Meet Kimberly Perez of My Comadre’s Kitchen

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kimberly Perez.

Kimberly, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Let me start by saying I have always loved to cook for people. The kitchen is and always has been my ‘She-Shed’ my safe haven. People have always told me how much they love my food, and that I should open a restaurant. It’s always been such a passion for me, it’s hard to explain the love I have for cooking. But I took my career down another path, never feeling complete.

But life happens, An accident left me with a neck injury in 2005, and everything in my life would change including losing my Mom Santa a couple months after the accident. Life really comes into perspective when suddenly your options are limited. One thing that I still had was that yearning for cooking especially because my Mom Santa had passed away, and I knew I had to keep her recipes alive but using my right arm and hand was difficult due to the injury. I had an amazing Neurosurgeon Dr. Lieberman who has taken care of me through surgeries and made it possible for me to have enough strength in my arm and hand again.

Fast forward to March 2018, I was asked if I could make burritos for a company. So I did. Then I was asked if I could make them every Friday since the employees loved them. So I did. I was asked if I could do a dessert so I made cupcakes. One of the employees asked me if I could make Strawberry Crumble cupcakes like the ice cream bar. So, of course, I said, ‘yes’. I had never made them before so I looked up tons of recipes for different cupcakes that you don’t find in a store every day. Then the following weeks the request for the cupcakes started expanding to the employees telling their friends about the cupcakes.

So I figured I should offer them to my family and friends also. I had such a great response that I knew I had to start doing this as a business. In Aug of 2018, My Comadre’s Kitchen became an LLC. Not only was my dream coming to life but I was coming to life again! Of course I want my customers to have a great tasting treat but more importantly, I want my customer to know how much love that cupcake is filled with! And that love is what will keep My Comadre’s Kitchen growing.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Definitely not a smooth road.

Since I still have pain from my injury, there are some days that are really a struggle but it’s the passion and love for what I do for my customers that keeps me going.

My husband and I decided when we started the business that we would not take out loans, use any of our retirement or use credit cards. We would finance it ourselves and reinvest our profits. Well, when business is slow, and you’re spending more than you’re bringing in, it causes problems. I’ve noticed people don’t really talk about the financial hardship a business can cause in the beginning but it’s real.

Another struggle was building that customer base. No matter how great your product is, getting a steady flow of customers takes time.

Alright – so let’s talk business. What else should we know about your work?
I’ll start by explaining how I came up with the name of My Comadre’s Kitchen. I wanted something that represented what happens in my kitchen besides the usual cooking. When Comadres aka close family and friends, get together usually the food is involved. My kitchen is small but we all gather in there to share how our life is going, usually while I cook. You have one Comadre that is helping by cutting things. One is chasing the kids out of the kitchen. One or more is getting the tequila shots ready. One is in charge of music. And all the while we are catching up on each other’s lives. So with that, the name of My Comadre’s Kitchen came about.

I have a Cottage license to cook out of my home so my food and cupcakes are delivered to you. I must say, my green chili chicken enchiladas and the Banana Cream cupcakes are the most popular items.

We recently added on a Churro Booth that we can set up at private events so I’m really excited about that new adventure for us.

We do cater to all types of events, corporate parties, birthday parties, etc.

I am also a vendor at local events. One of my dreams was to be a vendor at Mujeres Mercado, and this past Sunday I did that! It was amazing being surrounded by so many amazing women vendors. If you have never been to one of their events, you must attend one! The experience is amazing.

The main thing that sets me apart from others, is me. I am picky about what I offer my customers. If the best products and service isn’t able to be offered than I won’t do it.

I don’t feel that us bakers are or should be in competition with each other (unless it’s for fun) There are well over a couple million people in Phoenix alone, and everyone has to eat so there is room for all of us to stay busy and grow our business. I will buy a competitor’s cupcake because I love cupcakes and I love supporting other small businesses.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
The only thing I would do differently if I could go back in time is, I would have started this business when my Mom Santa was alive. There are so many times I need to ask her for advice on my recipes and how she would deal with certain issues. I am blessed that I have a great brother and sister that fill in for her and keep me going in those moments with their advice and backing of my business. Other than that,

Absolutely nothing. I needed and will always need all my fails. The fails are important because it forces me to pick myself and the business up to become better.

Contact Info:

• Email: mycomadreskitchen@gmail.com

Suggest a story: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.