Show notes:
This week I’m speaking to Fausto Pifferrer, co-founder of Blue Elephant Events and Catering. We discuss the critical necessity of fostering strong relationships with venues, which serve as the cornerstone of sustained success in this competitive arena. Fausto, with an illustrious career spanning over four decades, shares invaluable insights on the significance of treating both clients and staff with the utmost respect, thereby enhancing efficiency in business and overall service quality.
Time stamps:
00:01 – Navigating the Industry’s Challenges
04:08 – Starting a New Journey in Catering
13:20 – Lessons from the Wedding Business
17:46 – Building and Maintaining Venue Relationships
23:21 – The Journey of Writing a Book
Transcript:
Fausto
00:00:00.240 – 00:00:20.320
Exactly. And exactly. Don’t let people get into your head, because this is an industry that is, I’ll just say it with love, Catty and gossipy and you know.
And it is what it is, but at the end of the day, you know what, your clients love you. That’s all you need. Because like you said, they’re not paying your bills. The client is.
Becca
00:00:20.320 – 00:01:01.260
I’m Becca Poutney, wedding business marketing expert, speaker and blogger. And you’re listening to the Wedding Pros who Are Ready to Grow podcast.
I’m here to share with you actionable tips, strategies and real life examples to help you take your wedding business to the next level.
If you are an ambitious wedding business owner that wants to take your passion and use it to build a profitable, sustainable business doing what you love, then you’re in the right place. Let’s get going with today’s episode. Today I’m chatting with Fausto Peifer, co founder of Blue Elephant Events and Catering and co owner of Real.
Wait a minute, let me say that again. Let me check this is still true. Actually, before I say it, are you still the co owner of Real Maine Wedding magazine?
Fausto
00:01:01.260 – 00:01:01.820
I am.
Becca
00:01:02.090 – 00:01:24.890
Right, I’ll start that all again. Today I’m chatting with Fausto Pifer, co founder of Blue Elephant Events and Catering and co owner of Real Main Weddings magazine.
With over 40 years experience in catering and having met him in person at this year’s Wedding mba, he seemed the perfect fit to be the first ever caterer to be interviewed on my podcast. I cannot wait to find out more about him and his story. Bausto, welcome to the podcast.
Fausto
00:01:25.050 – 00:01:28.570
Thank you for having me and good afternoon to you and good morning to me.
Becca
00:01:28.650 – 00:02:00.550
Yeah, absolutely.
Once again, I’m talking to someone on the other side of the world and so we’re all on different time zones and I cannot believe I’m over 200 episodes into my podcast and I’ve never had anyone from catering appear as a guest. So you are the first one. You are the representative of the catering world today.
So before we get into catering, let’s go back a little bit and find out more about your history. So have you always worked in wedding and events or did you have what I call a previous career before you entered this wild world?
Fausto
00:02:01.010 – 00:02:35.660
40 Years, August of 2025, I did my. I celebrated my 40th year and I actually, I dropped out of high school and I don’t advocate that, but I’m going to be 60 soon.
So these two women actually gave me my start to my career. And for Them I will be forever grateful because I started in Philadelphia and there’s not a historic mansion or museum that we never touched.
It was just a great experience. And from there I went into planning and then had the catering company as well. So.
And then we moved to Maine about 19 years ago and opened in this state.
Becca
00:02:35.740 – 00:02:46.620
Wow. Okay, so let’s go back to 20 year old you then. So did you get a job working for someone else’s business? How did you land up working for them?
What were you actually doing when you got started?
Fausto
00:02:46.780 – 00:03:44.220
You’re going to love this.
I came back from London actually in 86 and had this epiphany because I was working with food my whole career and I said I can do catering and that’s what I was going to do.
And this, this wonderful woman gave me a shot at doing her wedding and I will be ever grateful to her as well because it was paper products and disposables in the bottom of a church basement. But that was the start of my career, if I look back at it.
And then when I went to work for these two women, I do this impressive wedding for them and the girl’s wearing a Vera Wang au couture dress, which is Vera Wang prior to Kohl’s. I always say that because I think it’s funny, but you’d see the difference. There was no difference because both trusted me to do their event.
