Mastering Your Brand with Meghan Kix: A Deep Dive into Marketing and Branding for Food Entrepreneurs

[00:00:00] Chris Spear: Wherever you are right now, I want you to stop and look around. What brand of clothes are you wearing? How about shoes? If you're in your car, what kind of car is it? If you're eating breakfast, how did you select the foods that you're eating right now? Why do you drive a Lexus instead of a Honda? Why did you buy Rice Krispies brand cereal instead of Wegmans Krispy Rice cereal?

[00:00:24] Chris Spear: Today I'm thrilled to be speaking with Megan Kix, a marketing and branding specialist. Megan spent a decade working for Flying Dog Brewery, And in 2020, she started her own agency called BeeCat Creative. I get a lot of questions about marketing from people who are starting their businesses. And while I can clearly speak about what I've done, and what works for me, I thought it was time to bring in an expert.

[00:00:46] Chris Spear: So today I'm hoping that we can get some of your questions answered. Regardless of your industry, if you own or run a business, You're going to want to listen to this week's episode. This is Chris Spear, and you're listening to Chefs Without Restaurants, the show where I speak with culinary [00:01:00] entrepreneurs and people working in the food and beverage industry outside of a traditional restaurant setting.

[00:01:05] Chris Spear: I have 32 years of working in kitchens, but not restaurants, and currently operate a personal chef service throwing dinner parties in the Washington, D. C. area. So this is one of those tactical episodes where I really wanted my guest to provide value to you, the listener. In fact, we talked so much that I had to break this into two episodes.

[00:01:25] Chris Spear: So this is part one, and part two should be out next week. I felt like we talked about so much stuff, and I didn't want you to be overwhelmed. In today's episode, we're going to explore the fundamentals of branding, understanding your target audience, and how to balance creativity with client demands. We talk about positioning, pricing your product or service, and how sometimes you might just be early to market, something that I feel like I'm still dealing with 14 years in.

[00:01:53] Chris Spear: I really think that this episode is going to bring a lot of value to people, especially if you're in the early stages of starting your business. [00:02:00] Or if you haven't even started and you're thinking that this might be something you're going to do in the next couple months or year or so. Before we dive in, I have a really quick request.

[00:02:09] Chris Spear: If you enjoy the show, please take a moment to subscribe, rate it, and maybe leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback not only helps us improve, but it also helps others discover the show. And because I split this episode, Megan really talks about her business and how you can reach her in the second half.

[00:02:27] Chris Spear: So that'll be next week. So I really want to make sure if you like what she's talking about and maybe even want to reach out to her or follow along on her social media, check out the show notes because all of her contact info will be there. And of course, I really hope you listen to part two which should be out next week.

[00:02:44] Chris Spear: As always, thanks so much for listening and have a great week. Hey, Megan, welcome to the show. Thanks so much for coming on. 

[00:02:50] Meghan Kix: Thanks for having me. I'm very excited to be here. 

[00:02:53] Chris Spear: I'm looking forward to talking to you today because this is something I talk to a lot of my guests about, but they actually don't do that as [00:03:00] their specialty.

[00:03:00] Chris Spear: It's like something that they've had to figure out on their own. So, uh, you are a Marketing branding specialist. Is that how you'd identify yourself? 

[00:03:11] Meghan Kix: I mean, I think now in the marketing world, we all kind of identify ourselves as just jack of all trades because you have to be, but yeah, uh, I have such a deep passion and love for branding and unique experiences in marketing.

[00:03:29] Meghan Kix: So branding specialist, I, yeah, I'm cool with that. 

[00:03:32] Chris Spear: Well, I, I'd like to spend just a little bit on your background. You know, why? Why should people listen to you? What is your experience in this? Because a lot of people are recreationally doing it today, which is fine, right? But there's a lot of people who didn't really spend a lot of time coming up and learning it and they want to get on and tell you how to grow your business on social media or whatever.

[00:03:53] Chris Spear: What's your experience in this space? 

[00:03:56] Meghan Kix: So I went to school for marketing. Um, [00:04:00] and if we want to push it back even further, I have been a marketer my whole life. I have been a. Uh, a schemer, a person that, um, I have ideas, I want you to buy into them. And so when I was 10 years old, I had a waffle stand and I loved music at the time, I mean, I still love music, but I really loved music.

