Hello beautiful readers of AuntyLulu blog 😊, I trust you’re all in great spirits 🤩.
Let me shed some light on why I started the ‘Passion for Profession’ series. The series is a spin-off of one of my favourite blog posts – Talent, passion and interest. So far, I have shared the inspiring stories of ladies who have made a profession from their passion -but I have something extra special today 😋. If you will recall, I mentioned in the article that it is possible to earn by pursuing both passion and talent, and I ended it with this statement – “blessed is the one who can combine it all together 😊. This is the case for my personality of today, Brenda David
Brenda is a woman of many faces, she has a day job which I’ll say is based on interest and she has successfully built a brand from her passion for entertainment. Wait, wait that’s not all 🤚🏽, She has also built something special out of her prowess in the kitchen, isn’t she such a multi-faceted woman 😃. Well then, let’s meet her.
Can you please tell us a bit about yourself
My name is Brenda David, I’m a wife and mum to 3 wonderful children. I work as a housing manager with the home office and as an event manager – hosting children and adults events. I also created my own sauce two years ago and it’s called Celario sauce.
What do you like most about your job
My day job as a housing manager as well as both of my businesses involves meeting different people. I enjoy that part of it.
What are your hobbies
Dancing, I love to dance, if you look through my social media posts I’m dancing in a lot of them. I love listening to music, well anyone who loves dancing must in some way appreciate music, if not what do you dance to 😊. I also enjoy swimming and visiting interesting places
Tell us something people don’t know about you?
I’m a very homely person. When I’m working, people always see me playing around and joking and I’m pretty sure they think I’ll be some kind of lazy woman! I’m actually very homely, I love cooking and the comfort of my home. I love hanging out with my kids just by watching something interesting on TV. It is plausible to assume I love going out because of my job, but I actually don’t mind staying home all day. Let’s not forget the sleeping 😄, I actually sleep a lot too.
How did you get into entertainment?
I studied Theatre Arts in school so I’ve always loved production and entertainment and I love children. Relocating to the UK, I always thought children entertainment could be better, then I saw a male entertainer (now my friend and colleague) in action and I was challenged, I felt with my background and nature I can do this. The timing was also perfect for me, so I delved right into it, tried different styles did some fine tuning and voila, 😃, its all Brenddaisy entertainment now. I love children and doing something that makes them happy is priceless.
Where do you see your business in 10 years?
I see my businesses become global. I see Celario Sauce stocked in all major grocery stores worldwide.
How did you come up with Celario Sauce?
Celario sauce was birthed from my love for cooking. I cook every day, I have a natural talent for cooking. There were days I would come home tired from work and most of the meals I make (most Nigerian meals) are sauce based. I would always think there has to be something, something already prepared. I’d tried some popular sauces in the market but they just didn’t do it for me, the taste was never right. Every time I complained, I always had this nagging thought to do something about it rather than complain.
So I finally gave in, did my research and realized there was nothing like Selario sauce in the market. Next, I started asking around just to see if other people would find it useful. The responses I got also challenged me to find a solution to ‘our common’ sauce problem. It took three years of research and tests to come up with it.
How did you come up with the name Celario and what can it be used for?
I came up with the name Celario based on my conviction that Celario will be global one day. I thought a name with an international ring to it would be appropriate. Luckily for me, I was able to achieve this without neglecting my roots – as Celario, broken down in my native language is a combination of ‘Se (cook it) La (taste it) and Ro (stir it).
Celario can be used by anyone to cook anything. Just like you use Dolmio, Ragu or any other sauce in the market, it can be added to anything or used on its own. It can be used for Jollof rice,moi-moi, efo riro as it can be used for bolognese, seafood sauce etc. It is really good with anything, a trial will convince you.
Where can Celario be purchased?
It’s in local stores in Enfield, Grays, Dagenham, South East, Borehamwood, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Barking, Tilbury and we’re looking to expand. It’s a long way from when we started, then it was just available on-line, so I’m excited by the growth so far and even more excited for the future. We still have it on our website – www.celariosauce.co.uk
What are the challenges – if any – you face in your jobs?
With my day job, I have to deal with tenants with different challenges ranging from depression, mental issues to different social issues.
With entertainment, I sometimes have to deal with parents getting crazy over party bags. Sometimes it just goes so fast and they take it out on the entertainer, this happens mainly with big parties though. Sticking to a time frame with children’s parties could also be challenging sometimes, with children it’s sometimes difficult to stick to a plan.
The sauce, gosh, funding! It is very capital intensive and I keep investing every day, hopefully, this will change when I can get it into the big stores. I’ve also been unable to do any major marketing, I’m just doing it bit by bit. But I’m positive that I’ll get there, I love what I do and I’m determined to put everything into it.
Is there anyone in this business you look up to or admire their work?
There are people whose job I admire but I generally look up to God and the holy spirit to guide me. Both in my day to day life as well as my business. I’m always happy when I see others flourishing and I’m always happy to support in any way possible.
Any advice for budding entrepreneurs especially in your field?
Believe in your dreams, don’t be too scared, just go for it. People who are successes today started somewhere too, they were probably scared at the beginning, but they have their success stories now. Even big brands still have fears of failing, so just go for it, follow your dreams.
How do you juggle your work and businesses with family life?
I honestly don’t know, I must say though that I’m blessed in the area of sleep 😃, so once I get a good night sleep, I’m refreshed and good to go. I also don’t worry too much, since I gave my life to Christ, I just leave it all in his hands.
Are you always cheery and in a happy mood?
Oh yes, I’m a happy person, I’m very joyous. I find it very difficult to be upset, I see joy and happiness in everything around me. Of course, there are times I get upset but I don’t let it linger. I radiate joy, I carry it everywhere with me 😊. I don’t like seeing anyone gloomy around me, even if they’re strangers I try to do something about it, even if it’s just a smile I try to lift people’s spirits as much as I could.
What drives you?
Life and God. There’s so much happening in the world, people dying, people are hungry, homeless so many challenges! so life drives me. Having family, good health, shelter and friends drive me. I didn’t become this strong overnight but I trained myself by reading books, listening to sermons, reading the bible, so being thankful for life and all I’m surrounded with drives me.
If you had a chance to pick one superpower, which will it be?
Ability to make everyone happy, kind and nice to others. I would love for everyone to get along, for peace, love and unity.
Thank you so much for your time.
Follow Brenda;
Instagram @brenddaisy
www.celariosauce.co.uk