And that’s what I really love about my career and how I started.
And I didn’t know what I was doing when I was that age, you know, 16 and 17, working in the food industry and then thinking I could be a caterer and a was interesting to me.
Becca
00:03:44.300 – 00:04:08.680
Well, I’m always very impressed by catering because I am known as an absolute terrible cook. It is definitely not in my teens. I am not good at catering, but I really am good at eating other people’s food that they make on the other hand.
So, yeah, I love that you had that ambition. I love that you were just like, I’m just going to do this. I’m not going to let anything hold me back. So you worked for these ladies.
At what point then in the last 40 years did you decide to go it alone?
Fausto
00:04:08.760 – 00:04:51.810
It was 1999 and I decided to branch out on my own. And even though it was a mistake at that time, I look at everything as a learning experience.
I just got in business with the wrong people and mistakes happen and everything is a learning journey. And I did it myself.
And when I realized that how much money I could make myself I made them a lot of money and they traveled the world and I couldn’t keep my electric on. So that was the decision for me to go out on my own. And since then, I never looked back.
Everything is sort of a card that’s held in your life, and that card was finished and I had to move on to the next part of my life, and it was making money for myself and the team that I put together.
Becca
00:04:51.890 – 00:05:14.190
Amazing. And although it’s a long time ago, do you remember that feeling of going out on your own?
Because I know a lot of people listening to this podcast are maybe on the cusp of doing that. Maybe they’re working for someone else.
Maybe they have another job on the side and they want to go full time in their wedding business, but they’re a little bit scared of letting go and doing it. Do you remember that feeling or were you pushed rather than jumped?
Fausto
00:05:14.350 – 00:05:50.780
No, I was actually petrified. I thought I would be blacklisted in Philadelphia, that no one, no venue would put me in because of the longevity I had with these two women.
And I was so shocked at all the venues allowing me to come in with my new company that they actually took other companies off to put me on because of the way I treated their venues and how I treated them in my career. And that was just amazing to me because I was so scared that I would not have that power over venues to come in because they would blacklist me.
But they did not. Well, you must have an eye opener.
Becca
00:05:50.780 – 00:06:08.460
Must have had some good relationships with them. As I always say, people buy from people.
I know we’re going to talk about that a little bit more later, but actually, you know, you already had that relationship, and that helped you kind of take that step and get through the door. So when you started out, was it just you? Did you immediately hire a team? How did it all happen?
Fausto
00:06:08.780 – 00:06:30.270
I actually brought some of the people, and I did give my word to the two women that when I left that I would not touch their company or their clients for one year. And I honored that. So I didn’t touch any clients, but staff actually followed me.
And one of the longest staff people that have worked for me is 33 years. We worked together and then she worked for me. She finally retired, and we’ve been together 33 years.
Becca
00:06:30.430 – 00:06:32.030
Wow, that’s impressive.
Fausto
00:06:32.350 – 00:06:47.530
So they followed me and I put the team together.
We worked well, and we took this company that we bought that was doing corporate, and corporate was really big for them, but I’m more wedding related. And we turned the wedding bigger than the corporate. So.
Becca
00:06:47.770 – 00:06:59.130
And you mentioned as well a little bit earlier, planning. So are you. Wedding planning and catering, how does that work together? Like, is it two separate businesses?
Just get me up to speed on that side of things.
Fausto
00:06:59.210 – 00:07:44.930
So when we open the company here in Maine, we’re Blue Elephant Events and Catering, so we’re a planning company first with the catering attached to it, which actually makes a lot of sense because I always feel that planners really should know the back end of catering because it is the backbone of that event.
You can plan all day long, but if the food does not come out on time or the caterer does not show up, you’re left with just a pretty room and pizza being delivered.
So I always say that you should work hand in hand with a caterer because they are your army, because we’re the ones who bring the most staff in to do all the work. And so planning is my, my passion. And then the catering, we have full catering team for that. And so we work hand in hand.
So I have full time planners that work for us full time.
