Healthy Food, Hospitality & Building a Loyal Team: Meridith Coyle of ANUE Kitchens

Speaker A: Hi, everybody, and welcome to another edition of HR After Dark. I'm Megan, and I'm sure you're missing my counterpart Marsha today, but I have an amazing guest in store for you, Meredith Coyle of New Kitchens. And she is going to share her story and we're going to get into some fun conversations. So thank you for joining us, Meredith.

Speaker B: Thank you so much for having me.

Speaker A: Happy to have you here. Um, I would love to start with your story and how you got into hospitality in general.

Speaker B: It's a really long story. So the abridged version.

Speaker A: Let me hear the bridge version. The abridged version. Wait, before you tell me what's in that drink?

Speaker B: Oh, this I drink all the time. It's our lemon spirulina and chia water. So really we do filtered waters at the store and they have different adaptogens and different things in them. The chia helps with fiber and fullness. Lemon, which is always good for your body. It makes it, um, alkaline. And then the spirulina is a sea vegetable. And it's pretty.

Speaker A: Well, it's so pretty.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: Spirulina also goes into acai bowl sometimes. Right.

Speaker B: A lot of times, like, I see the blue.

Speaker A: Yeah, yeah. Okay.

Speaker B: Yeah, it's a powder. You can buy it on Amazon, an organic brand. And it's just wonderful. And so I like everything I put in my mouth to have intention with it, you know? So this, the chia is really the biggest intention for me of the day because it's got a little more fiber and, you know, women need a ton of fiber.

Speaker A: Love it. Yeah.

Speaker B: All right.

Speaker A: It's easy. So sorry I'm like such a. I'm a squirrel. Like I look at it.

Speaker B: Me too.

Speaker A: Yeah. This is gonna be trouble. Is it gonna come back on track? So talk to us about your story, the bridge, the shortened version of your story I wanna hear about.

Speaker B: Um, so basically, my parents owned a very popular restaurant in the. Well, my whole life we were in the restaurant business. I always grew up over top of one of their bars or restaurants, which I do now myself, if you believe that, down the shore.

Speaker A: And.

Speaker B: But we have stores downstairs and I live upstairs. And anyway, my parents were in the restaurant industry. I have a brother who's nine years younger. And my father and mother sent us both to so many years of college so we would stay out of the hospitality industry.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: Both of us are hugely into the hospitality industry.

Speaker A: Oh, my gosh.

Speaker B: Mine started because my dad got sick while I was in graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania. To be a social worker. Oh. And literally, um, he had a little shop that he had opened with his management to keep them on the straigh narrow because everything was the bar business and they were gonna close it. And, um, he got sick for the first time. And I came home and fell in love with the industry. I was like, wait, I am struggling at school and just being so focused. I'm not a very. Like we said, we're squirrels.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: And I found school to be difficult. And I walked in there the first day and I was like, how are these guys messing this up? It's so easy. All you have to do is be nice to people and be authentic in what you put out there. And so that is literally how it started. Then I went into farmer's markets. I loved the farmer's markets.

Speaker A: The farmer's market.

Speaker B: It's so nice to be around all that beautiful, um, healthy food.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: And as my dad progressively got sicker, he did pass 27 years ago. But when he got sicker, I started learning about food being a medicinal quality to, you know, our constitution for lack of a fortune. A short story.

Speaker A: Yeah. Top, please.

Speaker B: And, um, so I got involved in that. And then I had a really good friend who was sick, and she cured herself through food. And so I took what I was doing in food and took it to medicine. And what I'm now saying is I'm bringing hospitality to medicine, which is something that I actually have been really formulating in the shadowher because the group in shadow her are a lot of doctors.

Speaker A: Yeah, I noticed that this time.

Speaker B: Yeah, it's very interesting. And they are all talking about nutrition. And I'm like, oh, finally.

Speaker A: Yeah, it's like it's finally having its big seat at the table.

Speaker B: Exactly. And so I think the tipping point happened in my industry, uh, or in the world. And I just sort of was already doing it, and people were like, oh, yeah, wow. And I don't know, is that. That's. That's a short story.

Speaker A: What's your brother do?

Speaker B: My brother owns a ton of restaurants.

Speaker A: Okay.

Speaker B: So he, um. And I'm sorry, I don't know the name of his llc, but he owns the goats beards. Oh, yeah. Oh, your age. You'll know. Right? Everybody knows that. So he is the principal. He's got a lot of partners. We do things a different way.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: So he works with other people. I am a sole owner. Entrepreneur.

Speaker A: Sure.

Speaker B: But, um, he works with some great guys. They've been doing it from the beginning. They own four restaurants now. And I think they're opening their fifth, but.

Speaker A: Wow. Okay.

Speaker B: You know, who knows?

Speaker A: So a new. You know, when I first heard about you, I don't think I've told you this, but my mom watches the baby two days a week. And she came in, she had some of your food.

Speaker B: Oh.

Speaker A: And she was like, have you heard about this place? And I was like, uh, no, I haven't. Just cause we're in Westchester and, um, we don't get out a lot.

Speaker B: Of course not.

Speaker A: You know, and she's like, this is my. The greatest spot. And so now she's like a frequent customer of yours. And that's how I found out about you. And then one thing leads to another, and everyone's talking about you. So what made you come up with this concept? So I know that you love the thought of, like, this health, the healthy food and how that heals the body, but you're growing so quickly. So, you know, like, how did. How did you get. How did it get started?

Speaker B: So I think that to the outside world, it's growing so quickly. Like, you know, you're an overnight success.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: It's 33 years. Yeah, I've been doing it. Yeah. And, um, successfully, quietly, amongst a really exclusive group of people who were like, if, you know, you know, kind of thing. And I started acquiring people who were doing social media and marketing and financial guys and all of these people that weren't me, who just had great ideas and was a really good cook and, you know, kind of did everything myself. I have my core group of my team. My core team. Most of them have been with me for 20 years, plus.

Speaker A: Whoa.

Speaker B: Uh, yeah. And we've been doing it all together haphazardly.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: Right. So now we are. I think now that people know us, quote unquote, it's because we've sort of focused our intentions and now we're on the. We're all on the same bus going in the same direction, thanks to, you know, um, my OS guy that I was telling you about. Which is funny, because when I was doing an interview with somebody and I said that, I called myself the visionary.

Speaker A: You are.

Speaker B: The guy was like, oh, are you into Eos? And I was like, is that a bad thing? I said, I don't know. Everybody's now doing the right thing at the right time, so. Sure.

Speaker A: Whatever you want to call it, you're definitely a visionary.

Speaker B: Well, thank you.

Speaker A: But, uh, you're also an operator.

Speaker B: I am definitely the operator.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: I am the bottle washer. Yeah.

Speaker A: You're doing everything you've done it all.

