Today we’d like to introduce you to Naomi Hendrix Oyegoke.
Hi Naomi, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
The idea to start selling vegan food came to me just over 2 years ago shortly after losing my father Gary. (Aka “G-Daddy” to his grandkids.) It was a rough time, but I would always laugh thinking about him calling my meals “rabbit food”. Needless to say, he wasn’t vegan. Haha! However, he was always pleasantly surprised at how tasty my vegan foods were and was so supportive of my decision to be vegan.
I started the business under the name Rooted Soul Food using the inheritance my father left us. I dedicated the business to him and his mother Jaunita, aka Wheatie. Two people that I knew would be so proud of what I was doing, no matter how well the business did. It was, and very much still is, a passion project.
Starting in October of 2019 you could find me around San Antonio serving hot food at pop-up events and even doing a weekly kitchen take-over at the famous La Botanica. Things were moving quickly, my lines were getting longer, and I was selling out quicker at each event. Then Covid shut everything down. I remember my last weekly kitchen takeover well. It was March of 2020 and I created a special meal for St. Patrick’s Day. I’m ¼ Irish and was so excited to share dishes that I grew up making with my mother, that I later veganized, of course. 😉 Guinness stew, colcannon, and Irish soda bread all from scratch. It was delicious but the lasagna was still the reason my lines kept growing longer each week.
When Covid brought the world to a standstill I started getting lots of requests for meals, mostly lasagna, through my DM’s. I decided the best way to service my clients was to freeze the lasagnas, deliver them around town, and the customer could heat and serve them at home.
Meanwhile, we now have two toddlers’ out of daycare and at home. I’m staring at the freezer section at the grocery looking for easy to heat and serve, healthy vegan meals to serve my family. Honestly, the options were so disappointing. I knew that if I was looking for a higher quality, better tasting frozen options, others were too. That’s when it hit me, and I knew I wanted to be in the freezer section.
This idea also coincided with the loss of our previous business due to Covid related setbacks. Thus, allowing my husband, Mike, the time to come over and help me turn Rooted from a small pop-up, side hustle, into a legit frozen food manufacturing business. With him came a wealth of skills, knowledge, focus, and unmatched hustle. Most of his many contributions to our business are behind the scenes. Although, he is the artist behind all of our company’s photography and video. I know I’m a bit bias, but he’s pretty amazing both behind the lens and during post-production. #biggestfan
Rooted Vegan Cuisine’s official launch was in Oct 2020. At the time of our launch, we were only offering our products through our website for local delivery. We quickly partnered with a couple local San Antonio shops and, over time, expanded out to freezer sections in Denton, Austin, Dallas, and most recently Houston. We are also now servicing restaurants that want to sell Rooted Vegan Cuisine on their menu.
The reception we have received from the community and our customers have been incredibly humbling. The support means so much for so many reasons. Losing our previous business due to Covid was scary. Rebranding Rooted and learning everything about frozen food manufacturing, from the beginning, during the one of the most stressful and almost unbelievable times in recent history, with two toddlers? I mean, come on!
Knowing that we are helping more people find restaurant quality vegan food in their freezer section makes me so happy. And in turn, their purchases and continued support is helping my family get through these crazy times. It’s also helping us build my passion project into a business I’m proud of.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. We have had to deal with so many Covid related setbacks. We also have the challenge of figuring this whole industry out. It’s all so new! The expectations of what we wanted, versus the reality of what we are able to do, is hard. It’s a blow to realize you can’t “do it all”.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Lasagna gets most of the spotlight but honestly, our mozzarella sticks are right up there with lasagna in terms of popularity. In select markets we also sell broccoli cheese soup and spinach and cheese manicotti. Every customer will tell you a different one is “best”.
Our product is unique because of the hand-crafted, high-quality nature of the dishes. Our tagline is Restaurant Quality Frozen Foods because the recipes are complex and time-consuming. The flavors are deep, developed and bold. The dishes are filled with tons of fresh produce and low-cost fillers are left out. We make all of our various cheese recipes from scratch, in-house. While most vegan cheese recipes are filled with oil, ours are not.
Brand wise, we are so proud of the annual charity event we host called the Vegan Family Reunion. The Vegan Family Reunion uplifts, supports, educates, and most importantly, brings joy to the local community. Through this event, we fundraise to pour generously into the Black community through Black-owned businesses, artists, and charities, while highlighting the benefits of veganism and the direct impact this movement has on the Black community. Last year over 23 businesses where uplifted, 5 artists were supported, and $5,000+ was raised for charity. The next reunion is coming up soon on March 6th, and will be at the SA Food Bank.
What matters most to you? Why?
This business, what it represents and where I want to see it go, is about so much more than frozen food. I don’t want to build this business if it can’t be done in a way that aligns with my values around issues like veganism for the animals, environment, health, and the people. I want to make sure our products, brand, voice, and our overall presence is a safe space for all. Especially those that are part of historically marginalized communities.
We are trying to build this business on a solid foundation of ethical practices that only improves as we grow. I know this will be a never-ending process as capitalism, in general, makes every step forward challenging. I’m realizing now that despite my best efforts I will get things wrong and I will not be able to be perfect in every way. Or perfect in ANY way for that matter. But if I’m truly trying my best, then I should be very proud of what I’m accomplishing. That last part though is much easier said than done.
I know we have a long challenging road ahead. And we are nowhere near where we want to be. But I’m committed to working on improvements, in all areas, regularly. Over time, we will get closer.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@rootedvegancuisine.com
- Website: www.rootedvegancuisine.com
- Instagram: @rootedvegancuisine and @veganfamilyreunion
- Facebook: @rootedvegancuisine and @veganfamilyreunion
- Youtube: @rootedvegancuisine and @veganfamilyreunion
- Other: www.veganfamilyreunion.com