Becca
00:07:45.090 – 00:08:31.490
Wow. Yeah. And you’re right, it is such an important part of the day.
Just this week, actually, I was running a training day with a wedding venue here in the UK and I had a training day for 15 people that the venue had booked before and they’d actually, as part of that 15 invited three of their external caterers to come in and join the training day. Because exactly, as you said, they’re such a crucial part of the day. And the conversation we were having is actually on a wedding day at this venue.
And there’s probably only two people in the room that understand that the caterer and the venue are a different business. Everyone else in that room who’s just sat there eating thinks that it’s the same thing.
And so if the food’s not good, if the service is not good, if the, you know, the experience is not good, who gets the blame? Nine times out of ten, it’s the venue. And the same with the planner situation, like it’s all interconnected.
Fausto
00:08:31.730 – 00:09:01.320
I think that sometimes we forget that we’re just this, this team within this event for this couple. And instead of jockeying for position, we should all jockey to make sure it’s the best event that we can create for that.
Because you’re only as good as your last event. So it doesn’t matter because by that Saturday end, you’re already on the next event.
And so I always say work together and create a team that works together. And that’s why I like to be the planner, so I can bring everybody in that I trust to put on the best event.
Becca
00:09:01.480 – 00:09:13.100
So in terms of your business today then? So as we sit here in 2026, what does it look like? Do you have a lot of people working for how many events are you doing a year?
Give us a picture of what’s going on.
Fausto
00:09:13.100 – 00:09:30.980
Right Now I have 10 full time employees, which sometimes really scares me at night because payroll comes every two weeks and I have 125 that are on the books and I consider them employees because in the state of Maine everybody is taxed. So you can have a 1099 subcontractor. So they are technically all my employees.
Becca
00:09:31.380 – 00:09:38.170
Wow. So you’ve got a huge team that you’ve built. And then in terms of events, like how many events are you doing a year?
Fausto
00:09:38.170 – 00:09:42.970
We do about 125 weddings a year, plus corporate in between, Monday through Thursday.
Becca
00:09:43.130 – 00:09:45.530
So it’s fairly busy then in your life.
Fausto
00:09:45.530 – 00:09:56.170
Yeah, we just did. I thought we were going to have a slow January and we wound up doing four big events and we have our first wedding coming up February 5th. 6.
February 6th.
Becca
00:09:56.170 – 00:10:20.920
Well, it never stops. It never stops. Okay. So looking back over that career, which is incredible, I love hearing about it.
I think it’s important that people understand the background before they start taking advice from you.
But when you look back, I know you mentioned one little mistake, or maybe not so little around how long you stayed working for someone else, but are there other things when you look back across your journey and you, you see mistakes that you made that other people could learn from?
Fausto
00:10:21.240 – 00:11:28.710
I, I think it’s not trusting in yourself and believing in yourself that, I mean, I believed enough in myself to make somebody else all of this money, but I didn’t believe in myself to make it for myself.
And that was an eye opener for me because when I realized that my financial freedom grew and I’m certainly not wealthy, but I’m very comfortable and I took the risk. Moving to Maine 19 years ago and opened during 2008 was wonderful and money was flowing.
2009, 10 And 11 was the recession and I just, my entire body sunk because I moved to Maine with a newborn baby.
Because my partner and I adopted our daughter and that’s why we moved to Maine, because we adopted her in the Philadelphia area and we wanted a little distance from her adopted state. And I just, you know, it, I just said, you gotta just keep moving on.
And I used all of my retirement money and made sure that the company could be Sustainable and eventually got it all back, and I just basically borrowed it from myself. So there are days that you were fearful, but did you just keep going? Yeah.
Becca
00:11:28.710 – 00:11:52.490
And moving state to state’s a big deal. Again, there’s people listening to this that I know are considering even just moving to a different part of the uk.
And it’s scary because actually a lot of wedding business and networking is locally based. So how did you kind of pick up and drop yourself in Maine? What did you do to rebuild those connections? Did you already have those connections?
Were you having to travel back a lot? How did that work? Practically?