Speaker B: I like all of it.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: I think when I finally do retire, which is 11 years from last Friday.

Speaker A: Okay. I love this countdown. I feel like we need like a little calendar to like mark off the dates.

Speaker B: Well, um, I signed on to my biggest project and it's a 10 year lease and so. And one free year. Cause I'm a real negotiator.

Speaker A: I can do that. I think I need to call you with those things.

Speaker B: And uh, so I think that for the next 10, 11 years, I will be in the thick of it. Happily. Because I know where it's going now. And like I said, the world caught up to me in my ideals. And my ideals started because my dad got sick and then my friend got sick. And because I am a lifelong learner, I went back. I'm an integrative nutritionist. I'm certified as a vegan chef. I'm certified as a macrobiotic practitioner. I'm a health coach. I'm, um, all of those things because I never felt like I was busy enough, which is crazy to most people. But to me and to you and to Marcia and to people that have that genetic trait, uh, there's not enough hours in the day for all the things you want to do before you know, you're not blessed to wake up tomorrow. So for me, it's been just the most incredible experience. I hate the word journey because it just seems so overused. Kind of like longevity seems a little overused. Although we do have our longevity lab, which spawned this new space. Um, I do love being around the people and knowing what's wrong and knowing that it's so simple to. Our tagline is a world with better choices. Right. If you want to eat junk food, eat junk food. But uh, have the choice conveniently, affordably and you know, really in your. In your sight line where you can make a better choice. That's all I'm doing.

Speaker A: Yeah. It's so much m. Beyond feeding people. Like you're educating people. And I think, you know, when you said the world caught up to you, that's exactly what I think about. Um, I have an allergy kid. And so when I think about my lunch table as a kid, there was not maybe a peanut allergy. I don't think anybody. I mean the stuff that people were getting sent to school with. Right. But now like thinking about I have to read a label because. Because of my daughter.

Speaker B: Mhm.

Speaker A: There's so much more people being more intentional about their bodies. And you're gonna be educating people especially with your newest project. So tell us more about that.

Speaker B: Yeah, I wanna just go back to your daughter there for a second. Right. Because this is happening to so many people.

Speaker A: So many.

Speaker B: And it has so many things. It's not just the food, it is the environment, it is the vaccines. It is all of these things. And I am certainly not against or for anything. I keep myself right in Switzerland all the time. Because. And that's why it's a world with better choices. Right. If you're educated. It's like once, you know, you can't unknow, uh, I can't unsee the fact that an ingredient on a label I have read or learned or whatever and you too, probably, that it does X to your body or your daughter's body or my daughter's body. Right. You know, we went, we had like a certain amount of vaccines in 1970, and now we have hundreds of vaccines in 2026. Right. So now I don't do anything with that. But it's the same way with food. The ingredients in our food weren't what they were years ago. A funny little story. My 92 year old aunt, who is healthy as an ox, cooks dinner for me one night and she's making the salad dressing from scratch. Which salad dressing is the worst thing out there.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And she put, um, what's the pink stuff? Sweet and Low in it.

Speaker A: Oh.

Speaker B: And I looked at her and I was like, are you trying to kill me? And she was like, what are you talking about? I've been taking. Yeah, I've been using Sweet and low for 90 years.

Speaker A: Right. She's like, that's my.

Speaker B: And I'm like, well, yeah, but when they made sweet and low 90 years

Speaker A: ago, it's a heck of a lot

Speaker B: different than it is today, for sure. So, you know. No, I'm not eating yourself.

Speaker A: Yeah, no, thank you.

Speaker B: Thank you very much for cooking for me. I'll eat everything else.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: But I'm not eating yourself.

Speaker A: What's your. Not to go rogue, but what's a great salad dressing choice?

Speaker B: There aren't many out there. We make our own from scratch. I teach people on Instagram in 4 seconds how to make their own. And it's fantastic. It's better than anything you'll ever make. That's the other thing. People want the, you know, the delivery services and uh, the buying of fast food and all of that because they think it's quicker when you learn like three or four recipes that you can put together in 20 minutes. That's faster than anybody's Gonna get to your diet.

Speaker A: I totally agree. And you feel better? Absolutely. Like, the one for me, if I have one meal that, like, I kind of go off track. I. It's everything mentally, all the way down through my whole body. And I think that it's, um. It's hard to get out of it, too. So if you're doing that consistently, it's like, you know, it's a Snowball effect. Yes.

Speaker B: 100%, yes. And as something makes you feel bad, like, you just feel bad, so you're like, okay. Like, you know, you drink too much, the next day you're eating junk food because that makes you feel better. And then all of a sudden, you're like, well, this day's over, so. So I'll just keep eating junk. And then it's the next day, and all of a sudden, you're not at the gym anymore. And then everything's gone to hell in a handbag. Right. So to me, back to your original question. We'll pull it back. Um. What I do and what I'm trying to do again, is get the word out.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And how do you get the word out? I can't be everywhere. And a lot of my employees. New employees. You've met Ashley, who's a great, great, great girl, but she said, I thought I ate healthy until I came here.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And I was like, well, you do you probably 80% healthier than most of the people in the world. You don't know these things. These are the things that I am reading about on the daily, you know, xanthan gum. That's what's in salad dressing.

Speaker A: Gums. Yep.

Speaker B: So I just don't eat anything with gums.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Or do I make anything with gums?

Speaker A: What are other things to avoid? I know we're going rogue, but I'm just like, no, this is like. It's a really, you know, that's. Think about what everyone's using on a daily basis. Right. It's like, what other things are we try to avoid?

Speaker B: I don't know if avoid's the right word, because deprivation is not in my world.

Speaker A: Agree. I eat everything.

Speaker B: I eat everything.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: I'm making pizza for dinner tonight. The crust is organic ground chicken love.

Speaker A: Ah. It.

Speaker B: That's the crust.

Speaker A: So you blend up the chicken.

Speaker B: Well, Mix the chicken. Yeah, mix the chicken with free range, like, no corn, no soy eggs. Um, yeah, Italian seasoning. That is seasoning mixed together. Right. So if you look at a seasoning, there's so many different words for msg. There's so Many different words for all of these ways that the big, big food and big pharma are hiding in your thing. I mean, I don't want to make this, like, crazy.

Speaker A: I so enjoyed this topic.

Speaker B: So, yeah, you know, I'm like, everybody does now. That's why I say people have caught up to me. I've lived this way forever. Uh, like, so even if it's not true, I think I'm healthier.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And when you, your mindset is so much important than more important than anything else. Right. So I feel healthy all the time, so therefore I am healthy. Right. I eat healthy all the time, so therefore I am healthy.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: It's kind of like that. My biggest thing I say to people, um, again is if you five ingredients, if it's a prepared item.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: Love that.

