Meet Jessica Sennett

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jessica Sennett a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jessica, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

I think a healthy dose of self-reflection and a humble demeanor is a better way to live and forge relationships in this life. However, that doesn’t mean that you don’t have to advocate for yourself and your ideas. When doing something innovative or niche, there will be a lot of naysayers at the beginning, so you need to constantly remind yourself that you have the knowledge, creativity, and insight to develop a new product, listen to the feedback received, and do everything you can stand 100% behind the quality of what you are making. This is how I developed the Cheese Grotto storage line and brand.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I’m the inventor of Cheese Grotto, an internationally award-winning cheese storage line for the home. We manufacture our cheese humidors in New York and Ohio, and the storage conditions of a Cheese Grotto mimic cheese aging caves (breathable frame and materials, clay brick humidifier). They are designed to extend the shelf-life of specialty cheeses in the refrigerator, but also they are designed to pique your curiosity and enjoyment of one of the most complex foods in the world: cheese. I’ve worked in the specialty cheese industry for 18 years, and I’m still learning about the nuances of all the different styles of cheese in the world. It is a world like wine, where you can devote your entire life to exploring the craft. In addition to our patented Cheese Grottos, we also curate monthly and quarterly cheese subscription programs to continue to educate and satiate the curious cheese lover. All our items are amazing gifts for the gourmet foodie in your life, as they all tell a story and aren’t mass manufactured.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Successful business owners are folks that enjoy multi-tasking, they enjoy continuing to learn and continuing to be challenged. I’m a perfectionist, which was initially almost the death of me and my mental wellbeing as a business owner. To all the perfectionists out there starting a business, please remind yourself: failing is an essential component of business. If you do not fail at all while launching a business, then what are you really doing? Failure is the source of learning and the source of growth, Just keep failing up. But I would also say perfectionism is simultaneously a strength for a small business owner as long as you don’t let it take over, as details really do matter for the long term success of your business. And, there is an unspoken power in small business: you are able to pivot very easily. A giant corporation can’t always do this without hemorrhaging too much money. But there is a strength in bootstrapping.

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

As a small business, the one top challenge is exposure to new customers online. We don’t have a big advertising budget, and have been able to successfully operate for nearly eight years off of word of mouth and press placement, but we are currently at a place where we have room to grow our cheese program considerably. Our sales spike during the holidays as that’s when folks gift our cheese subscriptions to friends and family, but we’re looking for more year-round cheese lovers to engage in our subscription program which I find truly one-of-a-kind. There are educational opportunities and incredible pairings and cheese recipes choose from. We’re collaborating with as many cheesemakers and cheese lovers as we can to get the word out, we’re also starting our first paid advertising campaign. Wish us luck!

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Image Credits

Sarah E Crowder

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