Founder Spotlight: Meredith Marin (Vegan Hospitality)
Meet Meredith Marin:
Vegan Hospitality is the world's leading business and consultant network focused on providing support and resources for the hospitality industry to cater to vegan customers. This includes consulting, training, and certification services to help restaurants, hotels, and other hospitality establishments create and improve their vegan offerings.
Location:
Aruba (Dutch Caribbean)
When did you launch the business?
2019
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Startup Stage:
Early Stage
What led you to where you are today?
My background in social work and community organizing fueled my vision to revolutionize the hospitality industry with Vegan Hospitality, aiming to create a global shift towards inclusive and compassionate dining. This journey led me to develop the High Impact Hospitality Method, transforming Aruba into the Caribbean's most vegan-friendly island and spearheading the world's first third-party validated hotel certification for vegan accommodations, setting a new standard for hospitality worldwide. My company's mission is to make the vegan lifestyle accessible and acceptable across the globe, with a focus on the hospitality industry as a leader in this transition.
What do you wish you knew before embarking on your entrepreneurial journey?
I don't think there is anything I wish I had known. I am truly enjoying the process of experiencing my journey unfold as I encounter both obstacles and achievements. I think that one aspect I wish I had done differently would have been to set more boundaries around my time early on, and to focus on networking with the right people, aiming for more targeted reach rather than wide reach.
What is the most difficult decision you've had to make regarding your business so far?
As an entrepreneur and a mother, I often have to make decisions that affect the well-being of my family. One difficult decision I made was signing two exciting client contracts the week I was giving birth to my second child. This resulted in my bringing my 4-month-old baby on a travel consulting project. There were pros and cons to this experience, and ultimately with these decisions I believe there is no "right" answer; rather, just two separate paths, and you only get to explore one!
What can you help the VEGPRENEUR community with?
Mindfulness has been a key practice for me during my entrepreneurship journey, and I offer the Vegan Leadership Accelerator course as a way to transfer that knowledge to other vegan entrepreneurs. It can be accessed at www.veganleadershipaccelerator.com. I am humbled to be able to share that I have been told that this course has changed people's lives. I also teach a live course and provide mentorship to vegans who are ready to turn their passion into activism in the hospitality sector, by learning to start their own vegan hospitality consulting businesses. That information can be found at www.veganhospitality.com.
How can the VEGPRENEUR community help you?
Reach out to me if you work in hospitality and are interested in making your workplace vegan-friendly. I welcome any networking opportunities, mentorship opportunities, or support with building strategic partnerships in the hospitality space.
Fun fact about you:
I once hosted a 5-course luncheon for top chefs who were unaware that the whole menu was vegan until after the first course. Their minds were blown!
Anything else you would like to share?
Being an entrepreneur is a wild ride, and you should be proud of everything you accomplish along the way. Changing the world takes time, and it takes collective action, and we are in this together.
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