Speaker B: Go try and figure it out.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: Go try and figure that out.

Speaker A: It's really hard. Yep.

Speaker B: Right. So, you know, they always say, oh, shop the perimeter. Well, if you don't cook, shopping the perimeter is really difficult. So again, that goes back to like five items that, you know, you have go tos that you can cook at the end of a long workday and get everybody fed.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: To me, you know, I do not buy anything commercially grown farm, you know, everything is farm raised, like m dairy and animal protein.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: It's a big deal.

Speaker A: Okay.

Speaker B: Dairy's a tough one.

Speaker A: And now I would like to never take home dairy.

Speaker B: Tough one. So I, I eat a ton of like the Italian cheeses, the hard cheeses, they have less of the, um, bad chemicals in it that when you break it all down, it's all not great for you. So my go tos are organic meat and dairy. M, uh, no gums and single ingredient stuff for whatever that looks like. And what I'm doing at anew is trying to provide a space that if you want to come in and you want to get your husband a cookie, that cookie is fresh ground flour, organic eggs, real butter. That's organic. Real unrefined sugars, and you know, the real.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: But you can also, like, the U brand that I bought has no gluten, no dairy, no sugar.

Speaker A: It's great for people that have.

Speaker B: Who want. Doesn't even have want. Right. And that's the way I want people to think. Right. If you don't enjoy what you're eating, you're not gonna eat it or you're gonna think you're in deprivation. And then it's a diet. And people call me all the time. I help so many people. We Actually, on our website, have just created like, a chat with the nutritionist. I know. And nobody uses it so far. Like a few people.

Speaker A: Well, after this, they might.

Speaker B: All right, slow down.

Speaker A: Um.

Speaker B: No, I'm kidding. But I'm the person who answers it, right. And their questions, it's not AI generated. It is the question, like, what do I do at the end of the day? Just like, what you're saying. And to me it's like, I can't believe that people don't know this. And even my kids, like, you know, we're always trying to improve what we do. I am always trying to improve what I do. But don't get me wrong, I will stand over the counter and eat ice cream. No kidding.

Speaker A: No.

Speaker B: Did it last night.

Speaker A: Rough day.

Speaker B: But that ice cream. There's 8,000 ice creams in the supermarket. There's like two. And. And it's not because it's more expensive, but there's like two ice creams that don't have the gums in it.

Speaker A: Yep. Interesting. Okay. Yeah.

Speaker B: I mean, there's not many at all. And.

Speaker A: Yeah, but you don't want to, like, deprive yourself of everything because then you're. Then it's going to be a. It's, you know, the snowball effect.

Speaker B: Absolutely. You have to eat and you have to enjoy what you're eating.

Speaker A: So talk to us about your project. No, the commissary. Because I'm, like, thinking about, like, and I want to. I could go everywhere with it. I know.

Speaker B: I'm sorry.

Speaker A: No, no, no.

Speaker B: I have a lot of projects.

Speaker A: No. This is so exciting. The commissary, though, is. You know, this is really interesting specifically now because employee culture is more important than ever. It obviously was really started to get, uh, driven at the co during COVID But now in order to retain people, they have to make sure that they are providing a really positive employee experience. So talk to us about the commissary and I want to talk more about, like, how businesses can get involved. Ah.

Speaker B: Uh, interesting.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: So we are building about a 20,000 square foot commissary. Originally it was for my staff because we're in a shopping center that we. It's. I don't know, it feels like it's 800 years old. It's too hot in the summer, it's too cold in the winter. It's, you know, not enough space. We have seven people in a room answering phones at one time or on Zoom calls. So I've been looking for that. But then the evolution of the longevity Lab that we do once a month for the last year and a half in Paoli has been so profoundly effective for me. And, um, what I want to do with the community. Right. It's bringing. We were talking earlier. It's about your passion, right? My passion is getting the word out and helping local people. And when I say local people, I'm talking about highly educated doctors and financial people and people in the spiritual meditation world. Anything that's body, mind or spirit. And we've created this free Wednesday night event. You know, I've had fitness instructors in menopause, doctors. This coming month. We have. And it's the first Wednesday of the month. Every month. We've got a longevity doc who is absolutely amazing. Right. So he is doing in the medical world what I'm saying to do, which is one of the five components that all longevity docs talk about, which is whole foods, movement culture and, um, Movement culture, nutrition, exercise and community connection. They're all so important. So anything that falls under that comes into our longevity lab. And seeing the response from that, I have added more space to the happy culture of people. Having a nice space to sit in to also have a place where we can have cooking classes, nutrition classes, these longevity classes, all day, every day. We're creating programming that is just educational about body, mind and spirit.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: As well as this, you know, another art. What will be our flagship anew that I'm going to add to make it more like an organic supermarket. I know, right? I don't know how I'm gonna do it, to be honest. I'm figuring it out as I'm gonna

Speaker A: sign that lease, so. You better. We're gonna get the lease to sign.

Speaker B: I think I knocked through a wall last week. You know, I mean, I don't even know what's happening, but it's gonna be. It is my dream to do this.

Speaker A: So cool.

Speaker B: And again, to make it accessible to other people. So that's what we're doing there. And I do believe the culture around. And I have to thank my daughter who is my coo, who said to me, mom, we have to be really nice to all of our people. I don't think she even understood that it was a culture thing. And like I told you, I've had people with me for over 20 years and a lot of people in the tens and, you know, people either don't make it.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: In six months or they make it for the rest of their lives.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: How many people do you have? Well, I've got 60, almost full time. And I've got about 120 in season. And in season to us is summer months, which includes a lot of 15, 16 and 17 year olds who at the shore and here.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: Who we get to sort of mentor up. And now some of the ones who've gone through their four years of high school, four years of college, are actually coming back and being part of. It's their career path, which to me is exciting because the hospitality industry has been notorious for being a transient industry. Right. Everybody waits tables while they're in college and then they get their real job.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: That's another thing. I want to create it to be a real job for people. Yes. A career.

Speaker A: What is your secret sauce with thinking about these people that want to work for you for this long in this industry? What are you doing to make them wanna stay?

Speaker B: Uh, it's probably bad and totally against everything you would say to do, but they call me mom. It's pathetic. I mean, I wanna be like cis. I say that to them. They call me mom for every meeting. I really do care about their lives. Uh, at really critical moments in my career when I was deciding. Cause I can't just stay where I am, I move too much and I was like, grow. To me it's grow or die in business. And I do mean that. So if I didn't grow, I would die. I have to have the buy in of the people I work with. And in order to do that, they have to know that this is their home. Right. Any given day, there are kids in the office, dogs in the office. I mean, we're not like a big company where we've got, you know, daycare or anything, but for all of the executive team, management team even, um, and really anybody they get if they're on our trajectory of our vision, which is a healthy lifestyle. So, you know, part of their package is a membership to Lifetime. Right. I mean, because I believe that that's super important.