[00:04:25] Meghan Kix: And so what I did is I recorded my own radio show with my own commercials for my business in the background. to play at my stand. So when people are like walking past, the commercials are for my waffle stand and with, you know, the cool top 10, um, music going on. And so I've always had a love for it and I went to school for it, uh, in New York City and I went specifically for product marketing in the fashion world.

[00:04:54] Meghan Kix: So if you had a business, uh, making t shirts, you would come to me for the business side. So [00:05:00] you could focus on creative. And I came home to work for Flying Dog Brewery and I worked there for almost a decade. And I was their merchandise director and I did everything there from concept to launch. And how will we get, how are we going to get this stuff out the door?

[00:05:17] Meghan Kix: How are people going to constantly see our brand? So I was heavily involved in that. And then I started BCAT in 2020. Because Created, which is what I'm doing now. 

[00:05:27] Chris Spear: Well, I think the flying dog thing is interesting because beer, I'm a beer guy. Now you go into a store to buy beer. I feel like half the time I just buy it based on can art or something like, I'm sure you've seen the explosion of like beer can and beer bottle art because you go in and there's.

[00:05:43] Chris Spear: 10, 000 SKUs of beers by the single and it's like, I don't even know what to get. Oh, that, that label looks really cool. Right? 

[00:05:51] Meghan Kix: Yeah. Well, and Flying Dog was one of the first beers to do that, to really go outside the box with their labels, um, and also have some of their labels [00:06:00] banned. And taken to, uh, we took a few cases to the Supreme Court to say, Hey, this is first amendment.

[00:06:08] Meghan Kix: We're allowed to do this. And we won with raging bitch. And so they, yeah, it's, that's really proof in the pudding, right? I'm going to do a lot of, uh, food, uh, puns here, um, that branding and, and marketing and differentiating yourself is really important. You can have a common product, but you have to differentiate yourself in the market.

[00:06:34] Meghan Kix: So get out there and do it. 

[00:06:37] Chris Spear: Well, that's what we're going to talk about because I think it's hard. So, you know, a lot of my listeners have food businesses, the chefs without restaurants. But the thing is, you know, someone like me, I worked in a kitchen. I wanted to start my own personal chef business. How do I stand out?

[00:06:51] Chris Spear: Where do I start with branding, you know, and then I'm. I don't have the money to hire people, so I don't have marketing. I don't have design specialists, but I want to make sure that [00:07:00] people know of me, know what I do, know that I can give them a good dining experience. And it's overwhelming. And people ask me all the time, everything from customer acquisition to branding.

[00:07:10] Chris Spear: So. Let's kind of start with branding. Like, do you need to start about your brand from the jump? Like I'm working as a cook in a restaurant. I think I want to be a personal chef. I'm going to start a business. Should you try and get off on the right foot with, you know, your, your business name, your brand, brand identity, and.

[00:07:30] Chris Spear: How important is that? Like having a unique brand, 

[00:07:33] Meghan Kix: all the fibers in my being say, yes, absolutely. But the rebel spirit in me says, just get started. And I know that's gonna be like, Hey, Meg, you're here to give people direction. And you just gave, you know, an answer with such duality. But you can get paralyzed by it, right?

[00:07:54] Meghan Kix: And I'm sure that you may have had a little bit of that, where you're like, oh my gosh, is this [00:08:00] the right logo? Is this the right font? Do I want this color or this color? So I would say a little bit of both. Or at least keeping in mind that you always can go back, right? Like you always can go back and refine and change things.

[00:08:16] Meghan Kix: You're never, ever locked in. And that was something that was really big for me when I first started. Bcat was, I got really, Paralyzed and locked into the details like you mentioned, like the brand identity and and who am I and what's my story and and I do this for a living and I got paralyzed by it. So that just kind of proves that it can be overwhelming, but if you jump into it knowing that you can always go back and refine and change, it makes it a little bit easier.

