Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaliyah Garrett.
Hi Aaliyah, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Miss Garrett’s vegan soul started from Miss Garrett’s place which wasn’t vegan at first when I started 6 1/2 years ago when I made a life decision on eating healthy and making sure I maintain certain eating habits, came about when I was vegetarian. I did research and seeing what are the benefits on becoming vegan, so I never the decision to go vegan.
When I decided to go vegan I critique some of my family recipes that I grew up on and that I love so much, I may so many mistakes in the kitchen trying to make sure I got down my most famous caramel cake.
Once I aced my mom’s caramel cake I began to critiquing more of my family recipes. From collard greens, macaroni cheese, cornbread and more and even adding some amazing recipes.
When I recreated my catering business into veganism/plant-based, I knew it would be the best thing ever. It has took me on a life journey that I didn’t know that I was going to go down a path that was going to opened up so many doors for me, including being able to participate on MasterChef auditions and making it through as a vegan chef.
Being featured in different vegan magazines as well as a lot of local magazines/newspapers, when I started Miss Garrett’s Vegan Soul it was to implement generational wealth and to make sure my family had Something we could carry-on for generations and on. Along my journey being a chef I have took a liking and a loving to coffee more than ever I was more intrigued with different Coffee strands from the way the coffee bean grow, learning where it came from. As I took a interest into the coffee industry I came up with an idea of starting another business to support the vegan community so veganista became the coffee shop we can trust all over the world. Veganista is now our sister business. The name was given to me from my ex- partners and it was given due to the fact that I love fashion and I’m very outspoken person with my fashion and I love coffee and it just went hand-in-hand.
Opening up Veganista in the 2019 during the pandemic was one of the best opportunities that I have been able to experience, I have been able to lock arms with different business owners as well as take different business ventures on learning more about different ways on how to produce massive coffee and different ways coffee can be made such as mud coffee.
Veganista took a turn for the worse and we had to close down and it has allowed me to sit down and analyze certain different things that was going on within my business so I revamped my whole business plan and allowed me to work on my cookbook, while having downtime, I’ve been able to came up with a different plan of action when we open back up Veganista in May 2022. Being able to Open back up in spring 2022 is going to allow me to be able to collaborate with a lot of local businesses. We will also bring our youth organization into Veganista, to allow the young generation to understand money management wealth building economic unity within our community and give back. Veganista it’s not just going to be a local coffee shop it is going to be somewhere that anyone and everyone can come and be a part of something that is more than words can express
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Being an entrepreneur is an amazing thing but a lot of people don’t know how much it takes day in and day out to make sure that things are running afloat and making sure that you have the material you need as well as the help you need and being an entrepreneur and a mother is very much so difficult but it is something that allowed me to build a tougher skin. My struggles with being a vegan establishment has been a roller coaster due to lack of knowledge so a lot of people tend not to support things that they’re not use to. We have to learn how to get uncomfortable so we canimplement change and generational wealth and health.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I specialize in vegan southern food comfort food not only cover for the soul become cover the mind we also implement Homo pathic remedies and our ballistics in some of our cooking as well. My most proud moment was being recognized by Chef Ramsey’s assistant when he competed in the competition for MasterChef eight, another proud moment in my life was being recognized by my children and for them to see that I’m doing this for them to start generational wealth to leave them a legacy, I can say be a featured in veg news the summer issue that was amazing as well but it’s the more so of the little things that count to me. Seeing that my kids understand why I am so dedicated to something was more important to me then anything. I’m also proud of overcoming a lot of my life situations that I’ve been through. What set me a part from others in my profession there’s only one Aaliyah Garrett I’m who!!! I treat people how I would like to be treated. I was taught to always do onto others as you want done onto you others and there is no small of a task that goes unseen.
How do you think about happiness?
I think of happiness as being able to do things that I was not able to do growing up I have been able to accomplish every goal that I set my mind to and not allowing naysayers or anything to not let me conquer it even with my minor setback happiness is knowing that I can give to people and do for others because I have it and even when I don’t have it. Happiness is what you get out of life some people are unhappy because of their situation and I was always taught to change your situation if you don’t like it get uncomfortable very uncomfortable…happiness!!!! All I can say is book a flight and make sure you get a window seat and make sure it’s a nice day and look out the window that’s what happiness is something you can’t explain to someone that never experienced it…
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @veganistabymissgarrett
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MissGarrettsvegansoul/
- TikTok: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZTdqJpm2P/
- Other: https://missgarrettsvegans.wixsite.com/website/links
Image Credits
Angelamorrismedia
Jau’varyanna Green