Speaker A: That's, um, amazing.

Speaker B: Yeah. But nobody takes me up on it.

Speaker A: Really.

Speaker B: No. Um, it's a shame because it's a really, really great perk. In my mind, there's like five of us who do it.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And you know, that was our Instagram post today. We were in a bar class and you know, like laying on the floor and we took a picture of it. And so to me, I think that's how they stay.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Because I work out with them.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: I go to their kids parties and graduations.

Speaker A: It's a family.

Speaker B: It is a family. And it's very hard for Anyone to break into the family. So I'm working on that with, like I was telling you, my, um. I have a culture guy who says, you know, I know you care, but we really have to show them this way. And so we're working on getting better. I think we've done our organic growth, and we're at the ceiling. And now we've got to really, just.

Speaker A: Especially with a new place opening. Like, you're in a.

Speaker B: Well, I have three new places opening.

Speaker A: Tell us more.

Speaker B: I'm not gonna tell you about all of them.

Speaker A: Oh, secret ones.

Speaker B: I'll tell you about a real, uh. I'll tell you about one that's been in the works forever, which is Valley Forge Park. And most people who know me know about that. And sadly, because of the government, it's been put on hold. Put on hold? Put on hold. But it's an incredible project. We have 1.4 million visitors that go to our national historical park that's in our backyard that none of us really take seriously.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Right. There's 1.4 million visitors a year that go through the visitor center. And I've never been in the visitor center.

Speaker A: Me either. Right.

Speaker B: But we walk there all the time. I go to church there on Sundays. It's my backyard. So part of that is the Maurice Stevens house that they have constructed. And we're gonna have a little cafe in there.

Speaker A: That's amazing.

Speaker B: It's awesome. But it was supposed to open four years ago, three years ago, two years ago March.

Speaker A: So it's opening when?

Speaker B: I don't know.

Speaker A: All right.

Speaker B: But we'll be there for the 4th of July, for the 250, and we'll put up tents and do all of that kind of stuff.

Speaker A: Yes. They're coming soon.

Speaker B: Yeah. I mean, we're part of the. It's a governmental thing for sure. You know, again, being Switzerland, it's really hard to talk about the fact that it's not open.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: And should be. And should have been.

Speaker A: What about. So you have some places down the shore, right?

Speaker B: I have two places down the shore. Uh, Margate and Ocean City.

Speaker A: Working towards Ocean, New Jersey.

Speaker B: Yep.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And working towards Avalon. Stone Harbor. I am a wholesaler.

Speaker A: Seattle is too Delco for you.

Speaker B: You know, it's funny you say that.

Speaker A: I can say that to you and you can say that to me.

Speaker B: That's why I don't know. Yeah, you tell me. Um, I think co. Listen, for a transportation kind of logical progression, that would be the next space to go, but we've sort of jumped through Seattle and gone to Avalon in a wholesale capacity. Because we wholesale in a lot of stores.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And a lot of gyms and a lot of trainers with our mindful meals and doctors have the ability to get to us in an affiliate program through other people. And we were in Avalon last summer in two locations. And it was, I mean, so successful. It was super successful. It's just hard to find a location down there. And I'm working on it, but, you know, then again, I only have two arms or 100 arms.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: That can really get around that. The commissary originally was because we needed more refrigeration and more tables. I mean, so silly.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: But then I was like, well, to pay for that, we need a little more on the roi, so we've gotta have more programs and more things. And that's sort of how Anew has really evolved is that it's. Hospitality in general is a cyclical thing. Ask any restaurateur, what are they. You know, they're going broke Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and by Thursday they're like, okay, I've got a couple of days now that I'm going to make enough money.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: Mine was more like every three months. That happened because in corporate catering, you know, you guys don't do much in the summer.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And then in residential catering, that was summer. And so the offset to that was, let me open a couple of. Let me open a grab and go. And that's just how it evolves.

Speaker A: What's your take on, like, you know, hiring people? Because hiring is hard across every industry. But I would. I would assume, and I see this for myself with my clients, that hospitality is especially challenging because we talked a little bit about the career versus a job, and you're creating career paths for people. But, like, how do you identify something in a person that you like? I need that person to work here for me. Um, and just like, what's your take on hiring right now in general?

Speaker B: So I would say I would use my gut, but I think my gut is off and off because I'm super emotional about people and I'm a social worker at heart, and I want to help everybody. And I bring in a lot of people that have a lot going on. And that has caused some, not dissension, um, around the people who've been around for 20 years. But it really does make it a little bit difficult because, uh, it's kind of like, we know what we're doing and you're coming into it. That being said, I believe in any industry that you can't teach character. So I go character first. If they're an honest, hardworking. I don't care if you have a family or this or that or the other thing, but if you're a good human, I can teach you anything in the restaurant industry. So that's where I really go first. And I still get bitten a few times. Um, it's hard, but just like failure in business, it's a lesson. It's education, and it's nothing else to me. Right, Right. I'm like, okay, well, that didn't work. So now let me bring it back in. Go back to our original plan and see where we go from there. I do always say to promote within first, but that often doesn't happen. Right. Because a chef can't be a salesperson, and a salesperson can't cook.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: My daughter being like, my number two person. Poor girl. Can't cook. Like, she'll admit it. She can't cook. And so when. If there's a problem in the kitchen, as the coo, guess what?

Speaker A: She can't help.

Speaker B: She can't help. And if that was a real coo, like an outsourced somebody that I hired through the o' Connor Group, that wouldn't be a good fit. Right. But for her, it's okay because she does everything else so well. Yep. Uh, right. And I'm a cook.

Speaker A: Yes, exactly. So you're a tech team. Like, you have to be able to match up. We were talking a little bit about visionary and integrator, and, like, you know, it's hard to sit in just one seat. You know, it's impossible. You know, Marcia, our founder, is absolutely a visionary, but she's also, you know, this is her baby, 20 years old, and she's running. Sometimes she does stuff that she shouldn't be doing in a good way. She loves it. Um, and so she kind of does it all. So, um, what do you. I know you're a little bit of both of that, too.

Speaker B: Oh, no, I am.

Speaker A: That I can. Yeah.

Speaker B: Today I had a meeting. It's just so funny the way things happen and, you know, the way the universe works. Right. It meant to put me in this chair today to take a breath and think about things before I make a comment. But we are, uh. My daughter's on maternity leave, and so we are really having to take into the heads of each of the departments a little more responsibility. And so I looked at them all today, and there's, you know, 10 of them. And I was like, what are we gonna do? Let's put it out there. And the first response from my. Really, my head chef, and I believe hospitality is driven through the kitchen.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: So he is my guy. He said to me, you need to let go and get out of our way. And I was like, all right, I hear you.

