AT THE GEDERA TABLE #12: A very Gedera anniversary
It felt like just yesterday when Ammi and I were testing our Chicken Curry recipe for the first time or when we bought our fancy dehydrator to create the kits. We’ve learned so much along the way — shattering so many expectations and experiencing realities on what it looks like to run a business.
As I’ve said before, we’re a small, solo, female founder led business. I’m a mum of two kids working full time, and right now, I can’t do everything that I dream with Gedera & Co. That’s the reality. But there will come a day when I can take more tangible steps toward creating the social enterprise that Gedera & Co is meant to be. One that employs neurodivergent people with meaningful work and one that continues to build sustainably and equitably with our community in mind.
It takes a village, and I certainly can’t do it without my Ammi as part of our R&D team, my family’s encouragement, Samia on brand storytelling pulling our heartstrings, Tegan as our savvy Shopify wizard, and our newest team member Valentina creating delightful, buzzy social media posts. So blessed for this team!
Some days, I wake up and think, “Why am I doing this?” And some days, I wake up and remember, “I’m blessed that I get to do this.”
You have to be a little wild and fearless to own a food / packaged goods business. Gedera & Co can be greater than what we can see — the sky's the limit. It’ll take hard work and love and patience and lessons learned to get there. However it may be and whatever it looks like in 10 years time, I will continue staying true to my values, my heritage, and my purpose.
Thank you, thank you, thank you, for being here. We couldn’t do this without your support in spreading the word about us and sharing our stories. It means the world that you’re cooking and experiencing our family recipes that we hold so dear.
With love,
Jayani S.