[00:08:50] Meghan Kix: So I like to give the advice of, yes, it is nice to have, and great to have, and good to have a foundation of who [00:09:00] you are, have a logo, nice little brand identity to start, and then you always can build your brand even further. And, you know, because there are so many brand elements, right? There's so much, so much you can go into in developing a brand.

[00:09:17] Meghan Kix: But if you have just kind of that bedrock to start with, you also, as you go through the process, may change, which is something to just keep in mind too. So if you get so locked into these details and, I don't know, let's just say the color Purple as your, one of your colors in your palette. And then you start really being like the guy who's known for, I don't know, salads and you want to change it up to like some green, then you're like, Oh crap, like I'm so locked into this purple.

[00:09:50] Meghan Kix: And so that's, I know that's kind of like a, a, a two, like two sides of the same coin or whatever, but that's, I really like to preach that [00:10:00] to people because you can get paralyzed by all of the details. 

[00:10:04] Chris Spear: Well, I, I think of like businesses, like just cabinets that sells couches and tables and like, is that problematic?

[00:10:13] Chris Spear: Like, maybe you don't have to have it all ratcheted down, but like, what does that mean for your businesses? 

[00:10:19] Meghan Kix: To go back and answer your question and not to be typical, um, typical Meg, who's like, just get out there and do it guys. I'm like such a cheerleader because in a perfect world, I would say, okay, yes, we need these things.

[00:10:34] Meghan Kix: Right. You definitely need, um, you need a name and you need a logo or some type of, of mark. And that can also sometimes be a word mark, right? Like that can be, you don't have to have like a little guy who's like, it can be, you know, just whatever your name and really in a cool, uh, illustrated way. [00:11:00] But just starting with that.

[00:11:02] Meghan Kix: You have to go back even further a little bit, and who is your target? Who are you talking to? What are you doing? And so, In our process, when we work with people, we, even before we get to designing things and logos and, you know, all that jazz, we really, we meet with people and we talk about who are you, who is your target, who do you want to come to your business, or who do you want to, you know, be your brand.

[00:11:31] Meghan Kix: Calling you. And once you figure out your market and and what your product is and what you want to sell and how you want to differentiate yourself, what your strategy is, then we get into the identity. And that's not typical knowledge. I feel like when people start a business, it's like they call you up and they're like, Hey, I have this idea.

[00:11:53] Meghan Kix: I need a logo and a name. And really, in the marketing viz, you start before [00:12:00] that. And so if, if I were to give and, and I'm working with somebody right now who's developing, um, a product and they had already done all of their logo and their name and everything. And I said, well, who is your, who's your target?

[00:12:17] Meghan Kix: And they kind of looked at me and they're like, well, everybody. And I'm like, no, it ain't. So that's something if I'm giving people advice to really. first sit with. And that can be, that can be challenging. And that's where you can bring in a professional or, you know, somebody to consult or even, you know, yourself, someone who's been through it and really go through, well, who am I talking to?

[00:12:47] Meghan Kix: And what are maybe the mistakes That I want to, uh, the pitfalls of you don't want to talk to everybody, you know? Yeah. Everybody needs food, but like, is everyone going to come to [00:13:00] you to cook for them? I mean, I would love that. You could come by any time, but, um, so that's, that's where I would start. Uh, hopefully that's helpful.

[00:13:10] Chris Spear: Yeah, no, I, I definitely want to talk about that because I, that's something that I talked to a lot of chefs about and, and some people want to be everything for everyone. And I. You know, I think positioning in the market is really important. And from the beginning, I wanted to do a higher end, like I'm a higher ticket.

[00:13:29] Chris Spear: You know, dinners have always started a minimum of a hundred dollars a person, and that excludes a whole bunch of people right out of the gate. And now with rising food costs and things like I have people who pay 200 to 50 ahead, I still get people who want. Their budget is 30 a head, but I'm hoping to really ratchet my marketing and my brand package down that people will get to my site and realize that their budget does not meet what I do.

[00:13:55] Chris Spear: And then I don't even have to answer emails and calls and so forth. Like I've [00:14:00] wanted to position myself as a high end multi course dinner in people's homes. And there's a lot of chefs who are like, no, I'll take the 30 dinners and I'll take the 150 dinners. And those are two very clients. And like, I think you have to be consistent in your branding and messaging for that kind of thing.