Speaker A: But I respect that.

Speaker B: And I respect that.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: It's just very hard.

Speaker A: Right. I bet.

Speaker B: Because there are so many things, and I'm like, you're not looking at the whole package, so I'll get out of your way, and I promise not to come back and cook with you, which I'm known to do. Ah. Really known to do. I promise not to do that if you promise to keep me informed. And so we're working on that. Um, we're all working on it. Just like you and Marcia.

Speaker A: I mean, every day it's like a. It's, um. I'm making sure that I am communicating effectively the way she wants to be communicated with. But also, you know, any risk to the business that maybe she wouldn't have seen on a daily basis. That's my. That's my whole goal. My whole goal is making sure that she knows that everybody has their thing under control. If there's something that's very risky, I bring her in right away. Because it is important for her to be involved with some of those major things. Of course. Um, and. But I also want her to enjoy her life.

Speaker B: We're enjoying life.

Speaker A: I know.

Speaker B: I bet if she was here, she'd say she loves her life.

Speaker A: She does. She loves her. She is. Um, but I want. She works so hard, and, you know, I want to get her to a place where she feels like she can go to the shore for all three months in the summer and not have to come back up for meetings. So we're. We're getting. We're getting closer to that.

Speaker B: Well, that's pretty quick. Cause I just met you a minute ago.

Speaker A: That's right.

Speaker B: I mean, you just got this position not long ago. How many months?

Speaker A: Three months.

Speaker B: Well, that's. I mean, kudos to her.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And you, of course. You too. She wouldn't have put you in the position.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: But I think the letting go part is gonna be really hard. Right.

Speaker A: I can't even imagine. That's the thing. It's like, I am not the founder. I am not the entrepreneur. I worked for an entrepreneur for many years. My dad was an entrepreneur. So, you know, I have so much respect for someone like, bootstrapping a business and taking it to how far we know. We're 60 employees. Full time people in nine states. And I. It's her baby. I want to. I work every day to make sure that I'm delivering, you know, her, the results that she's wanting.

Speaker B: Um, that's important.

Speaker A: And I think that you, it sounds like to me like you have an amazing team around you.

Speaker B: I am very blessed with my team. I am. They're all have been, um. I don't know the word, but I'm making them all. Read the book the E. Myth. Do you know that book?

Speaker A: No.

Speaker B: It's the difference between working on your business or in your business.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And I said, guys, we're a bunch of in the business girls and boys. We need to be on the business. And I can't really expect that from people who have to actually make stuff happen. Sure. So identifying the right people to do the right thing is really great. And, you know, again, kudos to Marcia for knowing that and to you for being able to do it. They say they, you know, I have a woman who has worked for me literally 23 years and she's. I think she turned 42 last week. So think about that. Her whole life.

Speaker A: Her whole life.

Speaker B: She's in my phone with her name and waitress behind it. Because she was a waitress. One of my first places. Literally.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: And now she is. She finishes my sentences 100%.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And, um, the menopause brain. I need my sentences finished most days.

Speaker A: But, like, how lucky. You've obviously made such an impact on her and everybody else that's been with you for so long to make them wanna stay with you. People could chase any restaurant or any hospitality path, but they decided that they wanted to work for you and understood your mission, which is incredible.

Speaker B: Yeah. And it affects everyone. And so each one of them are affected.

Speaker A: Uh-huh.

Speaker B: You know, everybody's got a kid with an issue. Everybody has a little bit of an issue, whatever it is. And it might be an allergy, it might be weight, it might be depression, anxiety, whatever it is. And everything goes back to food.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: So if you can provide a good product that's actually benefiting people, before they understood that it was just a good product. Now my real job is to have people understand the mission behind it. Because it's not inexpensive to eat healthy. It's not. And we get a lot of, you know, for people who don't understand the mission and the vision, we get a lot of, oh, you're really expensive. You're really expensive.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And like, well, I'm not really expensive

Speaker A: for what you're getting for what you're getting.

Speaker B: But.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: It does seem expensive. If you're buying McDonald's for your meal versus me.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: Or Wawa for your meal, you might

Speaker A: feel a heck of a lot better.

Speaker B: Yeah. You're ultimately. And it's. The problem is it's not quick.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Right. You know that. And if you think about it. Well, just think about when somebody gets sick, they come right to me.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: But we want people to do it preventatively. Um, yeah. Ultimately, if I had my dream, I would be a healthy Wawa. Right. Or a healthy. I mean, dare I say sheets in the same sentence as Wawa, But a healthy convenience store where people were like, you know, I know not. Also go back to the water. Fiber fills you, protein fills you. You don't need to eat as much when you buy something from my store. Like, we have this. My trainer and I created this bowl. We call it Trainer Sam's protein bowl. It's 52 grams of protein.

Speaker A: What's in it?

Speaker B: It's got grilled chicken, eggs, chickpeas, um, pistachio seeds or pistachio nuts, uh, sunflower seeds, you know, and it's a salad. There's many other things. I can't even imagine what's in it, but it's 52 grams of protein.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: For me, it's three meals. Like, it's three meals. It's that big. To the average consumer who's not looking into what the value of the food is for your body, it's an expensive salad.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: You know, it's like an $18 salad that you're getting in a plastic container. Or not a plastic container, but in a eco friendly container.

Speaker A: You know, everything's gonna be real.

Speaker B: It looks. It doesn't look like what it actually is.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: But if that's three meals.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: That's $6ameal.

Speaker A: Totally.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker A: Yeah. So.

Speaker B: And that's education.

Speaker A: So maybe like a healthy Wawa is one of your secret projects.

Speaker B: That is my growth opportunity.

Speaker A: Love it.

Speaker B: That's how I met our friend Kim. Yeah.

Speaker A: Okay.

Speaker B: Uh-huh. Because I was researching.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Becoming a franchise.

Speaker A: Got.

Speaker B: Spent the last three years doing that. When are you.

Speaker A: When you sleep? Like, like, talk to me. I'm. I'm sure you have healthy sleep habits because you are a health minded individual. But like, what's your routine?

Speaker B: I work out every morning. Yeah, that's my. That.

Speaker A: That is trainer with trainer. Who created the bowl.

Speaker B: No, actually not. I. I do it to get educated and then I do it myself. So I was working with a trainer and I'm officially, as of tomorrow, will be my first day on my own completely. Um, so I tire myself out. So when I hit the bed, I'm not a TV person unless I'm like, Today's a TV day. And then it's 20 hours of TV, right? And get it all done at once. Um, you know, my routine is again, I eat with intention. That's new, though. I mean, people who know me, I've lost 60 pounds. I have.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: Yeah, I have. This is the last five years of my life. I was busy helping everybody else and I was like, wait, what am I doing? I need to take my own advice. I was getting up and speaking on health and wellness and I was 60 pounds heavier. And so I had to take that back. And when I took that back, I learned that it is all of those pillars. Right. Um, and I was going to say to you earlier, so this is part of it. I speak to a business coach every week and I said to her last week, there's something wrong with me. There's just something wrong with me. I need a hobby. And she's like, why do you think you need a hobby? You know how they always talk so nicely?

