Meet Sheri Smith

2024 CanvasRebel Magazine

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

Alright, Sheri thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

First, I’d like to thank you for having me “back”!
I’ve been a business owner (caterer) since 1990 and it has always been up and down like a roller coaster, hanging on for the ride. At times I do wonder what it would be like to just have a regular job” whatever “regular” means. I think the last time I did was in the late ’80s when I worked for Dick Robertson at Telepictures. He is the one who suggested I start my own business, and I followed his advice. It was called Executive Express, Your Personal Runaround. And that led me to catering. I am passionate about being an event specialist, I call myself an event architect
The first quarter is slow and since I’m not the type to sit around, I wrote a book and finally finished Mama Drama after 5 years. Now time to launch. I’m finding out this project is exactly like starting a business. There is a lot one must know and do to launch successfully.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

In the 90s I bought a catering and event production company. We were the backstage caterers for Irvine Meadows Amphitheater in Irvine catering for every band that passed through, Including Michael Jackson, We have grown since then to provide not only “meals” but all aspects of events from venue selection, rentals, area decor, entertainment, and basically whatever the client desires for a memorable event. Here’s a thirty-second way to learn more about us: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEmQ3aD 7:01 We are now specializing in Chocolate Fountain (Fondue) and have almost 50 five-star reviews – THAT makes me very proud! I am self-published author (https://shertsmithauthor.com) but I hope to launch Mama Drama by year’s end it is my intent to be a best-selling author Go big or go home…?

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Right after the 911 attacks, I moved to the Big Island with my (now) ex-husband to build something for retirement and to share with family and friends. We built a castle-themed vacation rental and invested every penny we earned since 1990 into this dream. Olenu Heu, a reporter, heard about our Castle and flew from Oahu and did a piece on it for KHON2 News. You can see it here
https://www.youtube.com/@GourmetCateringcom/videos
THEN the lava started to flow. Well, not “just” flow but exploded into Leilani, a nearby subdivision. A lot of homes were lost, including my accountant’s. I knew it was time to leave. Madame Pele was cleaning house. I didn’t know that my ex had bipolar disorder. The minute I was gone. he moved in and destroyed our Castle. He invited drug dealers and pedophiles into our home and then went to prison. The squatters are still there ten years later. It’s safe to say I probably lost almost a million dollars if all this had not happened, and I had been able to sell it

I moved back to Fullerton as if aliens had abducted me and plopped me down right where I had been in 2000. My dear friend of thirty-plus years, Pauline, who is also a caterer (and an author!), wrapped me in her loving arms and allowed me to work with her till I figured my life out
Despite these challenges. I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. I wrote a screenplay (People Make Plans), which Pauline read (and apparently liked or thought I had talent) and asked me to adapt her book My Culinary Love Story into a screenplay. Big Break Screenwriting

contest advanced it to Quarter-finalist round. We now have a production company, GoEastMedia, which is working on a development deal to produce it.
This journey taught me the power of resilience and the importance of continually moving forward, and staying positive, no matter the obstacles. My favorite Sherisms? Bend like a willow or you will snap like an oak. And – if you think you can or you think you can’t – YOU’RE RIGHT!!!

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

First and foremost? DO A GREAT JOB! If you don’t know something, make sure one of your team does and can provide an answer
BE KIND. The one thing I learned from my fifteen glorious years on the Big Island was how to live aloha. Search on Wiki for the definition, but in my mind, it’s not just a word, it’s a way of life. In other words: treat others as you wish to be treated.
Use social media strategically. Don’t get roped into endless scrolling, IT WILL suck your brains out. I do post on FB and Instagram – for my business only, not to share what color toilet paper 1 used yesterday Sometimes I will post a PSA (public service announcement) if I know something that might help others, especially about health and building the immune system since I’ve been doing that since I’m sixteen years old and haven’t been sick in ten years.. remarkable.
Ask for reviews! Especially on Google. I like to say Google rules the world. (And Amazon also for that matter)
Manage your time!!! For both your business, your soul, and your body. I schedule to do TM (tm.org) when I wake up and before I do anything. It has been scientifically proven to repair the central nervous system. I am living proof, I can truthfully say TM has changed my life. You are supposed to do it 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the afternoon. I do the second one before I swim (typically 300 days a year in an outdoor pool). The pool I kept at temp but the air can be challenging in the winter, I also try to get in some classes such as body pump or RPM/spin
I also discovered Paraliminals on the Big Island and did one every day if I could. It truly helped me not jump off the cliff in front of my castle so
big mahalo to @Paul Scheele ([email protected]). I discovered mindful meditation when I returned to the mainland (another big
mahalo to @DanBHarris and his 10 percent happier app and podcast!) And having said that: BE GRATEFUL. You must be mindful to be grateful.
Kabbalah teaches us to always give back. #FosteringSavesLives. I rescue and foster for a few groups. So sad all the animals that are just dumped.

My plea who all who read this: Please save the home we live on! This planet. For your children and generations to come. Don’t just “flap your gums” about it. DO something. Like being mindful of waste! It’s heartbreaking to see food that is dumped. Find out how to make fruits and veggies last longer, feel free to message me and I can tell you all the tricks I’ve learned (mushrooms in paper bags, celery in aluminum, etc.) Compost or put food in your green bin, if you have one. Recycle plastic and glass bottles and aluminum cans. Search FB for Buy Nothing. An awesome way to recycle what you don’t use and allow another to get use from it! Especially clothes.
In my opinion, ALL these practices have been effective in growing my clientele -the law of attraction at work. Please stay tuned for new and exciting things coming down the pipeline! (Catering Masterclass i,e) I like to think of myself as “ahead of the times” and love and appreciate the opportunity to share! Hope my answer wasn’t too lengthy.
How can our readers follow you online?

www.peoplemakeplans.com

https://www.facebook.com/sheri.smith.3766/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheri-smith-4575a5b/

www.tinyurl.com/SheriSmithYouTube

https://twitter.com/CateringSoCal

https://www.instagram.com/chocolatefountainsocal

Thank you for these fantastic insights!