[00:14:15] Chris Spear: You know, look at luxury cars like they're not trying to sell to the people who shop at walmart to buy 100, 000 car, you know, and I've tried to put that through with food. But like you had said, yeah, everyone eats. So I think a lot of chefs are like, well, I want to capture 100 percent of the market, but you can never make 100 percent of the population, in my opinion, your target market.

[00:14:37] Meghan Kix: Yeah, if you're, if you're casting your net to everyone, you're not casting your net to anyone. And I just combined two things there. But if you're talking to everyone and then you're talking to no one, and so that's really important to, to identify who you [00:15:00] Specifically want to attract because, like you said, I think you touched a little bit about upon elite qualifier.

[00:15:06] Meghan Kix: You know you when you decide that, then that eliminates some people who will get through to you. That may not be it. Your target, right? And so when you when you put out this is who I am, and this is what I do, you're already starting to lead qualify. You're already starting to weed out people who may not be interested.

[00:15:28] Meghan Kix: And if we want to, like, get on the business side of things, that saves a lot of time. And there's, you know, the opportunity costs. If you're chasing every lead or every potential client or every potential, um, do you call them clients? 

[00:15:44] Chris Spear: Clients or customers? 

[00:15:45] Meghan Kix: Customers. Then that's a recipe for burnout too. And this is the other thing, it's okay to.

[00:15:54] Meghan Kix: Then change your mind and then offer a new service [00:16:00] or a product extension, but you really want to be the master of your trade and what that is and then add on because, I mean, we won't get down the road too far on, on burnout. I could. Talk and have a whole podcast on that if you are casting that huge net to all these people and you are chasing all these leads and customers, you you will burn out so quick.

[00:16:26] Meghan Kix: And so it also is protecting you and protecting your professional boundaries and really then giving you the runway to be successful. 

[00:16:38] Chris Spear: My wife puts me in check with a lot of those things. Like I've always said my maximum party number is 20. And even that is a little high because I want it to be a fun dinner party.

[00:16:47] Chris Spear: But then, you know, someone will say like, well, you know, it's 27 people, but I know you like to do plated, but maybe we could do like family style. And I'll, you know, the paycheck is quite often good. And you take that thing and you do it. And she's like, you're just going to be bitching the whole [00:17:00] week leading up to like, you hate this stuff.

[00:17:02] Chris Spear: Stop doing it. Really? Like you've said, you're not going to do a party that big. You hate doing family style. Just don't do them. Like stop doing them. Like, cause she'll see me like the week leading up. I'm like, ah, you know, F this or whatever. Like, and it's frustrating, but it's hard when you have a business and the only money you have coming in is from jobs you get.

[00:17:22] Chris Spear: I mean, we're not in the recurring business business. We're in the, they're all. I don't want to say one time. I mean, I have some repeat customers, but for the most part, if I have eight events in a month, there are eight different people who I've never cooked for and it's all getting new leads all the time.

[00:17:38] Chris Spear: Right? So it's like, sometimes you're like, uh, I don't have any work this month. I guess I have to take that. So there are times when you do, but it's like, yeah. I want that to be less and less. So how do I really, you know, my customer avatar, like who is that person and how do I get that person and really spending time doing that.

[00:17:55] Meghan Kix: And also, cause I do that too. There are some [00:18:00] things that I do that I don't put out into the world that I do, but I will. If someone Is being a salesperson to me. I mean, that's the thing. Sometimes you get potential clients or customers that are really good sales people. And you're like, I don't do that.

[00:18:17] Meghan Kix: And, but by the end of the conversation, you're like, okay, fine, I'll do it. And you're like, wait, how did we get here? There's that too. You. You can always offer something, you know, if business is slow or you see a great opportunity because you're really, you are really in the consumer customer experience business, right?

[00:18:37] Meghan Kix: And so you want the best experience possible and then each dinner you do, that's a feeder program. All of those people now have had that experience and then they go tell their friends and they go tell their friends. And it's like this awesome, like just spread. 

[00:18:53] Chris Spear: Which, which I want to jump in really quick, which is why I think it's.