Speaker A: Yes.

Speaker B: I'm like, I need a hobby. You know, I'm screaming at her, this is crazy. I work 30 hours a day. You know, she gets the bad side. I mean, you get the very nice side. And she said to me, do you love what you do? And I said, I love what I do so much that when I'm not doing it, I'm doing it. And when I'm doing it, I'm not doing it. It's always fun, it's always good, and it's always with intention. And that really defines my day. So I work out in the morning, I go right to work, I have meetings all day. I pepper into every single solitary day doing something for someone else. Helping an entrepreneur, helping a friend. Worrying more about people. I still talk to the people who started my business with me. And by started, I mean the clients that I had who were long retired women that stood by me. And nothing against men, but in my business, I dealt mostly with women because they were the administrators that ordered the food and they were the ones who, through my divorce and when I had a non compete and lost my name and all of the things I went through this. Well, you're gonna need another podcast for that one.

Speaker A: Round Tail.

Speaker B: Yeah, Round Tail. Um, they were the ones who said, I will always order from you, don't you worry. And we're gonna have our lunches outside of your, um, non compete time. I mean, the stuff these women did for me. And so now when they're in their 80s and they need some, you know, somebody to take them to for a coffee, just to have a conversation with, I pepper that in. And my partner last night said to me, he's like, you, you have to say no sometimes. And that wouldn't be who I am. It just wouldn't be. And I said to him, now you're just going to have to know I'm going to be saying no.

Speaker A: I drop when I.

Speaker B: When I sit, I drop. And so I do. I sleep really well. Um, you know, the phone is away and off. There's no TV before bed. I read my book. I walk my dog after dinner for a little bit of digestion.

Speaker A: Yeah, I do.

Speaker B: All those things that Instagram is telling you to do that make no sense when you look at all of it. There's so much information out there.

Speaker A: So much. It's like, it's so hard to know what's.

Speaker B: Yeah, we're all individual. We're all bio. Individual is what it's called. And we all are based upon our generation seven generations back and seven generations forward. And this is a little spiritual, but truly we're here to fix the errors of our past and the errors of the future. Right. Think about m. Your daughters. You're affecting their children now who will affect their children?

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: And so if you don't have that drive and that intention, and I keep saying intention, but it's so true. Because you haphazardly eat, you haphazardly make decisions you haphazardly just do instead of really planning. My day is planned.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker B: And people ask me if I can do something. I'm like, hold please. Yep, gotta take a look. Yep. I've got 45 minutes in between there. And I just do it.

Speaker A: You do it because I just do it.

Speaker B: And then I'm really damn tired, so I fall asleep.

Speaker A: Do you have an admin?

Speaker B: I don't.

Speaker A: You don't have that?

Speaker B: Mhm.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: I have everybody who does their jobs and I have my Justin who finishes my sentence. And you know, she also has really other more important jobs, so I try not to bother her too much. And I keep my own. I keep track of myself. Yeah, I probably do need help. Um, what do you think about, what

Speaker A: do you think about in terms of like the workplace? How could employers do a better job of instilling healthier habits? Because ultimately, I don't want to say it's their. It is a part of their responsibility, like, um, to help the wellness, the entire wellness cycle of their employees. Right. Financially well, spiritually well, emotionally well. They're going to show up better in the workplace if they're taken care of. So what can employers do better?

Speaker B: Do you remember a time, and I can only say this in my experience, where there was always something in the news that was like the best place to work in Philadelphia.

Speaker A: Right?

Speaker B: Like all of those things.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Well, I was always the caterer for those places and I'd be like, what makes you guys so great? Yeah, they have like a foosball table, ping pong table. They had tap for beer. And I was always like, this is what makes them better. I don't actually know. Right. Again, I'm going to go back to the family vibe. You're coming into a new kitchens and you're coming into a group of people have been together through thick and thin, through sickness and health. It's like a marriage. Um, so I do believe that there has to be that feel. Now, like I said to you earlier, you get to organic growth. There's only so much, you know, there's now people that are in the stores that I don't know their names and I try really hard so, you know, shadow her. Callie's getting me where she bought the name tags because those name tags were so great.

Speaker A: Thank you. Yeah, they're so cute.

Speaker B: I'm going to take it a step further.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: I go to Miraval every year, which is. That's one of the things I've done for like 12 years, which is part of the catalyst of this programming and things that I do that I'm doing in this new project. On theirs. You have one word that's a description, uh, how you describe yourself. So it's like Meredith chaotic or Meredith, you know, spiritual or whatever the heck it happens to be. Um, and it's like a conversation starter. Right. So when people are having a hard time. Now, you wouldn't do it in your place because you're all back of the house sort of here today. But imagine if you were going up to a customer service and like really upset about something that happened in this business and it said someone's name with, you know, that they loved a. Whatever patient.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And you walk up and you're like, well, thank God you're patient because I have a real problem. Right. It takes a step off. And so I just, I mean, I don't even know where I went with that, but I love that so much.

Speaker A: Yeah. Humanizes everything.

Speaker B: Everything is humanized. And everything for us and every customer to us is important. I know about people's kids allergies and parents issues and all of that because they come in and they, they need help.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And I can't say no to it. And now I'm educating my team to understand it so they can help. So now there's more hands in it.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: But really that's exponential change in our community. Our community. Right. Because the more, you know, the more you can, you can help other people. And isn't that really what we're here for? We all just need a purpose. And that's my purpose.

Speaker A: I love that. I love the thought of the name tag too, because I think, um, you know, it seems to me as if. Well, I think you're amazing. Number one, the way that you treat people is so apparent of how you show up. Like how you show up right here is how you're showing up there. I think that's why we've been successful is because we're a family. It's family first. It's, you know, family focused. It's all about helping people. Um, what would you say if on the reverse of that, what challenges are you experiencing in the workplace, if any?

Speaker B: Well, we experience a lot of challenges. Right. Because again, we are in a semi transient kind of thing. I have kids at 15 and I have adults at 75 who work for us.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: So there's a different. Everybody's at a different pace. And so identifying that again, taking that pause before, you're like, wait, why isn't he or she doing what I said to do or what I need them to do or what I want them to do.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: And understanding what they need first. It's true sales. Right. I mean, and you have to do that. You have to sell yourself all day, every day. Uh, even amongst your people, like, do you understand where I'm coming from? And what do you need to be able to get on the same boat with me or the same bus or whatever? And I think that's a massive challenge. Right. Because people are all getting on this boat. So everybody, uh, we've been really blessed that we have so many people coming to anew and wanting jobs. And you want to give it to somebody who's like minded, but that doesn't always mean they're like minded to our culture and our philosophies. And I think for everybody, it's the same way. Right. Like, you know, HR same thing. You're selling people.

