Spotlight on Robin Selden of Marcia Selden Catering & Event Planning

Today, we’re shining the light on an expert in the catering field: Robin Selden, the Executive Chef for Marcia Selden Catering & Event Planning. Her mother, Marcia, launched her company over 40 years ago and it has been a family business ever since, with Robin at the reins in the kitchen and her brother Jeffrey at the reins of the Sales and Operations team.

Robin generously made some time to speak with us about her team’s adjustment to COVID-19 and how they continue to navigate through these uncertain times.

How has your client communication evolved and changed over the last few months?

It has changed a great deal as we recognize that we need to nurture our client relationships more now than ever! Living with so much uncertainty is stressful for us all. Having that genuine human contact and touching base “just because” has been really well-received by our clients and actually has been very cathartic for our team as well. It has strengthened many of our relationships and kept us on our client’s minds in a way that has made them feel special. We know that when they are ready to party again that we will be their first call!

What has your business done to keep employees happy and motivated during this time?

We have been completely transparent about EVERYTHING since day one! We’ve encouraged them to engage and to have their voices heard as we all go through this as a team. We’ve had Zoom calls to touch base with our entire team (even those that are furloughed for now) that have kept them updated on what’s going on at MSC.

We always include a social portion on the call, too. We’ve played virtual bingo for fun prizes, had our favorite mentalist do a virtual magic show for them, etc. We’ve also made food boxes for their families so we know they are being taken care of.

The team that has been working from the beginning knew that it wasn’t an option for us not to come through this on the other side. Our team takes ownership of our company so, in many ways, they are self-motivated to make sure that we are successful. We’ve all worn a lot of hats during this, from delivering food contact-free to sanitizing and cleaning our entire building — none of which are in any of their job descriptions. We are truly blessed to have the most amazing time at MSC. They are our family!

How do you foresee events changing in 2021?

Truthfully, I don’t even know how to answer that question! I’d like to hope that things will be different, but fear that what we are doing now will become our new normal for quite some time.

What advice do you have for other caterers that are still struggling to adapt—whether that’s navigating postponements and cancellations, staying organized and productive, or staying creative with menus?

Keep positive! I say it all the time! We are the disruptors in the culinary industry! We need to be persistent and reinvent and reimagine ourselves and our companies on a weekly (and sometimes daily) basis. Have a strategy and set goals that are attainable, then meet them. We evoke joy through food when we cater. There is a future and we need to be a part of it! Get up and go EVERY morning and keep the passion for our industry alive and within. We will get through this strong and smarter than ever before! Let’s do this people! #savecatering

For more information about Marcia Selden Catering & Event Planning, visit their website here: http://marciaselden.com/.