13 years ago today, 9/1/13 at 11 am, I did a thing...
.....and I wouldn't change a thing!
Both my personal and professional lives both changed on 9/1/13, when I purchased The Vegan Cafe.
The journey began on 6/7/07 when Healthy Sins became a Corporation. With no culinary experience, I took a leap of faith and left a Corporate position after 20 years. With whisk in had, I followed my passion for cooking. I'll always be grateful to my mother for teaching me how to cook. Thanks to my dad for sharing the good, bad, and ugly about the restaurant business.
The catering career began when I started doing small events for friends. In a short period of time, word got out and it quickly expanded to include Corporate meetings and events. I was fortunate enough to have catered the monthly Roundtable meetings for Chicago CEO's. It was a very prestigious group, and I felt honored to have gained their trust those 3 years. I was able to meet and, in some cases, befriend some of Chicago's most successful executives. That, in itself, was a dream come true.
Then, it happened. September 1, 2013, Healthy Sins, Inc. purchased The Vegan Cafe. Again, another leap of faith. It's been a wild and joyful ride. We've served literally thousands of people, including Def Leppard. Yes, they're all raw vegan.
Thank you to our loyal guests for believing in us. We have appreciated your support the past 13 years. Special thanks to the cafe's amazingly talented staff, past and present. You're a wonderful group and I'm fortunate to have worked with you. To my work family, Nick, and Amanda, I am grateful for your hard work, dedication and passion. We all believe in clean food and staying healthy.
We've had challenges. Rising food costs, labor costs, road construction and a pandemic, just to name a few. But, we've survived and prospered. So....Stay tuned...I'm not done. The word retirement doesn't exist in my vocabulary. As long as my health is good, and it is, I'll keep going. There's so much more to come.
To those who believed in me, I thank you for your continued support. To those who had doubt, thank you, too! Failure is never an option in my world. I don't fail...I learn. I'll fight harder. Most of all, thanks Geno and Eddie for encouraging me to follow my passion.
I've found my passion and purpose. "The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away". Picasso
With love and gratitude,
Marguerite