Speaker A: Oh, yeah.

Speaker B: I can't even imagine what that's like. Weeding out the people who say they're something.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker B: Isn't that it? Right? You know, the 90 day thing, I never understood that. That was really for us, not them.

Speaker A: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, I know. It's like they're. It's like they think they're getting a test into their employer. I'm like, no, no, no, no. Yeah, no, no, yeah, yeah.

Speaker B: So it's just, um, there's always gonna be challenges. Employees are the hardest part about entrepreneurship. Yeah. And that doesn't mean that they're bad. It just means we have to understand each other better. I think the word that I've been really enjoying, I just read a book called When Buddha or if Buddha Came to Dinner.

Speaker A: Oh, so cool.

Speaker B: Um, and it was really about transformational nutrition. But again, if we take those five pillars of what makes your whole life go around in a good way, everything is transformational. Right. So if you stop before, which is probably the hardest thing for me, and if anybody who knows me or works for me is listening to this podcast, they're gonna be like, oh, she's so full of it. She's crazy. And I am, I'm very reactive and always have been. That's what I work on for me all the time. To not react and, uh, to really take a minute before I do anything. And it's the hardest out of the box change I've had to make, but it's been the most beneficial.

Speaker A: Like you pause before you say anything or you pause and see if people can figure it out without you.

Speaker B: Well, a little of both.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: I usually let people do. I'm a great editor.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And I've found that if I just say, here's the goal, bring to me. I mean, again, we had this conversation today and one of my employees was like, okay, so do you want me to. And I'm like, I want you to get every decision to every data point that you would make a decision as if it was for you at home and bring that to me so I can look at each data point and say to you, okay, you didn't think about this, so next time let's think about that and let's put this together. And you know, I mean, I'm being very generic because who knows which decision that was about today. Ah, yes. But in my younger days as a, ah, chef and cook and being in a kitchen, it's a tough, rough and tumble place. And by the way, I was the only woman around for a minute.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: And it Took my first female chef, who I give a lot of credit to. Didn't work out with her, but she was able to. I felt safe with her to be able to take my first step out, to really work on the business. And what I saw then, which was a long time ago now, was that I was too reactionary. But I was. Because, you know, if I didn't answer that question right away, something was gonna burn.

Speaker A: I know. It's. Well, that. And that's. I feel like that has to be the industry, too. It's like you're. It's right in front of you. So it is. Um. What. When you brought up a good point about the female chef. Are there any mentors in your life that you're like, I need to give this person some credit?

Speaker B: Oh, my God. Well, I joined your program because I never had a mentor. I've had a couple people I've asked a question to here or there, but in this process, this transformation that I'm making in my own world now, I realized I didn't know how to ask for help. Um, so my father was an incredible mentor to me, but he died five years into my career. So, uh. But he's with me all the time in my mind, you know, what would he do? How would he have done it? Because he created this culture long before there was one. Because I am really a ton like him and my brother, even though he and I are so different, he is so much like him. And we love what we do so much that it permeates. Right. Like, there's no chance that it doesn't permeate. Yeah. Um, I will tell you, uh, probably 11 years ago, Steve Graham of Casey's M. And I texted him today. I was like, I don't know who to talk to. And he was friends with my dad, and so I called him, and he said to me, buy the bricks. And so that was 11 years and five properties ago.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: And I swear, I never made a penny until I bought the bricks.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: But it doesn't make sense. I sold coffee.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker B: Do you know what I mean? I said to him, do you know what I do for a living? I can't buy a shopping center. Sure. He's like, figure it out.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: That was the best advice I had ever gotten.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: Um, so he would be one of the guys, and Marty Kenny. I don't know if anybody knows Marty Kenny, but I sat with him yesterday, and we just had monthly lunches. But I really thought I was helping him. But ultimately, he was helping me. You Know, um, and we were just chatting.

Speaker A: Mhm.

Speaker B: So, yeah, I guess those two guys are my guys. But in my industry, nobody does what I do, so it's really hard to get a mentor in that it does what you do. Yeah. And by meeting Christina and in shadow her, I've learned that you don't have to be in the same business. But I didn't know that when I was her age. I was 20.

Speaker A: Is like, how lucky is she that she got.

Speaker B: I don't know if she's lucky and I'm probably kicking her ass, but that's

Speaker A: what it's all about. It's about someone that you can trust.

Speaker B: Well, integrity's all we have. And I have always lived by that. And that has been a really, really great cornerstone, um, for me and for what I do. And my dad lived like that. Um, and, you know, a lot of people don't like me. You know, you either love me or hate me. And if you hate me, that's your problem, not mine. Because I come forward with kindness, authenticity, Authenticity, period. I might be kicking your ass at the same time, you know. And, um, I'm a businesswoman. I've had to survive through a lot of issues or a lot of challenges, uh, so I'm not a pushover. But, um, yeah, I think that's the long answer to your question about mentors.

Speaker A: Well, it sounds to me that you are extremely resilient. Good word. And believe with love and kindness. And, um, Is that how your team would describe you?

Speaker B: I would hate to know how they describe me.

Speaker A: I. Listen, you don't stay with somebody for that long and think anything other than that. I'll tell you that for somebody. I've worked for someone for 10 years, you know, so.

Speaker B: And you felt that way? Oh, yeah, yeah.

Speaker A: Oh, my goodness. I can't imagine my life without Marcia in it.

Speaker B: Yeah.

Speaker A: Jesus may know, I have. I'm lucky to have two amazing parents. But, like, I think about Marsha as like, an older sister who's, yes, been the greatest mentor professionally, but also, like, is a huge part of, like, my family life. You know, when I. When something happens at home, I want to share it with her. Um, and I care so deeply about the business that I know that, you know, your team's likely feeling the same way, so.

Speaker B: Well, I suggest you get a survey out there and find out. Yes, but it's just funny. The oldest guy in My company is 25 years, and I say to him all the time, whenever he starts shit. I say to, um, him, you're Carrying my casket. So you might as well just take a minute and think about that. So that's it. That's just it. You're carrying the casket.

Speaker A: I love it.

Speaker B: And, um, I hope they think I'm, um. I'm tough but fair.

Speaker A: Yeah. Okay, a couple quick rapid fire questions, and then we're going to wrap up. Because I feel like I could sit here with you, and I want to.

Speaker B: I'm enjoying this.

Speaker A: I want to hear more. I want to hear more stuff. But we're going to have to do a part two, I think. Um, what is your go to comfort food?

