Damilola
Founder Caesar’s Feast
@caesarsfeast / 07055771085 / 08029912000
Damilola is an ex-banker who found Caesar’s Feast – bedrock for her passion in catering services. Caesar’s Feast started in 2006 is a full service catering , event catering and Staff Canteen Management company.
Can you please introduce yourself and tell us about your background –
My name is Damilola Victor I grew up in Lagos; studied Business Administration.
I remember my dad filling out my jamb forms; I honestly didn’t want to go to school. I wanted to go to culinary school and open a Fine Dining restaurant but I was honestly scared about the high failure rate. You know the high cost of operations, restaurant shutting down or not being able to break even.
I worked in 3 banks within an 8 year period. I have always been passionate about cooking; my school mates were even surprised when they found out I was working in a bank. After banking, I worked briefly in Protea Hotel as Business Development personnel but that was a short stint.
Starting days for Business including Funding?
In 2006 I registered my company – back then we were doing small chops, I was catering for house parties mainly for family and friends. Over the year i became heavy in debt to the tune of millions, i got caught up in bad financial decisions I made and due to failed businesses. This was one of the driving forces in me taking this business full time.
I started this business from my home kitchen and we have since moved to a bigger space that accommodates a much bigger kitchen although I am working from home I still bill my business rent expenses.
When did your ‘aha moment’ come?
While I was in banking industry, I realized it was tough to really make time out to cook at home, I began bulk cooking soups then it dawned on me that I wasn’t the only one with this problem. Word spread that I was cooking soups; that’s how I started building a name for myself. I also wanted a clean break as I felt I was stuck in a vicious cycle and I was heavily in debt and the banking lifestyle wasn’t helping much. I knew it was the right time to take this full time. My network in the banking world gave me a lot of colleagues and customers to start with.
Can you describe your typical work day?
I can’t say I have a typical work day, I am a mother and a wife, I am lucky my husband is very hands on with the kids and helps out a lot in the home front. I am usually up early doing mother duties then we face the kitchen to plan out our orders and sometimes we have outdoor event catering; special orders for soups and corporate catering all at the same time.
What steps have you taken to make sure your Brand remains Relevant and Competitive in Market Place?
Social media handles and WhatsApp have proven very useful tools for us. I have over 1000 WhatsApp contacts and I am always engaging them weekly on new menu or anything else we have going on. 90% of my customers are not from Instagram but we recently started tracking this and we plan on improving this number.
How has your Business Evolved overtime?
In the beginning we were doing small chops but now I have 3 distinct services we offer;
- Private Food Delivery
- Event catering
- Office catering Staff Canteen Management.
I also set monthly goals – how much do I want to make? And how do I intend on making it within the services we offer.
Where do you see your Brand in 5 yr – 10 yrs?
I will like to take on oil and gas companies for corporate catering, and hopefully open a culinary school.
Can you give us the most challenging experiences you have had?
Logistic and staffing have been challenging; generally, the cost of doing business in Nigeria is; the fluctuation in market pricing can easily affect the profits on your jobs.
What is the worst entrepreneurial moment you have ever had?
I was fortunate enough to win a catering contract with a multinational; I was the smallest caterer going against very established caterers. The competition was brutal and the prices were very competitive with little margins, the other caterers had other jobs they could spread out their margins on so they were able to crash the prices for this job. I eventually lost the job to unfair politics. The official reason was that my WHITE rice was not too their liking. White rice !!! I cried for days after that, it became very demoralizing.
Why do you think most Food Entrepreneurs fail in their businesses?
- ‘The expectations that I like to cook therefore I can make money cooking.’
- Accounting – detailing of expenses and; most importantly adjusting expectations and lifestyle.
- You should love this not because you want to make money from it. You have to be persistent.
How do you treat recipes and intellectual properties?
I do most of the cooking, my employees do a lot of prepping, its is not because I am worried about teaching recipe, it is just making sure the food is consistent every time, you know we keep on tasting and tweaking as we go along. My nanny has become the master in Chinese stir fry and making moi-moi; so my joy is transferring knowledge to my team and watching them take it to another level.
What Business advice would you give someone Starting Up?
- If you love it keep at it
- Keep your accounting in check – what is coming in and what is going out.
- Don’t cut corners.
What Advice will you give your young self?
- Be content with what you have
- Stay in your lane
- Follow your path and stay focused.
Book and resource recommend:
The Smart Money Woman by Arese Ugwu
https://www.amazon.com/Smart-Money-Woman-Arese-Ugwu…/dp/B01K4H7QNW
The Bible.
Key Points
- If you love it keep at it
- Keep your accounting in check – what is coming in and what is going out
- Don’t cut corners
- Be content with what you have
- Stay in your lane
- Follow your path and stay focused
- You should love this not because you want to make money from it. You have to be persistent.
