The Food Fairy

The Chatham County Economic Development Corporation recognizes that entrepreneurs and small business owners are a vital source of Chatham County’s economic growth. In 2008, the Chatham County Board of Commissioners granted the EDC $275,000 to start a revolving loan fund to support local small businesses. The EDC is proud to announce that the Chatham Loan Fund, operated in partnership with Self Help Ventures in Durham, has made its first loan to Chatham business owner Terri McClernon.

Terri owns The Food Fairy, a personal chef and event catering business that works with clients to match in-home meal preparations with their nutritional and financial budgets. Terri cooks weekly and bi-weekly for some clients; for others, she stocks their freezers every 6 weeks in preparation for busy evenings.

Terri got her start in her own kitchen. She said, “As a stay at home mom for 19 years, I enjoyed the luxury of cooking lots of different things and often refused to make the same thing twice. This taught me many different techniques and many different styles and tastes of cooking.” During those years, Terri worked part time jobs such as preparing desserts for a nearby theater, waitressing, and making and selling hors d’oeuvres at holiday time.

Terri turned her interest into a business opportunity after reading a New York Times article about a personal chef association. When Terri moved to North Carolina in 1996, she realized she couldn’t afford to work for food industry wages, even though it was her passion. According to Terri, “When the realization hit that I had to do something more profitable, I decided I would become a personal chef. I did not have the funds to join that association and felt like I had all the skills and resources to create my business without paying them $3000.”

The business grew slowly at first, but picked up as the trend towards personal chefs and healthier eating grew. In the first year of her business, Terri began cooking for a Raleigh couple who were in business for themselves as well. Terri says, “I often read them my PR flyers and asked for their advice. One day, while reading a flyer out loud, Kathy interrupted me and said, ‘Why, you sound just like a food fairy!’”
Two years ago, Terri’s CPA suggested she expand her business by creating a DVD. At the time, Terri was booked and unable to take on new clients. The “Cook Once*Eat For Weeks” cook-a-long video was created for the home cook; viewers cook along with Terri as she prepares three delicious, nutritious meals in just 90 minutes. Terri funded production of the DVD, but was financially stuck when it came to successfully launching her new product. Until that point, Terri ran her business without needing to borrow money; however, she needed outside funding to move her business to the next level.

The Small Business & Technology Development Center in Chapel Hill referred Terri to the Self Help Credit Union, where she discovered the Chatham Loan Fund. According to Terri, “Jennifer Sherwin at Self Help was the one to tell me that the Chatham Loan Fund was there for Chatham businesses and that was my only hope for money for this new wing of The Food Fairy.”

Terri’s funding was approved just weeks before her DVD was completed. Initially, Terri plans to revamp The Food Fairy’s website and to hire a public relations & marketing firm to launch the DVD locally. With these efforts, Terri hopes that The Food Fairy DVD will have a broader appeal beyond local supporters who need a personal chef or kitchen support. While her PR Firm looks for new sponsors for future videos, Terri will mark her achievement by having four new classes, organizing two major launch events, and touring half a dozen cities to teach classes and promote the DVD.

With the help of the Chatham Loan Fund, The Food Fairy rebounded from last year’s economic downturn and Terri has seen business pick up significantly. In the future, Terri would like to see The Food Fairy become a household name, synonymous with fresh and local food that is made with conscious and loving care.

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