Fausto
00:11:52.730 – 00:12:45.920
I researched the entire area, and in 2008, Maine wasn’t as developed as it is today, so I had a leg up. And there weren’t venues per se. There was maybe a handful of them.
So I immediately started working up in the Camden area, which is about north of where we live, and I got two exclusives up there, and then I got an exclusive in Portland, which is like the heart of the city. And so my exclusives were building us up because I was always taught, go after the exclusive. You’ll always have work.
And then I started working with other venues that were starting to develop and started creating their programs for them. And from there, in 2013, Maine really developed. I’ll tell you how undeveloped it was. There were no rental companies that had Chavari chairs.
And so there was only one company. I think they had about 150 of them. So I actually had to buy my own for a venue. We took over.
Becca
00:12:46.000 – 00:12:46.480
Wow.
Fausto
00:12:46.480 – 00:13:05.020
And so it was that. And then 2011-2010-2010-2011, 2012. That was still the end of the recession. And around 2012, 13 and 14, Maine exploded.
And today there’s about 89 venues in the state of Maine, and our footprint is on a large chunk of them.
Becca
00:13:05.180 – 00:13:10.780
Wow. So you’ve seen a lot of change in that time and I’m guessing no regrets about moving to that state.
Fausto
00:13:11.100 – 00:13:18.860
No, you know, it’s just. It’s got overdeveloped and there are. There are a lot more of us. And so it’s really, you know, now it’s very competitive.
Becca
00:13:19.820 – 00:13:49.800
Okay. So you’ve got to keep yourself ahead of the game. Now, as I mentioned in the intro, you. We met at Wedding NBA.
You guys came along to my drinks reception that I hosted on the kind of opening night night of wedding mba. And you were there as a speaker.
So I’m guessing you have a bit of an understanding outside of just your own business about the catering business in general. So I’D love to hear from you. What are some of common mistakes you see caterers making? And you think, why are they doing that?
They need to do it different.
Fausto
00:13:50.040 – 00:14:56.470
I think, number one, understaffing your event. Understaffing your event is terrible way to do business. An overstaff party is a good party.
Charge your client, bottom line, and then also treat your clients. I would treat your staff with respect because here’s the thing.
You’re asking that staff person that works for you part time or per diem or however, to take their Saturday off. Okay? So now they have to drive to the location, they have to pay tolls, they have to pay parking. And you’re only going to give them five hours.
And if they’re paying taxes, they, that’s not a lot of money. At the end of the day. Give them 16 hours, pay them throughout the entire day, even if they’re on break. Let it go. You’re charging your client.
You will keep your staff. I have had the same staff working for me for a very long time and it’s because of how I treat them. I don’t micromanage them. They all know what to do.
And the letters of references that we get back from clients speak volumes because they speak really well about our company. But I own the company that I hope to expect. But when they talk about the staff, I can’t do it without them.
Becca
00:14:56.630 – 00:15:25.430
Yeah, it’s so true. And actually, kind of what I was saying earlier about the caterer and the venue relationship, actually your staff are representing you.
And if you have poor staff, staff that are miserable, staff that are unhappy, staff that don’t show up because they’re sick, because they can’t be bothered to get out of bed, actually, your whole company falls apart. And so, you know, your point is, don’t do that, but also charge the client. Don’t go hungry yourself.
To make your staff have those benefits, make sure you cost it into the overall picture, is that right?
Fausto
00:15:25.840 – 00:15:38.240
Absolutely. And if you can, and if your state allows you to put gratuity on, put it on and, you know, charge it, give it to the staff.
It’s just extra income for them and they will appreciate you even more.
Becca
00:15:38.320 – 00:16:16.180
Yeah, I love that. Look after your staff, look after your team, give them nice things and they will stay because a good team member is worth its weight in gold.
And I know that myself as well. And whenever I have someone on the podcast who is still actively working in the industry, sometimes, obviously people are just in education.
But you’re still very much active in the Industry, I love to hear from them what they think is working for them in terms of marketing, in terms of getting business right here, right now.
So not things that were five years ago, but as you look at your books in 2026, as you look at where your, you know, where your income is coming from, where your events are being booked from, what do you see as working for your business right now?