[00:18:56] Chris Spear: Importance and, but also potentially dangerous when you're doing these [00:19:00] things that you don't really want to do because then there are these, so it's like, I don't want to do this boring food. I don't want to do family salad. I don't want to do these big events, but then I'm going to do this event for 27 people.

[00:19:09] Chris Spear: And all those people, you'd be like, Oh, well, Chris will come and do this buffet dinner at my house for 70 a person for 30 people, right? Cause I've seen this. I've had friends who do like wedding catering and they've done it on the cheap. Well, now you have 200 people who eat this mediocre food and they don't know it's because the client only had 20 ahead and you were doing them a favor.

[00:19:31] Chris Spear: So now they're all going to leave thinking this is the guy who serves cheap, shitty food and pre made mashed potatoes. Like that's not good marketing for you. Stop doing that. 

[00:19:39] Meghan Kix: Yeah. Well, the one thing I'll say is that the guideline that I follow is I like to keep pricing the same. I like to keep the pricing in, in the same ballpark.

[00:19:52] Meghan Kix: I was told by one of my first clients. To never discount, you know, to, to kind of [00:20:00] get the discounts off the table, right? Especially when you first work with somebody, if you have a rapport with somebody and it's this great relationship and you've been working together for 10 years, a different conversation, but discounts, right?

[00:20:14] Meghan Kix: That's, that's telling them what your quality is and like what your worth is to you and, and your trade and how much, you know, you put into it. So I. Always keep the money the same. Now, the service. That could be different, but I make it a point to, to say like, this is a special thing with you. You have more of a communication, right?

[00:20:38] Meghan Kix: Like you can really be like, you know, you swing in with a plate and you're like this. I never do before. This is something really fancy. Don't get any ideas, but if I'm building like a website for somebody. I'm just with that person and it's, it's hard for me to be, to be like, Hey, don't tell your friends I do this because you do [00:21:00] want them.

[00:21:00] Meghan Kix: So yeah, it is this hard situation that you can get in, but at least with you being really involved in the actual experience. And then with all of those, let's say 20 people, you could have more of a communication and answer more questions and be more, more specific to really what you do. And that. This is, you know, this is a special one off occasion and what I love about your business is you do have the opportunity to do really cool little moments and experiences and brand them as a pop up or a special dinner.

[00:21:37] Meghan Kix: So then it really does. Put people in the lane. You want them to be in with you mentally, knowing that these things you're doing are outside of your normal services. And then that also gives exclusivity, which people love. 

[00:21:53] Chris Spear: Yeah, well, you know, because I think of myself as a creative person and I have some like ADHD [00:22:00] going on.

[00:22:00] Chris Spear: Like, I don't ever want to make the same food all the time. I want to make interesting food. I had a customer recently. I don't know if my customers listen to the show like they wanted, like, Basic food, you know, and I send them a list of like all these interesting salads. And at the end of the day, they wanted chopped iceberg with, you know, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, radishes, shredded carrot, and ranch dressing.

[00:22:22] Chris Spear: And I'm like, how can I bring something to this? That's going to be interesting for me. I'm going to feel fulfilled. It feels like it's my food. And then I have chef friends who are just like, shut the hell up and just make whatever and take their money. And I'm like, I know, but like, I sent them a list with like 20 salads.

[00:22:39] Chris Spear: Like, who are these people and why are they hiring me? You know, and I'm, I'm torn by that. And some people are just like, I don't care. I don't get caught up in that. I just, you know, take the money and make their stupid olive garden salad for them. 

[00:22:51] Meghan Kix: Yeah. Well, and that's, that's going back to who you want to be.

[00:22:56] Meghan Kix: I mean, sometimes, and I'm sure you've had this, I've had this, [00:23:00] the values don't align. And that in going back to branding, going back to, you know, positioning and, and, and strategy and all of the fun stuff where you get outside of just a logo or, wordmark, what are your values? What's important to you? And that is something that.

[00:23:21] Meghan Kix: We at BCAT start really early with people because then it aligns with who your audience is, right? What you put out as your values, then you'll get back, it'll align with the people that are attracted to what you're doing. And so if you, one of your values is originality, you know, imagination or, or something like that, uh, it's, if someone comes to you with an iceberg salad.