Speaker B: Oh, definitely. Ice cream. Yeah.

Speaker A: What's your favorite? Like, is there a brand that you like? Well, you know, have xanthan gum in it.

Speaker B: Yeah. Well, Turkey Hill, Vanilla bean.

Speaker A: Oh, wow.

Speaker B: Natural Turkey Hill. Natural.

Speaker A: Okay.

Speaker B: Breyers Natural. I was yelling at the freezer case on Sunday because Breyers used to be nothing and they're natural. And now it's got locust bean gum or something in it. And I was like, I mean, people in supermarkets must think I am crazy because I am literally talking to the food.

Speaker A: Yeah. So, I mean, same.

Speaker B: But yeah, I mean, that's not it. I make a killer risotto, and I have modified it to be cauliflower at its base.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: And it is very comforting. So I make that too much.

Speaker A: Yep. Sounds very delicious. Uh, what's your biggest leadership lesson that you've learned? The hard way?

Speaker B: God, I'd have to think that one through. But I'm gonna say the pause again, because when I act, um. Ah. Without thinking, I do stupid stuff. I just did something stupid the other day, like, really stupid. And I, um, can't fix it. And it's funny because it's a construction thing, but to save a dollar, you. Pennywise pound foolish. Right? Yeah. And again, my boyfriend, who has become my. My real, um, my sounding board, said to me, no more decisions like that. Okay. Because he has to fix it.

Speaker A: Yeah. Right. Like I said, out of a building. Yeah.

Speaker B: Without thinking of how to get it out the door.

Speaker A: All right. Right. So you can't. Yeah. That's hard to.

Speaker B: Can't do that.

Speaker A: Yeah. But when it comes to, like, the people, things like what I care about as, like, an employee is as long as the person takes accountability.

Speaker B: Absolutely.

Speaker A: And I think that's what it's all about. Like, I tell my team, I'm like, I don't care if you make an error. I actually would like to see you fail or have a, you know, make a mistake as long as you say like, hey, I. I did that. And I'm like, cool. It's all good.

Speaker B: It's a lesson.

Speaker A: Yeah, it's a lesson.

Speaker B: Always a lesson. Always. I can't tell you how many failures I've had.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Mean. That's a third episode, Right?

Speaker A: Me too. So. That's right. Um, coffee or tea?

Speaker B: Coffee.

Speaker A: Okay.

Speaker B: Lots of it.

Speaker A: Okay. What do you put in it?

Speaker B: Nothing.

Speaker A: Black coffee.

Speaker B: Black coffee in bed.

Speaker A: Baby, I'm going to be there one day. Not.

Speaker B: It's hard. I did that for weight loss in the beginning, and now I'm okay with it. And I put half and half on the weekend.

Speaker A: Yeah. It's like, half and half's your treat.

Speaker B: That's my treat.

Speaker A: Oh.

Speaker B: Uh, but real organic.

Speaker A: Real organic.

Speaker B: Half and half. And usually it's not even half and half. That's just. What.

Speaker A: What.

Speaker B: Ah, we keep in the house. Sometimes it's usually cream.

Speaker A: Cream. Okay. And then what keeps you motivated on your toughest days?

Speaker B: My staff and their family. I never finished that story, but ultimately, when I was trying to decide whether I was gonna stop or grow, I'm growing for them and for their kids and Most of the 20 year plussers, their kids work for us now.

Speaker A: Wow.

Speaker B: Which is so cool. Yeah.

Speaker A: So I think you. You gotta. Well, you're obviously a mentor in our Shadowheart program, but, like, that secret sauce is hard to find. And so if you can help other business owners. Not that in your. In your spare time.

Speaker B: Yeah. I love it. No, I wouldn't.

Speaker A: But, like, the people are gonna hear this and like, they want. This is what they want. We have clients that. They lose somebody every single day. Yeah. You know, and they, They're. They get it. You know, they get more money somewhere else. They get better benefits or maybe the flexibility, whatever it is. People leave for all different types of reasons, but when there's a home base that is, you know, cares about you as a person, that's probably the number one reason people stay.

Speaker B: Well, I was listening to the Mel Robbins podcast driving in circles the other day, and Barbara Corcoran was on.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And Mel asked the same sort of question, like, what's your advice to these young Whatever. Getting a job. And she said, like your boss.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Not the money, not the other stuff, but like, the people you're gonna work with.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: And I don't mean that like a personality contest. And I'm taking it out of context so it doesn't seem as impactful. But, um, for me, that's what I thought about my team. I was like, you know, I'm good to them, and I've been good to them forever. As good as I could be. And I mean, troubling times in troubled times. I have had employees say to me, you don't have to pay me this week. I can wait till next week. No, no, not once. A hundred times. But they also know my personal account is the account of the business when necessary. So they know that they want to be taken care of.

Speaker A: Yep. They know that you're good for it.

Speaker B: So I think that I can say that because it's just been so many years, uh, for a new entrepreneur or a business that I know nothing about. I mean, I am bootstraps. I've been working it through. And so it's evolved. All of those things have evolved to where we are now. And it took my daughter to come in and say, mom, we need a better culture.

Speaker A: Yep.

Speaker B: And I was like, why? I'm nice to everybody.

Speaker A: She's like, that's not enough. Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker B: But it is enough. Yeah, I think it is enough. And the other stuff is just fun.

Speaker A: Yeah. And you'll formalize it. And that's what she's doing. So that's incredible.

Speaker B: Yeah.

Speaker A: Thank you so much for joining us today. Thanks for having me. We are gonna have a part two, and, uh, maybe a part three, we'll have to say. Um, but I couldn't thank you enough for this amazing conversation.

Speaker B: Thank you.

Speaker A: And thank you for everybody listening in. Where, uh, can everybody go to find you, Meredith?

Speaker B: Well, we're at a new kitchens dot com. You know, if I knew the Instagram and all that stuff, I'd be able to tell you. All the socials.

Speaker A: All the socials. All the socials. All the socials. We'll put you out there.

Speaker B: All the socials. But, um, reach out to me, uh, on our website. Cause then I see it. I'm not very social myself. Cause I'm super busy. But, um, that's where they can find us. We're also in Bryn Mawr, Paoli, Margate, Ocean City. Soon to be Valley Forge, soon to be Wayne. And another one Secret one. Secret one coming soon.

Speaker A: Maybe Westchester.

Speaker B: I tried.

Speaker A: All right, soon. Maybe down the road. Maybe next. Maybe next.

Speaker B: We did have a billboard in Westchester.

Speaker A: Oh, okay.

Speaker B: Who knows?

Speaker A: There we go.

Speaker B: All right.

Speaker A: All right. Well, thank you, everybody, for listening in. This was H.R. ah, after dark. And I'm Megan Missing Marcia today. And we'll catch you next time.