Fausto
00:16:16.180 – 00:16:51.140
For me, the number one thing is your venue relation. You will always have work if you treat the venue with respect. So to me, the client is actually the venue, not the person renting the space.
The person who rented the space, rented it for five hours. I have done my job. I am now left cleaning that venue and ensuring that it is in tip top shape when we walk out the door.
So that has been my number one marketing tool. I learned that 40 years ago. You treat the venue with respect, you will always have work, a word of.
Becca
00:16:51.140 – 00:16:54.940
Mouth basically because that you’re getting in with the venue, the venues then referring.
Fausto
00:16:54.940 – 00:17:06.700
You on every, every lead that we get is venue driven. And then on top of that, the venue itself. Some of them don’t have the power to say who because they have a list, but they will point to my name.
Becca
00:17:06.860 – 00:17:22.920
Yes, I love teaching that actually, because I often say to people, just because you’re on a list doesn’t mean you’re being recommended, that is, and vice versa, because ultimately the person who’s giving the tour will say what they think even if you’re not on the list. So yeah, relationship building is key.
Fausto
00:17:23.560 – 00:17:24.200
Exactly.
Becca
00:17:24.360 – 00:17:59.970
I know we’re going to come on to that in a little while because I want to talk to you more in depth about that.
But if there are people listening and maybe they’re catering, maybe they’re planners, maybe they’re photographers, but they still want to build relationships with the venues and they’re coming in and they’re newer to the market. Sometimes it can feel difficult because you feel like everyone’s already got their established people.
So they look at the venues and they think, well, they’re never going to talk to me because they already have X, Y, Z people on their list. Have you got any tips on how people can think differently or break into it or things that you’ve done in the past to build those relationships?
Fausto
00:18:00.370 – 00:18:43.040
If I were new and I was going after a venue that’s brand new and I want it to be on their list, what I would do, and this is an old story, everybody does this a style shoot, but do it with a twist, you’re going to do A style shoot. But it’s not just to play time. You’re going to do the style shoot. That, number one, is going to get published.
Whether it’s on a blog, it’s on Style, Me Pretty or in a magazine, you’re going to have that already secured. Number two, you’re going to turn it into a networking event for all of your peers and maybe open it up to couples.
That way you become the host of that venue without actually being on the list yet. And if you have the power, do it on a Thursday. So by Friday you can sort of tweak it. And Saturday, sell it off as a wedding. You’ll make money.
We did it.
Becca
00:18:43.040 – 00:18:47.320
Nice. Tell me more about that. When you’re saying sell it off as a wedding, tell me what you did.
Fausto
00:18:47.620 – 00:19:16.340
So what we did was we had a style shoot on a Thursday at this new venue, had the 10 company, Everything, set it up for 72 people and did a micro wedding and offered it to people and said, hey, we have a wedding. It is completely set up. You have to use the same cater, the same bar, the florist. All of this. You cannot change one single thing. $20,000.
And so all the vendors made some money because it was already up and they weren’t tearing it down until Monday. So we made some extra cash and we, we, Charles, we did a wedding and got extra pictures.
Becca
00:19:16.630 – 00:19:30.830
I love that. That is such a good idea. And why not Shot? You already put all the effort into putting everything up.
You might as well see if someone wants to take it. And probably they were happy because they were probably looking for an affordable option to get married.
And they ended up with a lovely thing for a good price and the.
Fausto
00:19:30.830 – 00:19:34.310
Venue got a wedding that it did not have already because it was a new. New spot.
Becca
00:19:34.390 – 00:19:48.620
Yeah, absolutely.
What do you think is, on the other hand, is the number one thing that gets people removed from venue lists or maybe makes a caterer go out of favor with a venue? What. What mistakes do you think lead to that disrespect?
Fausto
00:19:48.700 – 00:20:40.520
Disrespect of the venue has placed. So, you know, maybe a planner within their company or a day of person. And then somebody comes in. I’m like, that’s not really a day of planner.
That’s just somebody who works here that person doesn’t know. Well, the reality of it is they’re watching you. And the more disrespect you do to a venue, that’s how they’ll take you off the list.