[00:23:53] Meghan Kix: You, you may say, Hey, this just doesn't align. This just isn't, this isn't for me. [00:24:00] And. That's, that's a nice kind of, it settles you more in your decision. If you have these values, which we have, and I have them up on my wall, I look at that and then I look at the lead coming in or the potential client. And if I see too much of like, Hey, we're not aligned here, then I feel very like centered in myself to say, I just don't think we're on the same page.

[00:24:26] Meghan Kix: But I always have a group of people to refer them to, you know, I'm sure you do too. Like other, yeah, other chefs 

[00:24:33] Chris Spear: and chefs without restaurants as a community. It was a community before it was a podcast with the idea of having a network of people and being able to say like, Hey, I don't, you have a 30 person party and your budget's 50 a head.

[00:24:44] Chris Spear: That's not my thing, but here's three people who I'm sure would love to, to do this party for you. And hopefully they'll send some love my way, you know, for other jobs. 

[00:24:53] Meghan Kix: Yeah. And there's nothing wrong with that. That's the biggest thing. Um, and again, I hate to keep [00:25:00] referencing burnout, but that's the word we live in right now is it is okay to say, Hey, this just doesn't align with me.

[00:25:09] Meghan Kix: This isn't the type of food that I like to make. So here is my friend. He he's going to do an awesome job for you here. She's going to do an awesome job for you. They'll take care of you. And. That frees up time and space, right, to find something that is more aligned with you. And so always just, just know that within that decision, there is something in the wings.

[00:25:34] Chris Spear: I think entrepreneurs, we could all go work for someone else. Why are we having our own business? You know, I could have more stable money and maybe more money being a chef working for someone, but I want to work for myself and I want to enjoy my days because I've worked a lot of jobs where I was miserable, right?

[00:25:50] Chris Spear: And that's what I, Keep telling my peers when they say you're turning down gigs that are good money. I'm like, yeah, cause it sounds like it's going to be stressful and I'm going to get burned out doing these [00:26:00] things. And like, yeah, if it means I eat out less this month so that I can enjoy all my days, then that's what I want to do.

[00:26:07] Chris Spear: And again, not. Popular opinion with everyone in my circle. 

[00:26:10] Meghan Kix: Yeah, I know. I mean, I think we're both in the position where we've been doing this for a while. And so the luxury of us to be able to say like, Oh, no, thank you. 

[00:26:24] Chris Spear: Right, right. I side hustled for a long time. And that's why I tell people like, if this is something you think.

[00:26:30] Chris Spear: You want to do start now because then I could be really particular and I built my brand around something where I was only doing one event a month than two events a job because I had a full time salaried manager chef job where it's like, Oh, I have a Saturday night off. I'll do one party. So then when the less expensive ones or the boring ones came, I said, you know, I'm sorry, I'm not available.

[00:26:52] Chris Spear: And then just my whole portfolio of clients where these people at a higher ticket with more interesting food. But I did that for five years because we had [00:27:00] young, I was ready to start my business and then we had twins and it was like, it wasn't a great time for me to leave. So I had a longer runway. I think if you're making 60, right now and you quit your job and tomorrow you have to start from scratch and have no clients have never done this, it's hard and it's hard to turn down those gigs.

[00:27:17] Chris Spear: And I don't look down on anyone who takes all that jobs that, that, you know, are thrown at them. And the creativity side, I hear people talk about all the time. Yeah. Some of the most well known people in the world do creative stuff. And then they do the commercial stuff. It's like, they're going to go shoot a car commercial and then they can go be really creative.

[00:27:35] Meghan Kix: Yeah. I mean, I think it's so easy for us to say, Oh, don't take on clients that don't align with you. But as you did, and I did when I first started, I took on clients that I thought. I know nothing about this or this industry doesn't really interest me, but I thought of it as a stepping stone and it is [00:28:00] a journey to the thing you really want to do.

[00:28:03] Meghan Kix: And then even if you get stuck, not stuck, I hate to say that sounds negative, but even if you get kind of put into, hey, this is the industry I'm focusing on or this is my client, because Sometimes you fall into things, right? Like sometimes business owners are like, how did that happen? You know, you kind of spoke about it with previous people that you've had on here where they're like, I don't know how it happened.

