pandemic hit and we were ordered to shut down, survival mode kicked in. With a skeleton crew, we maximized our capacity to cater to increased take-out, weekly pre-prepared meals, you name it. I was working, literally every day, to make sure we were still there to see the light on the other-side. But that was just it. That ownership & partnership was no longer a certainty… so what was I working that hard for someone else for? I know that sounds callous, but that was the reality check that I needed to step away. If I can work that hard, and adapt to volatile climates where any sort of security is out the door, I can do it for myself and create the type of business that I’ve always wanted to. Yes, it was scary giving notice and walking away from a business & family that I had devoted myself to, but I wouldn’t change that decision for anything. In fact, I wish I had been brave enough to do it years before. Had I started earlier, I think that I wouldn’t have been so jaded at the end. I’ll always be a worker bee. I thrive being busy and I don’t mind the hustle and long hours. I know that there will always be fluctuation in business, but the day to day grind has to be for something that I value and want to succeed, and finally it is. On a more tangible note, had I taken the step to start my own business years earlier, I think that I would’ve been ready to take on more risks (ie. real estate for a brick and mortar) before the area I’m in exploded… and now higher interest rates. Branching out on my own was the necessary step I needed to know that I could make it work. Now the next steps for the business (scaling up and expanding) are a risk, but I feel good about taking them on when I find the right spot & opportunity. So hindsight, I should’ve just gone for it, and accepted that my work ethic and drive wouldn’t let me sink. Caution is sometimes overrated.

Stephanie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My Croft Kitchen is a personal chef & catering service offering locally sourced, curated & inspired meals.

WHY WE GOT OUR START:
Over recent years, we find that people are increasingly more conscious about where and how our food is produced. There has become more urgency in shifting our focus to support LOCAL as much as we can. Plus, if 2020 taught us anything, the fragility of our supply chains has come to the forefront. This is not a novel concept, but it is gaining momentum in communities as more environmental and industrial impacts emerge. The need to shift how we consume and how our local communities can sustainably provide for each other is on the top of our minds.

That said, let’s face it, supporting local is time consuming. There is no convenient, one-stop shopping when it comes to supporting our local food chains. It requires going to multiple farmers markets, adapting meals to reflect what is being harvested, and a commitment to pay fair prices for our farmers.

That is where we fit in… we do the leg work and our clients enjoy the delicious results! My Croft Kitchen is the conduit you need to eat locally sourced, curated & inspired meals!

WHY USE A PERSONAL CHEF SERVICE?
As working class individuals find their free time narrowing, they are discovering that the opportunity cost to engage a personal chef is 100% worth it! It’s just smart economics for some people that value their non-working hours for other things! They want to eat seasonal, fresh, ingredients and support local farmers, but don’t have the time to do all of the leg work. Our personal chef’s cook the meals you want, tailored to the lifestyle you are trying to reach…. leaving you more time to enjoy life, while eating deliciously.

How do we save you time?
– Meal planning is time consuming
– Dietary & nutritional considerations are time consuming
– Shopping is time consuming… especially if you shop LOCAL farmers markets
– Cooking & Cleaning is time consuming

Yes, there are meal services like Blue Apron & Hello Fresh… but they are NOT 100% customized, and you still have to cook & wash dishes.

Yes, you can get take-out OR go out to your favorite restaurant… but, once again, they are NOT 100% customized, you end up spending more $, and you end up consuming more calories than you typically want or need (irregardless of if you are keeping track).

So, at the end of the day, our personal chef service seems like a win-win.
– We plan the menus in accordance with your customized preferences
– We shop the farmer’s markets to support and generate awareness of our local food chains
– We cook, we clean, we package in multi-use containers (no more plastic to-go containers), and we provide you with reheating instructions that are available at your convenience!

WHAT SETS US APART FROM OTHERS:
We truly are focused on curating menus that align our consumption with sustainable local foods. You really will be eating seasonly cultivated products (not just anything at anytime of year shipped across the globe). It not only allows our clients to eat healthier, more nutritious ingredients, but it generates awareness of our local food chains… making our community stronger.

WHAT ARE WE MOST PROUD OF:
Even though we are a small business that is aspiring to grow as big as we can, we put as much individual attention to every single client until they are 100% satisfied. We continually build our relationships throughout every service, taking in and reflecting on feedback. There are no “cookie-cutter” menus that we impose on everyone. All clients are 100% in charge of how they want to experience our service. We want people to value our service as much as we do. So our attention to detail and customer relations are a matter of pride.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

Followup is key.

After every event/service I followup with a courtesy email that allows them to provide feedback or suggestions for future services. Even if their transaction was considered a one-time event, I personalize the email as if they were already going to hire me again. For example, if there was some interaction that made you aware of a specific preference or taste they like, write “Now that I know you are a fan of tapas, let’s plan a bunch of small plates for your next dinner party including _____. I think you and your guests will really enjoy that. As always, it was a pleasure to work with you and I look forward to our next collaboration.”

The initial followup, plus an occasional email sent out to our subscriber list serve, just to making sure our non-regular clients don’t forget we exist, has been very successful in maintaining repeat customers.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Word of mouth.

Still being a new business, our advertising budget is non-existent. There is no comparison to the amount of jobs that I have gotten from word of mouth versus the few ads that I chose to place in local publications that I thought had a high likelihood of generating viable leads. Granted, my business is still new (1 year), but I have received only 4 leads out of a monthly magazine publication versus the numerous customers that were solely word of mouth.

I think that for small businesses, that is a pretty standard statistic.

That said, your customer service and interactions have to be on point 100% of the time!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mycroftkitchen.com
• Instagram: @mycroftkitchen
• Facebook: My Croft Kitchen