If they tell you, don’t roll the tables on Our parquet floors. Don’t roll them, don’t lean them against a scagliola wall or, you know, I like a lot of historic buildings. That’s what I love working in.
I have always been really in tune with protecting the property above all. So one of the things that we do is we photograph in and we photograph out.
I will pay for any damage I might have done, but I will not pay for somebody else’s damage.
So when you photograph before you set up, you have a clear record of what it looked like, and you have a clear record of what it looked like at the end when you left.
Becca
00:20:40.680 – 00:20:41.120
That’s great.
Fausto
00:20:41.120 – 00:20:42.640
And venues love that about us.
Becca
00:20:42.640 – 00:20:49.000
And what about the kitchen and how you leave that? Because I’ve heard some horror stories about caterers leaving kitchens in all sorts of states.
Fausto
00:20:49.740 – 00:21:26.570
Well, a lot of our venues here don’t have kitchens, so we have to build them all through tents. And the ones that we do operate, I do the same thing.
We photograph before we even bring one single thing into the kitchen so that I know what our chefs did. And we have to photograph the sinks and everything.
And there’s also a cleaning team that stays behind to make sure that the floor is mopped, swept, and all the trash is taken out. So whatever their policy is, we follow it, and then they have to sign us out.
So if they sign us out saying everything was perfect, don’t call me on Monday, because I would have stayed up to one fixing it. But if you call me on Monday, they know this policy about me. I’m pretty straightforward about it. So.
Becca
00:21:26.650 – 00:21:55.850
But. But so much of it does come down to respect. And I think as professionals, sometimes we can get complacent in those relationships.
Sometimes, you know, we’re getting a lot of work from a venue, and then we just expect it and we forget. Wait a minute. No, they are actually the. The holders of the power to remove us from there. And it won’t take much for them to bring someone else.
Someone else is always up and coming, new, fresh ideas. And so, like we were joking about earlier, you got to stay on top of your game, because otherwise someone’s going to take that spot from you.
Fausto
00:21:55.850 – 00:22:40.090
Well, like I say all the time, especially when I’m speaking at conferences, the top of the pyramid is never going to change. It will always be the venue. And then the next thing that they go after is wedding dresses.
And I just talked about this, and everybody’s like, oh, the planner for. I said, the planner does not all the time bring somebody to a venue. Maybe a Hotel, yes, but.
Or a venue that’s tented, but to a venue that has a list of planners, a list of caterers, DJs, and and so on. That venue is the driving ship. And it is sending you everything and for reference for everybody.
If you don’t think that they’re tracking how much work they send you. They do, because we do.
We track every single dime I make, every preferred professional I work with, I call them preferred professionals because I hate the term vendor.
Becca
00:22:40.330 – 00:22:49.830
Well, in the UK it’s even worse because we call it supplier, and I don’t like that either. I prefer vendor to supplier. But like your preferred professional, maybe we’ll start adopting that here as well.
Fausto
00:22:49.910 – 00:22:52.950
It’s just much nicer. I think vendor sounds like you’re selling a hot dog.
Becca
00:22:54.070 – 00:23:26.290
That’s so true. But I think because we don’t use the word vendor in the uk, actually it sounds like kind of fancy when we say, oh, nice.
I like that we don’t think of a hot dog seller. We think it’s something pretty trendy and cool being a vendor. Okay, Val, one thing I learned about you very recently is that you’ve written a book.
And as someone who has also written a book, I can appreciate the amount of time, effort, love and. And a struggle that can go into writing a book. So just tell me, why did you decide to write a book? And then tell us a bit more about what it’s about.
Fausto
00:23:26.690 – 00:24:37.900
I think for me, it was leaving a little bit of legacy for my daughter of who I was, how I started. So the first book, it’s a series of three, and then the last one is an exit strategy out.
And I just wanted to put it pen to paper before I forget to, you know, things like that. Both my parents died of dementia, so I’m always fearful of that stuff. So I wanted to write it all down.
And it’s a journey to look back and I put tidbits in there that will help people. Not everything anybody teaches is going to work for everybody, but you could pick something up that could work for you in your area. And it was.