[00:28:27] Meghan Kix: It just happened. And that, that is totally plausible. And then what you do is you have these passion projects and you have these things that really bring you joy and you have to absolutely have that balance. And sometimes That is spending your own coin to do that, but the joy that it brings back to you to then spread joy in all of the projects that you do, even, even maybe the ones that aren't filling your cup as much, [00:29:00] it's so worth it.

[00:29:01] Meghan Kix: And so I've, I've done that in BCAT where. Frederick love Frederick, love it to death, but I am so weird that some of the, some of the business owners I've worked with are like, uh, you want to do what? And I'm like, I want to bring in like an alien. And like, and they're like, no, no, no, we're not doing that.

[00:29:23] Meghan Kix: Like we practice law. 

[00:29:24] Chris Spear: But like, you're the person that see, but like, I feel like realign and that's why we clicked. And for, uh, for people listening, like you and I met in an event that was essentially a collaborative event. With a lot of small business owners in the creative space. And I love that Frederick is not my number one market for being a chef either.

[00:29:40] Chris Spear: Like I tell people it's been very hard for me and my business would not survive if I only cooked for people in Frederick. It's just, it's a great place to live. People are super supportive of my business in that they like will recommend me and they like me, but they're not putting money in my pocket.

[00:29:55] Chris Spear: And I've had to go elsewhere. Um, so I understand the whole like Frederick [00:30:00] vibe and like, It's, it's, it's not that it's conservative, although maybe that would be the word for some of them. Um, but it's like, I, I've, I grew up outside of bigger cities and in big cities and like have that vibe and aesthetic, um, which I think aligns with a lot of what you do, which is why I was really like attracted to, to you and your brand and what you do.

[00:30:18] Chris Spear: I think it's cool, but I can see having challenges in town here with that. 

[00:30:23] Meghan Kix: Yeah. And it's changing, you know, it is changing. There's. Old Frederick and there's new Frederick and I won't talk too much about this, but, um, old Frederick really relies on referrals and so and so went to high school with so and so or, you know, so and so has been so and so's lawyer for 20 years.

[00:30:48] Meghan Kix: 40 years and they're recommending. And so it's great, but it's just a different, um, it's kind of a different vibe, although I will say now that [00:31:00] I'm saying this out loud, we all do that. You know, like you and I met and I've recommended, you know, I told people about you, but I think it's just. It's generational to maybe a little bit like a lot of the people, this is really terrible.

[00:31:17] Meghan Kix: Um, you may want to cut all say it. No, say it. Uh, the people who are like holding the purse strings in Frederick are ones that are a little conservative and they just don't know what they don't know. You know, like you can really, you can get them on board, but they've done things the same way, you know, each year.

[00:31:41] Meghan Kix: And we have, we have a couple of clients who we work with where it took a little bit of time and, and revisiting ideas and saying, Hey, no, we should try this. And then coming back the next month or, you know, six months later. And so that is also something that I think can be [00:32:00] overwhelming and discouraging to.

[00:32:03] Meghan Kix: Uh, other small business owners, especially if you're offering a service is to not give up on certain people or certain visions that you really feel true about. And that could just be, you never know, like if, if you're approaching somebody, you never know. They may like, you know, before we hopped on here and my dog just puked all over the living room.

[00:32:27] Meghan Kix: Now, if you came to me and said, Hey, can I, can I pitch this idea? And you know, it's going to be dead at a, I may be like, nah, I'm You know, my dog just like ruined my run. You're in the wrong 

[00:32:37] Chris Spear: mindset. Yeah. 

[00:32:38] Meghan Kix: Yeah. And so you just, you never know what somebody on that other end of that pitch is going through.

[00:32:44] Meghan Kix: And so really, if you, if you feel true in an idea and you feel strong. In a business, um, venture, then stay with it. 

[00:32:56] Chris Spear: Well, you could, you could be early to market. So I started my business on the side in [00:33:00] 2010, it is 2024. And there's still people who don't even know the category exists, not my business. Like I'm in the chamber of commerce and have been for a while.

