NIHITO Blog: A Day in the Life of a Yinzer Vegan Caterer

Honeycomb Credit’s “Nothing Important Happens at the Office” (NIHITO) initiative is still growing strong, as shown by our Business Operations Manager, Annamarie Galante. Annamarie got out of the office by shadowing Gerald Charlton, owner of Pittsburgh vegan food truck and catering company Veggies N’at. Annamarie spent the evening at a Vegan and Vinyl event, where she helped serve hungry guests.

Creating Vegan Options in a Meat-and-Potatoes Town.

“Gerald explained to me that he felt stuck in life when he first applied to a dishwasher job at Piccolo Forno [a popular Pittsburgh Italian restaurant], says Annamarie. “Soon after, Gerald fell in love with the art of cooking.”

As a vegan, Gerald didn't feel like there were any fine dining vegan options in Pittsburgh. So, he started the business as a way of spreading the word about fresh, whole food, and it’s grown from a successful meal prep and private dinner service into a food truck. Veggies N’at takes a soulful approach to plant-based foods, offering fresh takes on classic meals.

By the way, for those of you from out of town, ‘N’at’ is a word in Pittsburghese that is essentially another way of saying ‘and that,’ ‘etcetera’ or ‘whatever.’ For example, you would say, “I’ve heard Honeycomb is a new way that businesses can raise money, find investors, strengthen customer relationships n’at.”

Gerald offers private five course dinners and caters many events both on and off the food truck. His main sources of revenue at this time are catering and the food truck, but he’s got some bigger things in the works for 2023.

Why we sent our Business Operations Manager to sling salads

So, why was Annamarie out at this event working alongside Gerald anyway? Well, at Honeycomb we believe that Nothing Important Happens In The Office. This is especially true when you work one-on-one with small business owners in the way we do.

Doing NIHITO is a way for us to volunteer our time helping small businesses that we admire, and also to learn from them. From Gerald, for example, Annamarie learned the power (and difficulty) of delegating as a small business owner.

All kinds of small business entrepreneurs have different needs, and it’s our duty to understand what they’re going through in a boots-on-the-ground way so we can help meet their needs. Also, I mean, slinging salads is a whole lot more fun than slaying spreadsheets, though Annamarie excels at both.

What Annamarie learned from spending time with Gerald

“I learned that Gerald is a master delegator, and has learned to seek help for the aspects of running a business that don’t bring him joy. He doesn't want stress in his business and for that reason, he has delegated social media and financial planning to experts,” says Annamarie.

So, Gerald enlisted the help of a small business advisor for the financial aspect. To many entrepreneurs like Gerald, the act of creating and posting on social media is often stressful, especially when they’d rather work on their craft, so Gerald also decided to find an expert to help with that. In Annamarie’s opinion, this is a sign of an advanced entrepreneur, and is definitely a great lesson for professionals and entrepreneurs of all stripes!

Small business funding with a personal approach

NIHITO isn’t the only way Honeycomb connects with small businesses. When you run a Honeycomb Credit crowdfunding campaign, we work alongside you to personalize your growth strategy to fit your needs. Learn more about Honeycomb by filling out the form below!