Today we’d like to introduce you to Collette Simko-Knauss.
Hi Collette, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Girl from California moved to Austin, Texas. I lived in Europe and South America before starting a family and I love to cook! I speak English and Spanish. My travels and residency while studying in high school, undergrad, and post-grad MBA programs in three continents plus food allergies, help my company, Events by Collette, create unique recipes and make cooking, baking, and eating a delicious activity.
When I was 31, I am 40 now; my cousin, who is an orthopedic surgeon, helped me to discover why I was always feeling ill, the reason I had skin problems and why I was suffering from lethargy. I tested out a new diet with his suggestions and felt like a cloud had been lifted from my body. I went for allergy testing and it confirmed my cousin’s suggestions.
My next task: clean out my entire kitchen. There was nothing in the apartment I could eat without getting sick. Still to this day, when I talk to friends about my allergies, they all are so glad I discovered a remedy for my discomfort. My friends who lived or travelled with me agree I was suffering and were toward sympathy me.
My husband and my son have been a huge support system through my battle. My husband and I are constantly researching new foods worldwide. Therefore, we eat a wide variety of international foods in our home. Yes, my 5-year-old son eats like an adult with his palette. I must prepare most of my meals in the home due to lack of trust in the restaurant industry as most hospitality workers are not well educated in food allergies.
During this allergy discovery period of my life, I was running an event planning company under the same name as the current company, Events by Collette. Yes, I rebranded E by C two years after my son was born, and I worked from home. Being a stay-at-home mom and having a son who may as well be called Curious George, I had to figure out a way to get meals on the table yet keep my son out of trouble. I had to teach my son how to respect the kitchen and created a sous chef out of him!
I saw how different my son was compared to his friends and other children in the kitchen. He had better eating habits and was more willing try nutritious foods. Before I decided to rebrand the company, I was planning on closing E by C since being an event planner is not a good fit for a mother who needs to work 24 hours a day. Although I thought, wouldn’t it be fun to teach other people who have food allergies how to respect the kitchen and eat healthier while learning how to prepare their own meals.
Approximately two years ago, I began offering free classes to my son’s school and the children were curious and listened. Then the COVID-19 virus lockdown occurred in the year 2020. I asked my husband if he could film my son and I every Saturday while we prepare a recipe from my recipe blog or cookbook as a possible promotional tool for my culinary school when there is an opportunity to open for classes. He agreed to being the cameraman and editor. We had so much fun filming. We sent the videos to our friends and family for entertainment purposes, and everyone asked for more!
A few months after we began recording, I started getting homeschool students who signed up for virtual classes. Then when Texas opened more after the virus lockdown, I began teaching in-school extracurricular classes and homeschool in-person classes.
We all face challenges, however looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Being a mother, I must be extremely organized in taking time to prepare lesson plans and shopping for ingredients. I am “mom” when my son is not in school, camp, or sports activities so have a strict schedule and must write everything down or else I will forget! No, I don’t have a nanny.
At times, I have difficult students; I need to figure out different disciplinary ways to handle them better in class.
At times, I have students with allergies that I don’t usually deal with in the kitchen. I take this as a new challenge and test ingredients in the kitchen to make it friendly for them to eat. Fortunately, in the USA, we have so many products available to us. If you know how to properly use the ingredients, anyone with any special dietary needs can be happy!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We offer mini donut cakes catering, private cooking parties for adults and children, team building, and gift cards too!
Ok, now a little background on the donuts: Everyone, including students, family, and friends has continuously been voicing to me I should sell my food products, especially my mini donut cakes. Eventually I made the right connections and convinced myself into taking the risk. My father is a serial entrepreneur and much of my risk taking in life is due viewing his accomplishments and following my mother’s encouragement that I can be successful in anything I put my mind to.
My COLLETTES, mini donut cakes, will be for sale beginning August 5, 2021, in the Austin area for pick up, delivery and at local establishments such as Crown Donuts Lakeway.
You buy them like a box of truffles. They come with four different flavors: strawberry, avocado lime, cinnamon, and chocolate. Special orders are available. Since I am very earth conscience, the packaging is of course, compostable. The mini donut cakes are of course, gluten-free, vegan, soy-free, and for those with dairy and nightshade intolerances, low in sugar, and have no artificial flavors or colors.
Yes, we are still teaching classes while taking a stab at selling our mini donut cakes. In addition to our in-school extracurricular classes and homeschool in-person classes, we are still offering virtual classes to those who prefer them and to those who want to try a Free Class before committing to a class package.
Throughout my classes, we expose the students, children 3+ and adults, to our gluten-free, soy-free, and for those with dairy and nightshade intolerances recipes.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
Here’s to hoping the culinary classes keep growing and my mini donut cakes become very popular and we can figure out how to ship them out of the Austin area easily. Our family and friends want our donuts in other parts of the world, but I just cannot get wrap my head around the logistics. Please write to us with any ideas!
As my son and sous chef always says, “Buen Provecho!”
Pricing:
- 15.00 (Variety of mini donut cakes. Other selections available)
- 40.00 for 1 or 315.00 for 8 classes (Homeschool private class)
- 12.00 for 1 or 90.00 for 8 classes (Virtual private homeschool class)
- 280.00 (Includes 1 recipe, couples cooking class)
- 150.00 per person (Includes 1 recipe, Teambuilding class)
Contact Info:
- Email: collette@eventsbycollette.com
- Website: https://www.eventsbycollette.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/events_by_collette/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/collettesdonuts/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS4kFUWRhDtkoY0tmo2HYCA/videos
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/events-by-collette-austin-5
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/colletteevents/_created/