[00:33:08] Chris Spear: And I still talk to people and like, wait, you you'll come to my house and cook a dinner for just like me and my wife for our anniversary. Yep. And I've been doing that for 14 years and they don't even know that that's a thing, let alone. Going online to find the best person who does it. They don't know it exists.

[00:33:22] Chris Spear: Frederick food trucks. They've been legal. What six years, seven years now, they've been doing them for like 30 years all over the country. And we got our first food truck in like 2014 or something like that. You know, we were just so behind. So if you have the financial runway to do it, like maybe you're just early, like I'm getting more clients in Frederick now.

[00:33:41] Chris Spear: I, you know, we have people here of money. We have people here who like good food. I still think people just don't even know it exists. Whereas in DC, you can hire anyone to do anything for you. And of course people are having an anniversary. They go online and they look like personal chef dinner for two.

[00:33:55] Chris Spear: And I come up and that's why I have to drive to DC. And I just think I was early to market here, [00:34:00] but I have a little first mover advantage, I think. Um, so, you know, I, I rank well in Google search results and people say nice things. So I'm not giving up on it. I just think I was early and there's a lot of people who I'm sure that that's happened to as well.

[00:34:12] Meghan Kix: Yeah, no, you're exactly right. Like I, I feel like Frederick is and you just articulated it in such a better way than I did. Mine sounded a little catty, um, that they don't know what they don't know, but it's not as though they're not open. It's just it's really early. You know, some of these ideas could be early and it takes a little bit more of, uh, um, Massaging the idea or you know, really coming with the vision.

[00:34:43] Meghan Kix: And that's something that I have, I have found in, I know we're kind of going off topic here and bring me back. 'cause I, this is 

[00:34:50] Chris Spear: all on topic though. I 

[00:34:51] Meghan Kix: also have a DHD , so you and I might end up talking about, you know, like something completely ridiculous. Ostriches. [00:35:00] Um, but no longer can you be the person that just kind of shows up with like, just the words in your head.

[00:35:08] Meghan Kix: You have to set yourself apart. And in Frederick specifically, I find that to do that, it's a lot of visuals. It's a lot of talking people through, it's showing them the return. And that's, Honestly, that's business. 

[00:35:25] Chris Spear: I try not to blow people off because I know most people haven't done this before. But like, for me, I don't need anything from you.

[00:35:32] Chris Spear: I need to know what you like and I'm going to send you a menu. And once we have that set, like, communication is essentially done. And I have people who are like, Hey, do you want to hop on a call about the dinner next week? And I, like, sometimes I reply, I'm like, Why? Like, what do you need? And they're like, I just wanted to talk to you.

[00:35:44] Chris Spear: And for me, it's like, like about what? Like, I, I don't know. You got the price. We've got the menu. I have your address. I'm bringing everything I need. Like, I don't need to spend 45 minutes talking to you, but I know it's the comfort. And sometimes I'm just like, I'm in the car and I'll be like, I'm at a red light and I'll like [00:36:00] blast off a thing.

[00:36:01] Chris Spear: And I'm like, Ooh, that probably came off wrong. But I just have to realize, like, I'm confident. I've been doing this so long. I've tried to outlie, uh, lay out everything for you. Like, yeah. I just don't have the time. So can it be like a five minute call? Can it be a text? But I find a lot of people need a lot of reassuring about what they're getting.

[00:36:19] Chris Spear: And it's like, okay, but that's just a lot more. Like how much do we need to massage this? You're still here? The podcast's over. If you are indeed still here, thanks for taking the time to listen to the show. I'd love to direct you to one place and that's chefswithoutrestaurants. org. From there, you'll be able to join our email newsletter, Get connected in our free Facebook group and join our personal chef, catering, and food truck database so I can help get you more job leads.

[00:36:46] Chris Spear: And you'll also find a link to our sponsor page, where you'll find products and services I love. You pay nothing additional to use these links, but I may get a small commission, which helps keep the Chefs Without Restaurants podcast and organization running. You might even get a discount for [00:37:00] using some of these links.

[00:37:01] Chris Spear: As always, you can reach out to me on Instagram at chefswithoutrestaurants, or send me an email at chefswithoutrestaurants at gmail. com. Thanks so much.