It was interesting to write it, interesting to put it together. And when I came up with the name is Temporary Friend, is because everyone becomes a temporary friend within the industry and your client.
And that’s the truth. At the end of the day, it would be impossible to be friends with everyone you come in contact with in a networking group or meeting or whatever.
As much as I would love that, you know, I did the calculations. I have fed 1,795,000 people in my career. I wish I would have asked each one of them for a dollar.
Becca
00:24:38.300 – 00:24:38.860
Yeah.
Fausto
00:24:39.740 – 00:24:58.100
But the reality of it is Temporary Friend fit the best. Because I do feel that clients come into your life, they’re temporary and then they sort of kind of just, they’re like a season, they just go.
And as much as I love them, I can’t, you know, by Saturday night at 11 o’, clock, I’m on to the next week.
Becca
00:24:58.180 – 00:25:14.810
And so if I was to pick up a copy of Temporary Friend, and I love the name of it, by the way, because it’s so descriptive of how often so many of us feel in this industry with having to find new clients and new relationships all the time. If I was to pick up a copy of the book right now, what, what’s it going to help me with? What’s it going to teach me? What’s it going to tell me?
Fausto
00:25:15.120 – 00:26:51.400
I did timelines in there, which I think are super important. Creating a timeline that actually moves for the client, not the vendors or preferred professionals.
And then I also put tidbits in there that, for your contract, such as that if a client tells you 200 people and then come back and say, oh, there’s only 100 people, but you quoted it at 200, you have lost 100 people financially. So there is a formula in there to get paid for the hundred people that aren’t coming.
It’s not going to break their bank, but you will get paid because they change it.
So I tell my clients all the time, if you don’t think you’re going to have 200, don’t tell me 200, give me 120 and let me be surprised that you’re at 200 because that’s more money. The higher the number you give a caterer, the better they can buy. The lower the number, the more expensive things get. So I explained that.
And then things like Quantum Meroot we are allowed to use in certain states. Quantum Meroot allows you to be paid for time you have worked.
So if a client decides that they don’t want to hire you, you can actually bill for your time. So you actually have to know what your worth is. Hourly. I’m, I feel I am $250 an hour that I can get back for every hour.
So I also show how to track everything, including the minute you call me. I jot down the date, the time it starts, the conversation.
And I, I’m a paper trail person because you can fudge emails, you can fudge writing things, but you can’t fudge writing. And that’s what’ll work in a court of law. So I always put like 9 o’ clock and then it ended at 10. I do a recap, send it to the client, they have it.
So there’s always work documented. So in the event they cancel, I get paid and I show all of those things within the book.
Becca
00:26:51.480 – 00:26:57.480
And so do you think your book is perfect for people in catering? Is it relevant to people in other aspects of the industry as well?
Fausto
00:26:57.560 – 00:27:19.440
I think it works for everybody because it just shows a little bit of everything because I talk about planning and DJ and venue relationships and all of that stuff. So it does work. It’s an easy read. I did it the way I like to read things. So everything I ever do, I do the way I would like to to see it.
For me, not personally, I’m not a fan of like 175 pages. I get distracted too easily.
Becca
00:27:20.880 – 00:27:22.320
And there’s pictures in it, isn’t there?
Fausto
00:27:22.320 – 00:28:16.200
I think there is. I put pictures through the career. And then we had started a cafe when we first moved to Maine to get people to know us.
And when we finally moved out of there, it was sort of surreal and sad. That’s where my daughter was. In a playpen. Every day we went into work because we didn’t have anybody and I didn’t have a nanny at the time.
Cause we couldn’t afford it and we didn’t know anybody. So she sat at the front in a register in a playpen and she slept from 12 o’ clock to about 1:30. She would just lay there.
And people were fascinated that she was so quiet. They thought she was a doll. And the sadness came from that of just shutting it down. And not because it didn’t work.
It was because it was never going to be part of the history of Blue Elephant Catering. It was only a stepping stone because I couldn’t move to a new state and say, oh, pick me. I was one of Philadelphia’s top five caterers.
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